Where could the revelations about Trump records lead?

WASHINGTON >> Revelations that Donald Trump took government records with him to Mar-a-Lago are creating a political headache for the former president — and a potential legal one, too. House lawmakers have opened an investigation and the National Archives and Records Administration has reportedly asked the Justice Department to look into the matter. The Justice Department and the FBI have not yet said what, if anything, they'll do.

A look at what could lie ahead:

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN OTHER AGENCIES SEEK A JUSTICE DEPARTMENT INVESTIGATION?

The Justice Department routinely receives referrals from Congress and other government agencies when those agencies come upon conduct they think might break the law.

Sometimes those referrals result in investigations and even criminal charges, though in many other instances they do not. The Justice Department is generally not bound to take any action suggested to it by another agency.

The Washington Post first reported this week that the archivist asked the Justice Department to investigate the discovery of 15 boxes of White House records recovered from Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, and that the former president had a habit in office of tearing up records both “sensitive and mundane.”

WHAT MIGHT INVESTIGATORS LOOK FOR?

There are several issues potentially at play, including the Presidential Records Act, which was enacted in 1978 after former President Richard Nixon wanted to destroy documents related to the Watergate scandal.

The law mandates that presidential records are the property of the U.S. government, rather than belonging to the president himself. Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., the chair of the House Oversight Committee, said in a statement announcing the investigation that Trump was required under the law to turn over the documents to the National Archives before leaving office, and that lawmakers are seeking information about the contents of the boxes recovered from Mar-a-Lago.