SACRAMENTO, Calif., July 6 (Our California Times) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom accused President Donald Trump on Monday of directing the Justice Department to investigate him and his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, but multiple reports say at least some of the federal inquiries began under President Joe Biden in California.
Newsom said in a post on X and a video statement that Trump was running a “fishing expedition” and putting him on a “hit list.” His office said the president was targeting him politically.
CalMatters reported that a Justice Department source familiar with the matter said there have been at least two criminal investigations involving Newsom’s orbit in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California for about a year. The same report said one inquiry tied to former Newsom chief of staff Dana Williamson was opened during the Biden administration.
Fox News, citing a Justice Department source familiar with the matter, reported that the inquiries grew out of whistleblower complaints and local complaints in Sacramento. Other reporting from NBC News, The New York Times, Axios, the Daily Wire and ABC Australia also said the investigations began in California, not at DOJ headquarters in Washington.
The full scope of the inquiries remains unclear from the reporting. Some accounts say they involve people connected to Newsom, while others say they may include matters involving Jennifer Siebel Newsom.
CalMatters reported that Williamson pleaded guilty in May in a corruption case that did not implicate the governor.
