California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday that the Justice Department is investigating him and his wife, and he accused President Trump of pushing for the probe as political retribution.
“Today my wife & I joined Donald Trump’s hit list. He has directed his Department of Justice to investigate us,” Mr. Newsom, a Democrat, said in a video posted to X.
“In recent days, federal agents have knocked on the doors of family, friends and former employees. Not because they found a crime, but because they’re simply trying to find one.”
Prosecutors initiated the probe last year, and it is related to the tax filings of Mr. Newsom’s wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, according to a report in the Los Angeles Times.
Citing sources familiar with the investigation, the Times said it was launched in Sacramento based on information provided by whistleblowers and was not directed out of Washington or ordered by Mr. Trump.
In March, The New York Post reported that Mr. Newsom was taking advantage of a campaign finance loophole to funnel $4.4 million to a political nonprofit founded by Mrs. Siebel Newsom.
The California Partners Project, a nonprofit she founded in 2020 to promote gender equality, raked in millions of dollars shielded from donation disclosures that apply to PACs or other purely political organizations.
It was unclear whether the probe is focused on those donations.
“They’re demanding records, they’re abusing the grand jury process, digging through years and years of random documents. 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, because he hates that I’ve consistently called him out over and over again for lies and deceit,” Mr. Newsom said.
The governor said agents were “coming after” Mrs. Siebel Newsom, whom he described as “a public servant” who “dedicated her life to supporting women and girls and someone who has done nothing wrong.”
“If they can’t intimidate me. They’ll go after the mother of our children. Donald Trump picked the wrong target. We have nothing to hide,” Mr. Newsom said.
The White House referred a request for comment to the Justice Department, which declined to discuss the matter.
Mr. Newsom, who is considering a 2028 White House run, has repeatedly clashed with Mr. Trump, including mocking the president’s social media posting style with his own posts.
They have been at odds over issues such as the California wildfires, immigration, redistricting and Mr. Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard to quell anti-immigration enforcement protests over the governor’s objections. The president has derided the California governor as “Newscum.”
Mr. Newsom pointed out that his alleged investigation follows a spree of federal indictments and probes against Mr. Trump’s political foes, including former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff, California Democrat.
In all of the cases, Mr. Trump publicly urged the Justice Department officials to go after them. All have denied wrongdoing.
