Gavin Newsom’s Former Chief of Staff Pleads GUILTY in Massive Fraud Scheme

[Conservative Angle]

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Well, what do you know?

Yet another Democrat has just admitted to carrying out a major fraud scheme.

This time, it’s California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s former Chief of Staff, Dana Williamson.

Last November, Williamson was charged alongside nearly two dozen other co-conspirators for partaking in a $225K plot to siphon funds from a dormant political campaign for Democrat Xavier Becerra.

On Thursday, she plead guilty to three felony charges in exchange for taking a plea deal.

Here are the details:

MORE DEMOCRAT FRAUD

Dana Williamson, a former Chief of Staff for Gavin Newscum, has pleaded GUILTY to carrying out a major fraud scheme where she stole $225,000 from dormant campaign accounts. pic.twitter.com/y0FBtutoNG

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) May 14, 2026

HOLY SMOKES. Gavin Newsom's Chief of Staff has just pleaded GUILTY to a FRAUD and corruption scheme — conspiring to steal $225,000 from a campaign account owned by Xavier Becerra (D)

Dana Williamson — who is no longer in Newsom's office — was first charged with 23 FEDERAL… pic.twitter.com/RIkFaVvu5h

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 14, 2026

HOLY SMOKES. Gavin Newsom’s Chief of Staff has just pleaded GUILTY to a FRAUD and corruption scheme — conspiring to steal $225,000 from a campaign account owned by Xavier Becerra (D)

Dana Williamson — who is no longer in Newsom’s office — was first charged with 23 FEDERAL COUNTS

She was accused of trying to funnel the funds to Becerra’s former aide. Becerra was Biden’s HHS Secretary

Williamson pleaded guilty to: 3 counts related to campaign finance fraud, lying to the FBI and filing a false tax return, per POLITICO

Gavin surrounds himself with FRAUDSTERS! He should resign too!

Xavier Becerra was HHS Secretary underneath Joe Biden and is currently running to replace Gavin Newsom as governor of California.

Dana Williamson funneled money that was stolen from his unused campaign funds to Becerra’s own aide, Sean McCluskie.

Her lawyers argued that she was only acting to “help a friend” going through hard times.

Per the New York Post:

An attorney for Dana Williamson, Gavin Newsom’s ex-aide who pled guilty to her involvement in a $225,000 scheme to steal campaign funds, claims she was only “helping a friend in a hard time” — as the disgraced Sacramento power broker seeks a light sentence for her admitted crimes.

McGregor Scott, Williamson’s defense attorney, said she didn’t hatch the plan to skim thousands from ex-attorney general and Democratic frontrunner for governor Xavier Becerra’s dormant campaign fund into accounts she controlled.

“This idea to take money from the Becerra account originated with Sean McCluskie,” Scott told reporters outside Robert T. Matsui U.S. Courthouse in Sacramento Thursday.

“This was his idea, he chased my client repeatedly,” he added, citing relentless text message and meeting requests about the fraud scheme.

McCluskie’s wife was paid $10,000 per month for a no-show job while her husband was working as chief of staff for Becerra while he was head of Health and Human Services under former President Joe Biden.

McCluskie, who pled guilty in connection with the scheme last year, had complained about needing more money, according to charging documents.

Under the plea deal, Dana Williamson could face up to three years behind bars.

Politico has more details:

Gavin Newsom’s former chief of staff on Thursday accepted a plea deal in a federal public corruption case in which she is accused of funnelling campaign funds from Xavier Becerra to the former Health and Human Services secretary’s aide.

Dana Williamson — a longtime Sacramento power player who suffered a humiliating fall from grace when she was indicted in November — pleaded to three counts related to campaign finance fraud, lying to the FBI and filing a false tax return, according to Eastern District of California court documents.

Williamson, wearing a white blazer and dark sunglasses, appeared at the federal courthouse in Sacramento Thursday morning to enter the plea. The deal came after months of negotiations, which included an initial offer from the government, a counter from Williamson, and then the resulting compromise, prosecutors said.

Under sentencing guidelines judges must consult, Williamson could face around three years in prison. The final decision will be made by the judge, who has authority to sentence her above or below what is called for in the guidelines.

The case has become a growing political liability for Becerra, the Democratic frontrunner in the California governor’s race. Becerra has not been accused of wrongdoing, and the indictment against Williamson said the conspirators hid the scheme from him because “they believed, correctly, that [Becerra] would not have the permitted payments if [he] had known the truth.” But his opponents have been increasingly highlighting the corruption case in campaign ads and cable TV hits.

Former Orange County Rep. Katie Porter, another Democratic contender, recently suggested on CNN, without evidence, that a plea deal could name Becerra, saying “there’s no reason to take a risk” by supporting him.

The alleged scheme saw Williamson siphon campaign funds from Becerra’s state campaign account to pad the salary of his chief of staff, Sean McCluskie. McCluskie and another alleged co-conspirator, lobbyist Greg Campbell, accepted plea deals around the time Williamson was indicted and are scheduled for sentencing on June 4.

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