Dana Williamson, a longtime Democratic aide, agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy tied to alleged theft of campaign funds from Xavier Becerra when he was U.S. Health secretary.
A top California Democratic political aide has agreed to plead guilty in a scheme prosecutors say was designed to steal campaign money linked to Xavier Becerra, a case that is landing in the middle of his run for California governor.
Dana Williamson, a former senior aide to Becerra and Gov. Gavin Newsom, agreed Thursday to enter pleas on charges that include conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Under her plea deal, she admits to three of the 23 counts she was originally charged with.
The case has drawn particular attention to Becerra as voting proceeds in the governor’s race. with the election due to conclude June 2.. Court filings and prosecutors’ allegations describe a plan that centered on funds from one of Becerra’s dormant state campaign accounts while he served as federal Health and Human Services secretary.
If Williamson were convicted on all charges, court documents state she faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and up to a $1 million fine. The indictment also included allegations tied to subscribing to false tax returns and making false statements.
Prosecutors alleged Williamson developed a plan with co-conspirators, including Sean McCluskie, a longtime Becerra aide.. The alleged goal. according to the federal indictment. was to divert money from the dormant campaign account and pass it to McCluskie to help pad his salary after he took a job in Washington as chief of staff.
McCluskie, too, has struck a plea agreement. He signed his deal on Oct. 30 and admitted to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, filings show. Under that agreement, he agreed to repay $225,000 that prosecutors say he withdrew from the account.
Becerra has not commented on Williamson’s plea deal. In November, he said the “accusations of impropriety by a long-serving trusted advisor are a gut punch.”
Becerra, a former member of Congress, was appointed California attorney general in 2017 to fill a vacancy and won reelection in 2018 with Williamson running his campaign. After leaving Congress, President Joe Biden later appointed him secretary of Health and Human Services.
Williamson has long been a prominent Democratic figure in Sacramento. known for what allies and critics describe as a tough. aggressive political style.. Before returning to state government leadership roles, she served as a cabinet secretary for former Gov.. Jerry Brown, opened her own political affairs firm, and later rejoined Newsom’s administration as chief of staff.
The federal indictment also accused Williamson of filing fraudulent tax forms for her business from 2021 to 2023. claiming more than $1 million in business deductions for personal expenses.. Prosecutors listed items allegedly claimed as deductions including luxury handbags and jewelry; private jet travel; vacations in Mexico; installation of a home HVAC system; and payments of several hundred thousand dollars to relatives for supposed fake jobs.
Neither Becerra nor Newsom has been implicated in the case.
Dana Williamson Xavier Becerra California politics campaign finance bank fraud plea Gov. Gavin Newsom
so she only pleads to 3 out of 23 and thats supposed to be justice lol ok
Wait so Becerra himself got arrested? I thought he was the one running for governor thats wild they let him still be on the ballot while hes facing charges like that.
This is exactly why I stopped voting years ago honestly both parties do this stuff and nobody ever actually goes to prison they just cut deals and pay back a little money and walk free and then six months later theyre working for some lobbying firm making twice as much as before. My uncle worked in state government for 20 years and he said this kind of thing happens all the time they just dont usually get caught and when they do the prosecutors let them off easy because everyone knows everyone. Its all connected and the regular people are the only ones who actually face consequences for anything.
Gavin Newsom is behind all of this you can just tell, everything dirty in california leads back to him somehow