California Attorney General Rob Bonta doubled down on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s claims that the Trump administration is weaponizing the Justice Department after being pressed on reports that the federal probe involving Newsom and his wife originated in California and was not opened by the Trump Administration in Washington, D.C.
“I know what I’ve concluded is that this is highly dubious — there’s no trust in it,” Bonta said. “This is someone who’s weaponized the U.S. DOJ time and time again. I think he’s doing it now.”
Newsom took to X on Monday to publicly announce his uncovering that he and his wife, Jen Siebel Newsom are being investigated by the DOJ, claiming President Donald Trump directed the DOJ to investigate them and that they’ve joined “Donald Trump’s hit list.”
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He is also widely claiming that Trump is targeting him because of recent speculation of Newsom as a promising 2028 presidential bid.
“Newsom is the governor for the biggest state, the bluest state in the nation, the fourth largest economy in the world,” Bonta said “Everyone knows that he could be president of the United States. So you put that situational awareness and context into this, and what do you conclude?”
Bonta told Fox News Digital that Trump has “weaponized” the Justice Department, saying it has shifted from pursuing criminal prosecutions to conducting “political persecutions against political enemies.”
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He also claimed that Trump ordered former Attorney General Pam Bondi “to go after his political enemies.”
“If that doesn’t destroy trust and make you doubt the intent behind this probe, I don’t know what else I can tell you,” Bonta said.
Bonta claimed Trump has used the DOJ to commit “political persecution” of his enemies, including a specific reference to “shifty Schiff.”
Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., declined to answer questions from Fox News Digital about reports that the probe was opened by federal prosecutors in California rather than the administration in Washington.
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Sources familiar told Fox News that the investigation has been ongoing since 2025 and that the probe is based on whistleblower complaints related to Newsom and his wife’s personal finances. The case is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Sacramento.
A source also said that Washington was not involved in the decision to open the probe, according to the Associated Press.
An investigation launched last year under then-President Joe Biden resulted in corruption charges against Newsom’s former chief of staff, Dana Williamson. She pleaded guilty to lying about sharing internal information with a former associate. Newsom was not involved in the probe personally. It is reported that Newsom’s office believes the Trump administration’s federal investigators widened the efforts of the probe to also look into Newsom.
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The Governor’s office announced on Monday that it filed a public records request to the DOJ seeking documents that mention Newsom or his wife during Trump’s second term, including messages to and from Justice Department leaders.
Fox News’ David Spunt, Jake Gibson and Olivia Palombo contributed to this story.
