former U.S. attorney in Sacramento<\/a>, did not provide details about the approach, and it was not mentioned in the federal indictment.<\/p>\nA second source with knowledge of the case who was not authorized to speak publicly said federal investigators tried to pressure Williamson into implicating Newsom, but that Williamson told them she had no knowledge of any wrongdoing by the governor and that she refused to cooperate.<\/p>\n
According to the 23-count indictment, unsealed Wednesday morning, political consultant Williamson conspired with Becerra\u2019s former chief deputy in the California attorney general\u2019s office and ex-chief of staff Sean McCluskie, along with lobbyist Greg Campbell to bill Becerra\u2019s dormant campaign account for bogus consulting services. <\/p>\n
Williamson, 53, entered a federal courtroom in Sacramento on Wednesday afternoon looking solemn, wearing an oversize gray hoodie. She initially remained composed but could be heard softly crying as the case progressed. She pleaded not guilty to the charges.<\/p>\n
Scott said Williamson was ill and had recently been put on a waiting list for a liver transplant.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my experience, an arrest warrant is only issued for people who have committed violent crimes or are a flight risk. There was absolutely no reason for them to not contact me, let me know of the indictment and allow me to make arrangements to surrender herself,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Williamson, McCluskie and Campbell allegedly used shell companies they controlled to funnel money from the campaign fund starting in early 2022, when Becerra was serving as Health and Human Services secretary under President Biden. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe news today of formal accusations of impropriety by a long-serving trusted advisor are a gut punch,\u201d Becerra said in a statement. \u201cI have voluntarily cooperated with the U.S. Department of Justice in their investigation, and will continue to do so. As California\u2019s former Attorney General, I fully comprehend the importance of allowing this investigation and legal process to run its course through our justice system.\u201d<\/p>\n
The bulk of those payments went to McCluskie\u2019s wife, then a stay-at-home mom, for fake work, federal authorities allege. McCluskie agreed to plead guilty to a single count of conspiracy to commit fraud and is cooperating with authorities, court filings show.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s unbelievable,\u201d said Steve Maviglio, a longtime Democratic consultant who has known Williamson for more than two decades and Campbell for nearly the same. \u201cThey are both the very best at what they do. They know the rules, that\u2019s why this seems to make no sense whatsoever.\u201d<\/p>\n
Campbell\u2019s attorney Todd Pickles said his client \u201ctakes full accountability for his actions and is cooperating fully with the legal process.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know Greg Campbell to be an honorable former public servant and a positive and respected member of the community who has conducted himself with integrity through this deeply challenging process,\u201d Pickles said.<\/p>\n
In addition to bilking Becerra\u2019s campaign fund, Williamson was charged with falsifying documents to backstop a COVID-era small-business loan and claiming designer handbags and luxury vacations as business expenses on her tax returns. <\/p>\n
Among her contested write-offs: Williamson allegedly bought herself a $15,353 Chanel purse and a $5,818 Fendi wallet; splashed out for a $150,000 birthday trip to Mexico, where she charged an $11,000 yacht trip; charged a $21,000 jaunt on a private jet; and dropped more than $10,000 at an unnamed California theme park. <\/p>\n
The Paycheck Protection Program was part of a trillion-dollar federal relief effort designed to help Americans and small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. <\/p>\n
Williamson was released Wednesday on a $500,000 bond. Judge Carolyn Delaney ordered her to provide a DNA sample, submit to drug testing, surrender her passport and relinquish any firearms in her possession. She gave Williamson until Nov. 26 to put up collateral.<\/p>\n
News of the indictment could further scramble the 2026 race for California governor, which will be an open seat as Newsom terms out. Becerra has launched a campaign for the post, as have a number of other prominent Democrats including former Rep. Katie Porter and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. <\/p>\n
While Becerra is not accused of wrongdoing in the case, having his name linked to Sacramento insiders accused of political corruption could complicate his run.<\/p>\n
The indictment could also cause problems for Newsom, who has openly said he is considering a run for president in 2028. Though there is no indication that the allegations are tied to the work Williamson did as Newsom\u2019s chief of staff, Republicans and other political rivals may exploit a scandal tied to one of his top former advisors.<\/p>\n
Williamson is known as a seasoned political operator in Sacramento and blunt-talking enforcer for Newsom. She joined the governor\u2019s office in early 2023 and departed late last year.<\/p>\n
A former Cabinet secretary to former Gov. Jerry Brown who also once worked for former Gov. Gray Davis, she served Newsom through a difficult period for California and the governor\u2019s office, when a budget surplus shifted to a deficit and policy priorities became harder to push through.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve had the honor of serving under three governors and when asked what I will miss the most, my answer is always the same \u2014 the privilege of working with some of the smartest and most committed people I\u2019ve ever known,\u201d she said at the time. <\/p>\n
She left her job at the Capitol in December. <\/p>\n
\u201cMs. Williamson no longer serves in this administration,\u201d a spokesperson for the governor said. \u201cWhile we are still learning details of the allegations, the Governor expects all public servants to uphold the highest standards of integrity. At a time when the President is openly calling for his Attorney General to investigate his political enemies, it is especially important to honor the American principle of being innocent until proven guilty in a court of law by a jury of one\u2019s peers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Newsom has been in Brazil since Sunday, beginning with a global climate investors symposium in S\u00e3o Paulo before flying roughly 1,800 miles north to Bel\u00e9m for the United Nations climate summit known as COP30. <\/p>\n
On Wednesday morning, before news of the charges against Williamson, he left the conference for a planned trip deep into the Amazon rainforest, where he and a small delegation will board another flight and then travel by boat to visit reforestation and climate mitigation projects.<\/p>\n
Newsom said he was eager to witness \u201cwhat I\u2019ve only seen on TV or what I\u2019ve seen disappear in my lifetime,\u201d describing both the anxiety he felt during years of fires and deforestation under former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and the optimism he hopes to find in the restoration work now underway.<\/p>\n
Federal authorities said the indictment was the result of a three-year investigation, meaning it began during the Biden administration.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday\u2019s charges are the result of three years of relentless investigative work, in partnership with IRS Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office,\u201d said FBI Sacramento Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel. \u201cThe FBI will remain vigilant in its efforts to uncover fraud and corruption, ensuring our government systems are held to the highest standards.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Gov. Gavin Newsom\u2019s former chief of staff was arrested Wednesday on federal charges that allege she siphoned $225,000…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":288452,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[151617,23,151625,151623,151620,151624,151618,74792,3,151626,151619,7125,151621,24834,21,19,22,20,25,24,6601,19500,151622],"class_list":{"0":"post-288451","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"tag-alleged-fraud","9":"tag-america","10":"tag-campaign-fund","11":"tag-dormant-state-campaign-account","12":"tag-federal-charge","13":"tag-feds-charge-gov-newsom","14":"tag-former-chief","15":"tag-indictment","16":"tag-news","17":"tag-relentless-investigative-work","18":"tag-sean-mccluskie","19":"tag-staff","20":"tag-tax-crime","21":"tag-u-s-attorney","22":"tag-united-states","23":"tag-united-states-of-america","24":"tag-unitedstates","25":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","26":"tag-us","27":"tag-usa","28":"tag-wednesday","29":"tag-wife","30":"tag-williamson"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288451","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=288451"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288451\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/288452"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=288451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=288451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=288451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}