{"id":2513446,"date":"2025-11-22T06:33:02","date_gmt":"2025-11-22T11:33:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/indictment-of-newsoms-former-chief-of-staff-exposes-abuse-of-power\/"},"modified":"2025-11-22T06:34:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-22T11:34:30","slug":"indictment-of-newsoms-former-chief-of-staff-exposes-abuse-of-power","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/indictment-of-newsoms-former-chief-of-staff-exposes-abuse-of-power\/","title":{"rendered":"Indictment of Newsom&#8217;s former chief of staff exposes abuse of power"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Findictment-of-newsoms-former-chief-of-staff-exposes-abuse-of-power%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2513446&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The recent indictment of Dana Williamson, former chief of staff to California Governor Gavin Newsom, has <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >uncovered meaningful abuses<\/a> of power and corruption within California&#8217;s Democratic political establishment. Williamson, a prominent Democratic consultant and political powerbroker, was charged with 23 counts including conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy to defraud the U.S., and obstructing justice. She <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/seattle-socialist-kshama-sawant-narrowly-leads-recall-after-latest-ballot-count\/\" title=\"Seattle Socialist Kshama Sawant Narrowly Leads Recall After Latest Ballot Count\">allegedly misused public funds<\/a> by writing off lavish personal expenses as business costs and was released on a $500,000 bond after pleading not guilty.<\/p>\n<p>Two associates connected to Williamson, including a former aide to Xavier Becerra, also face related charges, with allegations that campaign funds were stolen for personal use. Williamson&#8217;s aggressive and domineering style earned her a reputation as a political &#8220;bully&#8221; and a powerful figure in Sacramento, often accused of using her influence to intimidate opponents.<\/p>\n<p>Critics have blamed Governor newsom and othre Democratic leaders for enabling this corruption by failing to supervise williamson effectively. Newsom expressed surprise at the indictment,noting his office had only learned about the FBI investigation a year earlier and had placed Williamson on leave. The U.S. Attorney&#8217;s office indicated the investigation might extend further.<\/p>\n<p>If convicted, Williamson faces severe penalties including up to 20 years in prison and considerable fines. While some Democratic strategists warn against premature judgments, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/5-illegal-immigrants-charged-with-kidnapping-teen-girl-from-small-town\/\" title=\"5 Undocumented Immigrants Accused of Abducting Teenager from Small Town\">case highlights ongoing concerns<\/a> about corruption and accountability in California politics.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Indictment of Newsom&rsquo;s former chief of staff exposes abuse of power<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2400653\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The recent <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3885090\/fbi-newsom-chief-of-staff-public-corruption\/\">indictment <\/a>of Gov. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/gavin-newsom\/\">Gavin Newsom<\/a>&lsquo;s (D-CA) former chief of staff jolted one of the nation&rsquo;s most influential Democratic power centers, exposing long-standing patterns of corruption within its ranks.<\/p>\n<p>Political powerbroker Dana Williamson, one of <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/california\/\">California<\/a>&lsquo;s most sought-after Democratic consultants both before and after she ran Newsom&rsquo;s office, was charged on <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-edca\/pr\/california-political-consultant-and-former-public-official-charged-conspiracy-commit\">23 counts<\/a>, including conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruct justice.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/crime\/3892051\/us-offering-reward-canada-olympic-athlete-ryan-james-wedding-alleged-major-drug-network\/\">US <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-offers-reward-for-alleged-drug-smuggler-ryan-james-wedding\/\" title=\"DOJ offers reward for alleged drug smuggler Ryan James Wedding\">offering  million reward<\/a> for Canadian Olympic athlete allegedly running major drug network<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/crime\/3891945\/byron-york-democrats-havent-found-holy-grail-evidence-trump-epstein\/\">Byron York says Democrats haven&#8217;t found &lsquo;Holy Grail&rsquo; of evidence connecting Trump to Epstein<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/crime\/3891868\/salena-zito-suggests-unfinished-butler-investigation-makes-people-wonder-the-worst\/\">Salena Zito suggests unfinished Butler investigation &lsquo;makes people wonder the worst&rsquo;<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Dana Williamson, Cabinet secretary in the Office of the Governor, gives her support to SB 277 during the Assembly Health Committee hearing on SB 277 on Tuesday, June 9, 2015, in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Lea Suzuki\/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>She was also accused of writing off $1 million in vacations, a Chanel purse and ring, a $10,000 payment to a relative, and private jet trips as business expenses on her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/irs-requirement-to-report-stolen-property-as-income-goes-viral\/\" title=\"IRS Requirement to Report Stolen Property as Income Goes Viral\">federal income tax returns<\/a>. She pleaded not guilty and was ordered released on a $500,000 bond.<\/p>\n<p>Two of her longtime associates, Greg Campbell, a former high-level staffer in the California Assembly, and Sean McCluskie, an aide to former Health and Human Services Secretary <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/xavier-becerra\/\">Xavier Becerra<\/a>, were charged with related crimes and are expected to plead guilty.<\/p>\n<p>Federal court documents allege that, unknown to Becerra, who is running for governor of California, McCluskie stole $225,000 worth of Becerra&rsquo;s dormant campaign funds for his personal use.<\/p>\n<p>Few people in California politics have accumulated as much influence or as many haters as Williamson did while serving two governors &mdash; Newsom and former Gov. Gerry Brown (D-CA) &mdash; and branding herself as the ultimate go-to in Sacramento.<\/p>\n<p>She&rsquo;s often been described as aggressive, combative, and obsessed with power and settling scores.