California Governor Gavin Newsom on Monday said in a statement that US President Donald Trump directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate him and his wife over unspecified and baseless claims, alleging that he is just the next victim in a long line of political opponents targeted by Trump.
Newsom said the DOJ was trying to find a crime rather than acting on one it had found.
“Donald Trump isn’t just coming after me because of my mean Tweets. He’s coming after me because I am considering running for President. Because he hates that I’ve consistently called him out — over and over again — for his lies and deceit,” Newsom said. “Donald Trump is simply the most corrupt President in American history.”
Trump and Newsom have a historically strained relationship consisting of public clashes, political attacks, and lawsuits. The president publicly call for Newsom’s arrest last year following the Los Angeles protests over Trump’s mass deportation policies.
The supposed reasoning behind the investigation stems from Newsom’s ties to Dana Williamson, his former chief of staff who pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges , and to a tax inquiry involving Siebel Newsom’s nonprofit, the California Partners Project.
In response to the investigation, Newsom’s office filed a Freedom of Information Act request (FOIA) with the DOJ for all documents, including any emails, texts, and memoranda, that contain his name or his wife’s between January 20, 2025, the day of Trump’s inauguration ceremony, and now. The DOJ has 20 business days to respond.
In his statement, Newsom also accused Trump of abusing the grand jury process by demanding records and subpoenaing information. Presidents do not normally direct the DOJ to investigate specific individuals; doing so breaks with a long-standing norm of Justice Department independence and is what critics, including the Brennan Center, call an abuse of executive power.
This is not the first time Trump has directed an investigation into members of his purported political opposition. Newsom has “proudly” joined the long list of adversaries that Trump has taken retaliatory actions against, consisting of New York Attorney General Letitia James, former Chair of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell, and Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz.
Newsom concluded his address with a message to Trump by telling the president to continue the examination into his records and dealings but leave his wife and family out of the investigation and Trump’s “personal vendetta.”
“Mr. President, come after me. I am not going anywhere. And the country is watching,” Newsom concluded.