An investigation is underway into reports that a Russian oligarch paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for the wedding celebrations of US President Donald Trump's son earlier this year.
Umar Kremlev, a Russian business owner and president of the International Boxing Association, paid for two parties for Donald Trump Jr and his wife, Bettina, in the Bahamas in May.
Robert Garcia, the senior Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, is expected to lead a deeper investigation if his party wins a majority in the US House of Representatives in November's midterm elections.
Democrats in the US Congress have launched an investigation into reports that a Russian oligarch paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for the wedding celebrations of President Donald Trump's son earlier this year.
The Democrats' move comes on the heels of an article revealing that the wedding festivities of Donald Trump Jr were funded by a wealthy Russian business owner with strong ties to President Vladimir Putin and the Russian government.
ProPublica reported that Umar Kremlev, a wealthy Russian business owner and president of the International Boxing Association (IBA), paid for wedding festivities in the Bahamas in May.
"Why is a Russian oligarch and friend of Vladimir Putin financially supporting the president's son?" US representative Robert Garcia wrote in a social media post on Tuesday, local time.
"What does Umar Kremlev expect in return for funding this three-day wedding in the Bahamas?"
Mr Garcia is the senior Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
He is expected to chair the panel if Democrats win a majority in the House of Representatives in November's midterm elections.
A representative for Mr Trump Jr declined to comment.
His wife, Bettina Trump, said in an Instagram post on Monday, local time, Mr Kremlev was a friend who had extended an "extraordinarily generous wedding gift", stressing that Mr Kremlev had paid for two after-parties, not the wedding itself.
Mr Kremlev and the IBA did not respond to requests for comment on Tuesday, local time.
The president, who did not attend his son's wedding, said in a statement that he did not know Mr Kremlev.
He added that the wedding controversy was "not a big deal".
US Attorney-General Todd Blanche also brushed aside the potential conflict of interest when asked about it, saying he would not investigate.
"I like that it's fun to talk about this issue and the rhetoric around it, but I think all the relevant people involved, the president and his kids have already addressed it."
Mr Garcia and other leading House Democrats have already been gearing up for probes into Mr Trump, his family and ethics questions that have arisen since the start of the president's second term in January 2025.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer called the wedding arrangement "so corrupt, so venal, so endangering our national security".
In a speech to the Senate, Senator Schumer added: "You're dealing with a Russian oligarch, not just a cousin who's giving you a gift."
In the first year of his second presidential term, which began in January 2025, Mr Trump reported $US2.2 billion ($3.1 billion) in revenue, with more than half coming from cryptocurrency ventures.
In the previous year, his personal income was reported at $US622 million.