Gavin Newsom's chief of staff was arrested by federal agents and charged with 23 counts of fraud six months ago.
Now Newsom is on camera accusing Trump of inventing a federal investigation out of thin air.
The timeline destroys his story – and he's counting on nobody checking it.
Gavin Newsom Says Trump Launched a Federal Investigation to Stop His 2028 Presidential Run
California Governor Gavin Newsom posted a melodramatic video to social media announcing that the Trump Justice Department had been knocking on the doors of his family, friends, and former employees.
Federal agents were demanding records, subpoenaing bank accounts, abusing the grand jury process – all at Trump's direction, Newsom said.
Jennifer Siebel Newsom – documentary filmmaker, nonprofit founder, mother of his four children – was in Trump's crosshairs too.
"After calling for my arrest last year, Donald Trump directed his Department of Justice to investigate me," Newsom said.
This was a campaign video launch dressed up as a victim statement.
Trump is corrupt, Trump is afraid of him, Trump is destroying democracy to stop a political rival.
Newsom invoked the Founders and invited America to watch him fight back.
There was just one problem with the story Newsom needed the country to believe.
California whistleblowers – not the Trump DOJ in Washington – handed prosecutors the cases.
The DOJ declined to comment. So did the White House.
Jennifer Siebel Newsom Tax Probe and Dana Williamson Guilty Plea Explain What Newsom Left Out
Several ongoing probes are being handled by the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of California – Sacramento.
One targets Jennifer Siebel Newsom's taxes – and Gavin Newsom files jointly with his wife, meaning any tax investigation into her is an investigation into him.
A separate probe centers on Dana Williamson, Newsom's former chief of staff, who was indicted in November 2025 on 23 federal counts and pleaded guilty last month to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, filing a false tax return, and lying to an FBI agent.
Williamson diverted $225,000 from a dormant campaign account and disguised more than $1 million in personal luxuries as business expenses – including a $15,000 Chanel bag, a chartered jet, and a nearly $170,000 birthday trip to Mexico.
That investigation started three years ago, according to the U.S. Attorney who announced the indictment.
Joe Biden was president for the first two of them.
A third line of inquiry focuses on the California Partners Project – a nonprofit co-founded by Jennifer Siebel Newsom that promotes gender programs in California schools and media.
Newsom has personally solicited more than $4.4 million in what California calls "behested payments" to the organization since 2020 – meaning he pressured companies with business before his government to donate to his wife's nonprofit instead.
One tribal casino holding a state gaming agreement donated $1 million at Newsom's urging.
The Representation Project, another Siebel Newsom nonprofit, paid her $150,000 in 2024 – and paid her production company, Girls Club Entertainment, another $150,000 in the same year.
Why Newsom Needs Voters to Forget the Whistleblowers Who Started This
Newsom isn't staging an innocent man's defense.
He's running an unofficial 2028 presidential campaign that needs him to look like Trump's most dangerous opponent – not a governor whose chief of staff just pleaded guilty to federal fraud and whose wife is under investigation for taxes she filed jointly with him.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento – not political appointees in Washington – opened these probes on whistleblower complaints.
The Williamson investigation alone was three years in the making and closed with a guilty plea before Newsom ever went on camera to blame Trump for it.
Newsom is betting Democrats never check the dates.
So far, it's working.
Sources:
- Cameron Arcand, "Gavin Newsom Announced He's Being Investigated by the DOJ. Here's What We've Learned.," Townhall, June 15, 2026.
- Dmitri Bolt, "Here's More on the DOJ Investigation Into Gavin Newsom," Townhall, June 16, 2026.
- Washington Free Beacon Staff, "Federal Probes of Newsoms Could Focus on Gifts to 'First Partner' Jennifer Siebel Newsom's Gender-Focused Charity and Gender Documentary Company," Washington Free Beacon, June 16, 2026.
- Mary Rooke, "Gavin Newsom Blames Trump For Something Biden Started," The Daily Caller, June 16, 2026.
- Iman Palm, "California Gov. Gavin Newsom's Former Chief of Staff Indicted on Public Corruption Charges," The Hill, November 2025.
- Kevin Rector et al., "A Bombshell Federal Fraud Case Exploded Inside Gov. Newsom's Powerful Political Orbit," Los Angeles Times, November 2025.
- Jennifer Van Laar, "Gavin Newsom Says He's Under Investigation by DOJ; Sources Say It's Related to His Wife's Taxes," RedState, June 15, 2026.