CNN’s Paula Reid pumped the brakes on Monday after California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) took to social media to call himself a victim of President Donald Trump’s revenge tour.
In a statement on Monday, Newsom announced the following:
In recent days, federal agents have knocked on the doors of family friends and former employees. Not because they found a crime. Because they are simply trying to find one. They are demanding records. They are 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 am considering running for president. Because he hates that I’ve consistently called him out – over and over again – for his lies and deceit. Donald Trump is simply the most corrupt president in American history. He has turned the levers of government into his own personal power ministries to reward cronies and to try to jail his opponents.
His personal attorney now runs the Department of Justice, which has repeatedly gone after his political enemies. Ask Jerome Powell. He sent them after James Comey. Tish [Letitia] James. Adam Schiff. He sent them after Tim Walz. And a woman that a jury found Donald Trump had sexually abused. One by one, anyone who has challenged Donald Trump has ended up on his hit list. And today, I proudly join that list.
After calling for my arrest last year, Donald Trump directed his Department of Justice to investigate me. And just in the last week, I’ve learned his campaign has reached my own home: to get me, he’s coming after my wife, Jen. A public servant. A woman who has dedicated her life to supporting women and girls. Someone who has done nothing wrong, other than having the temerity to advocate for what she believes in. 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. His political operatives can take every record and read every page. But they’ll be looking in the wrong place. Because if they really want to find corruption, look no further than 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Donald Trump is selling the presidency. He is running the largest cash heist in American political history — trading foreign tariff relief for approval of his golf courses. Day-trading behind the Resolute Desk. Reaping hundreds of millions of dollars in personal profit.
Reid provided some more context during a segment on CNN News Central:
After the governor made this announcement, we took a few minutes to call our sources, figure out exactly what’s going on here. So I want to lay this out for our viewers, what we’re learning. Let’s start with this announcement by California Governor Gavin Newsom. He says there in that video that the Department of Justice is investigating him. He claims that President Trump is targeting him as a political enemy. Now, we know the president has been very clear that he wants his Justice Department to pursue his perceived political adversaries. So an announcement like this seems to fit in that pattern. But in speaking with our sources, we are told by a source familiar that there is quote, “Not an investigation directly into Newsom.” Now that is attributable to a source familiar with the matter.
We are told that there are several investigations into people associated with the California governor. These are being run out of a U.S. Attorney’s office in California, including one investigation into the governor’s wife for potential tax-related crimes. Now we are also-, we also know from public reporting, public happenings, that Newsom’s former chief of staff pleaded guilty to three charges related to a scheme to steal campaign money from the former secretary of health and human services. That is a case that has been widely reported. We are told, though, that the Justice Department, the political appointees here in the Justice Department in Washington were not involved in the origins of this investigation. This was all, we are told, prompted by a whistleblower report in 2025. Now today, the governor’s office said that federal agents have contacted people and organizations connected to both the governor and his wife. They alleged that they have issued subpoenas for records and conducted interviews related to years of personal and professional activity. Now, in recent weeks, Newsom’s office says the federal probe expanded to focus on his family and professional network.
So here we have two different narratives. One coming from sources here in Washington saying there is no investigation directly into Newsom, then the governor releasing this video insisting that he is being targeted by the president. Now, based on our reporting it does appear that there are investigations, that there would likely be interviews with people connected to him. But again a source suggesting he is not directly the target of an investigation. But as we know, the Trump Justice Department has pursued many of President Trump’s political adversaries, so there is certainly a concern around the potential weaponization of the Justice Department. And we will continue to talk to our sources. We’re not gonna let the governor control the narrative, or just rely on one or two sources here in Washington, we’ll continue to figure out exactly what this investigation covers.
Watch above via CNN.
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