Newsom accuses Trump of ordering federal probes to kneecap presidential run, DOJ source says inquiries are whistleblower-driven
California Governor Gavin Newsom says federal investigations into him and his wife are a politically motivated attack ordered by President Trump, but a source familiar with the probes says they originated from whistleblowers and local sources, not from DOJ leadership.
A direct accusation
Newsom posted a video Monday accusing Trump of directing federal agents to contact more than a dozen friends, family and former employees, issuing subpoenas and sifting through years of records. The governor framed the investigation as a response to his potential 2028 presidential bid, not a search for a crime.
Donald Trump isn't just coming after me because of my mean tweets. He's coming after me because I'm considering running for president.
You can look at my records, you can investigate me, you can harass me. Put my name on every one of your enemies lists, but leave my wife and my family out of your personal vendetta.
A two‑page messaging memo sent to allies in Congress, first reported by Semafor, echoes that line, saying that Trump ordered the investigation because the governor is mulling a presidential campaign. Newsom also demanded communications between top Justice Department officials, including former Attorney General Pam Bondi and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, that mention him or his wife.
The counter-story
A person familiar with the matter told Axios that the investigations did not originate from DOJ leadership in Washington but rather from "whistleblowers and local sources in California." A separate source close to the file told AFP that the inquiries resulted from whistleblower reports and were not launched at the initiative of the Justice Department in D.C. The probes are being run by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California and have been underway for roughly a year, according to the person familiar with the case. A Reuters tally cited by Spiegel put the number of persons, organizations and institutions targeted by Trump’s DOJ at 470.
The scope of the probes
Multiple investigations are examining people in the governor’s orbit. One focuses on the tax activities of California first partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, a documentary filmmaker who founded the Representation Project and Girls Club Entertainment. Her nonprofit California Partners Project has received donations from groups that also do business with the state, raising potential conflict‑of‑interest questions, though no evidence of wrongdoing has emerged. Another probe centers on Dana Williamson, a former Newsom chief of staff who pleaded guilty last month to lying to the FBI, filing a false tax return and conspiracy to commit fraud. Investigators are also looking at current aides, the source said.
- Whistleblower tips trigger federal investigations in the Eastern District of California, focusing on Newsom’s orbit.
- Former Newsom chief of staff Dana Williamson pleads guilty to lying to the FBI, false tax return and conspiracy to commit fraud.
- Newsom releases a video accusing Trump of ordering the probes and warns him to leave his wife and family out of the vendetta.
- Harris says she is ‘not surprised’ by the investigation; source tells media the inquiries are whistleblower-driven.
Harris and the broader pattern
Speaking at a summit in Austria, former Vice President Kamala Harris said she was "not surprised" by the investigation, calling it part of Trump’s pattern of pursuing political rivals.
I am not surprised that he may be using the Department of Justice to go after a political enemy in the current governor of California.
Newsom himself pointed to DOJ attempts to probe or prosecute former Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, Senator Adam Schiff, former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as other examples. Not everyone in the governor’s circle sees the episode as a political gift; some worry that a deep dive into the couple’s finances could become distracting or damaging if the probes uncover concrete wrongdoing. Newsom’s team has already begun fundraising off the investigation.