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Dana has a reputation for being reckless, for being irresponsible, and for being a bully,&rdquo; Gil Duran, an author who has crossed paths with Williamson on several occasions, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2025\/11\/13\/politics\/video\/former-newsom-aide-dana-williamson-indicted-gil-duran-tsi\">told <\/a>CNN. &ldquo;She was somebody who loved power and loved to abuse power.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Duran and two other Sacramento-based political operatives told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> that Williamson often bragged and laughed about getting people fired, something mentioned in the 34-page indictment against her.<\/p>\n<p>Duran detailed a disturbing incident that took place a few years ago.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I was offered a job, and Dana called my prospective employer and told them that if they hired me, they would be dead to the governor&rsquo;s office,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I got that job anyway, but this was how she operated, like a mafia boss, and now she&rsquo;s being treated like a mafia boss.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-newsom-asleep-at-the-wheel\">Newsom &lsquo;asleep at the wheel&rsquo;<\/h2>\n<p>Critics of Newsom have accused the outgoing governor, who is eyeing a 2028 White House bid, of being asleep at the wheel while Williamson ran amok.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Fifteen years of Democrat one-party rule have rotted California&rsquo;s government from the inside out,&rdquo; <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3479332\/steve-hilton-blasts-california-corruption-misusing-fire-relief-funds\/\">Steve Hilton<\/a>, a Republican running for California governor, told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>. &ldquo;The indictment of Gavin Newsom&rsquo;s chief of staff is not an isolated scandal. It is the predictable outcome of a corrupt Democrat political machine that thinks the rules do not apply to them. When the people running the state operate without accountability, complacency becomes entitlement and entitlement becomes corruption.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Duran also faulted Newsom, Brown, and Becerra, saying they &ldquo;should be ashamed of their terrible lapse of judgment.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The only reason Dana Williamson acted the way she did for so many years, and what led to this situation, was that she felt she could act with impunity,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;And she felt she could act with impunity because of the power she was given, despite the very obvious problems with her behavior that were apparent for years.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Newsom <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sacbee.com\/news\/politics-government\/capitol-alert\/article312986361.html\">told <\/a>the <em>Sacramento Bee<\/em> this week that news of Williamson&rsquo;s arrest came as a &ldquo;real surprise and shock.&rdquo; The governor was at a United Nations climate summit in Brazil when he was told of the indictment against her. Newsom said his office was first made aware there was an FBI investigation into her a year ago.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;As soon as we found out about it [the FBI investigation], my legal folks came over and we moved to place her on leave,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;My hope was, over the course of last year, that whatever this was, I wasn&rsquo;t privy to the details, it would be worked out.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. attorney&rsquo;s office last week described its indictment of Williamson as part of an investigation, although it&rsquo;s unclear what else federal officials are focused on.<\/p>\n<p>Newsom&rsquo;s office said the governor is not involved in the case against Williamson. None of the charging documents released in the cases against Williamson or her cohorts mentions Newsom.<\/p>\n<p>Williamson, who appeared to cry throughout her initial court appearance, has another court hearing next month.<\/p>\n<p>If she is convicted of all the charges against her she faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count of bank fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit bank fraud; up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count of conspiracy to obstruct and making a false statement; and up to three years in prison and a $100,000 fine for each count of subscribing to a false tax return.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3885090\/fbi-newsom-chief-of-staff-public-corruption\/\">FBI ARRESTS FORMER NEWSOM CHIEF OF STAFF ON PUBLIC CORRUPTION CHARGES <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Steven Maviglio, a Democratic strategist, cautioned against jumping to conclusions.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;First of all, no one has been found guilty of anything,&rdquo; he told the&nbsp;<em>Washington Examiner<\/em>, adding that allegations of corruption are &ldquo;pretty weak coming from Republicans, when the&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/trump-administration\/\">Trump administration<\/a>&nbsp;is knee-deep in ethical challenges far worse than what is being alleged in California.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Newsom&#8217;s ex-chief indicted, revealing deep corruption<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2646,"featured_media":2513447,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Dana-Williams-GettyImages-1322127285.jpg?w=594","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[32852,51609,15074,3678,33117],"class_list":["post-2513446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-abuse-of-power","tag-chief-of-staff-2","tag-indictment","tag-newsom","tag-political-scandal"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Dana-Williams-GettyImages-1322127285.jpg?w=594","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2513446","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2646"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2513446"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2513446\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2513450,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2513446\/revisions\/2513450"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2513447"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2513446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2513446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2513446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}