Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday accused the Justice Department of launching a politically-motivated investigation into him and his wife, saying the Trump administration was targeting him as he weighs a presidential bid.
Newsom, a longtime political rival of the Republican president, said in a video posted on X that federal agents have knocked on the doors of his friends and former employees, and have asked for records. Newsom didn’t provide specifics on the nature of the probe, but his office said the inquiry appears to have recently expanded into “increasingly personal matters involving the Governor’s family and professional network.”
“Donald Trump isn’t just coming after me because of my mean tweets,” Newsom said, referencing his use of social media to mock Trump. “He’s coming after me because I’m considering running for president, because he hates that I’ve consistently called him out over and over again for his lies and deceit.”
The full details of any Justice Department inquires related to Newsom were not immediately clear. But the revelations were likely to escalate accusations from critics that the Trump administration is using the law enforcement agency as a weapon to go after Trump’s political opponents.
A person familiar with the matter denied the existence of an investigation specifically targeting the governor, but said there are multiple federal probes into people around him, including one related to his wife’s taxes. The probes began last year after complaints from within California government, and political leadership in Washington was not involved in the decision to open them, said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss ongoing investigations.
The Justice Department declined to comment on Monday. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche declined to answer questions about Newsom during a brief photo opportunity with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, on Capitol Hill Monday afternoon. Blanche had a scheduled meeting with Grassley to discuss his nomination to become attorney general.
They are the latest Justice Department investigations surrounding one of Trump’s political foes foes. The Justice Department has also opened investigations into or brought prosecutions against former FBI Director James Comey,New York Attorney General Letitia James, former CIA director John Brennan and former Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, among other perceived political enemies of the president.
“One by one, anyone who has challenged Donald Trump has ended up on his hit list, and today I proudly join that list,” Newsom said in the video.
Investigators have subpoenaed records, and agents have reached out to organizations and people connected to the governor and his wife, according to Newsom’s office. The governor’s office accused the Justice Department of “searching for a crime that does not exist.”
Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the governor’s wife, said the investigation showed that Trump is unfit for office.
“There are clearly no boundaries to what Donald Trump will do to get his way or to challenge those who get in his way,” she said in a statement.
The president has repeatedly gone after the Democrat-dominated state during his second term including by curbing a signature plan to reduce planet-warning emissions from cars, withholding aid for wildfire recovery and suing over state policies supporting transgender student-athletes. The state has pushed back by suing the federal government dozens of times.
Newsom also led a push to counteract a Trump-backed effort in Texas to redraw congressional districts to favor Republicans by championing a successful redistricting measure in California designed to win Democrats five additional House seats.
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Durkin Richer reported from Washington. Associated Press reporter Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington contributed to this report.
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