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Saying he was “proud” to join President Donald Trump’s list of political enemies, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday accused the U.S. Department of Justice of conducting an unfounded investigation to the governor and first partner Jennifer Seibel Newsom. Newsom claims he is being targeted because he is considering a run for president.
- Newsomin a video statement: “In recent days, federal agents have been knocking on the doors of family friends and former employees. Not because they’ve found a crime. Because they’re just trying to find one. … Trump is simply the most corrupt president in American history.”
As CalMatters reporters explain, the governor claims federal agents are demanding records and “abusing the grand jury process” by “digging through years and years of random documents.” Although neither the governor nor the first partner have yet received subpoenas, Newsom’s office said it believes federal agents have issued subpoenas for the financial records of businesses associated with the Newsoms.
Newsom has a successful hospitality company called PlumpJack, which he placed in a blind trust before taking office as governor. Siebel Newsom leads two nonprofit groups called the California Partners Project and the Representation Project.
According to a federal Justice Department person familiar with the investigation, there are at least two ongoing criminal investigations against Newsom: one involving Siebel Newsom’s taxes and the other involving Newsom’s former chief of staff Dana Williamson, who pleaded guilty in May in a corruption scandal in which the governor is not involved.
CalMatters Awards: Sacramento Press Club Awards CalMatters with five Golden State Journalism Awards for our work, which he describes as “impeccable”, “beautifully written” and “the definition of public service”.
Other stories you should know
CA uses AI that can ultimately impact your life
It turns out that state government is indeed using artificial intelligence tools to make decisions that could affect you or someone you love.
The California Department of Technology revealed in a report late last week that government agencies are using six high-risk tools that have the potential to affect Californians.
These include tools that
- Predict whether prisoners will reoffend
- Assess whether unemployment claims are fraudulent
- Remote administration of exams for California State University students
- Discover when students use generative AI for writing assignments
This year’s report contradicts last year’s findings, CalMatters’ Carrie Johnson wrote, which found that agencies are not using artificial intelligence systems that could affect someone’s life, although at least a few systems are known to the public, including one used for unemployment claims. The annual report on AI systems is required by law from 2023.
AI eavesdrops on your doctor visits
Mental health clinicians at Kaiser Permanente are concerned about An AI tool that records patient visits in the interest of helping providers take notes and help their patients.
American Community Media’s Roxsy Lin writes that mental health providers are required to obtain consent from patients before using the tool, but clinicians themselves have unanswered questions about what happens to the records.
- Ilana Marcucci-MorrisKaiser licensed clinical social worker: “They’re not going to show us, are they? And my feeling is that if you have nothing to hide and you’re doing it completely … ethically, then you’re going to show us, you’re going to prove it. They can’t and won’t, and they refused when we asked.”
Kaiser and the unions that represent its mental health clinicians have had a long-running dispute over working conditions. The company said it uses the technology to reduce the “documentation burden” for doctors and that it has been well received by patients.
And finally: Three-year college degrees
California state trustees voted in May to allow new bachelor’s degrees that can be completed in just three years. CalMatters’ Mikhail Zinstein and Director of Video Strategy Robert Meeks have a video segment on how programs are designed to align with career goals and shorten the time to graduationas part of our partnership with PBS SoCal. Watch it here.
SoCalMatters airs at 5:58pm on Fridays on PBS SoCal.
California voices
CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: Newsom’s differences in priorities with current legislative leaders are showing again as lawmakers propose a state budget plan that would increase spending by more than $6 billion compared to Newsom’s budget.
last month’s Garden Grove emergency highlights California’s failure to identify and safely transport medically vulnerable residents during mass evacuations, Kelly Barrett writesretired nonprofit administrator and disability advocate.
Other things worth your time:
‘We lost eight great Americans’ in fiery crash of B-52 bomber at Edwards Air Force Base // Los Angeles Times
Inside the mad war of the tech elite against the billionaire tax in CA // The San Francisco Standard
Welcome to CA: Land of Robbery and Hypocrisy // The Guardian
Even $75 million from Trump may not save The embattled Oakland Coal Terminal // Grist
DACA renewals drag on for monthsturning participants’ lives around // San Francisco Chronicle
California sues Shasta County after voters pass the voter ID measure // Shasta Scout
Court orders signs for national parksincluding in Muir Woods to be restored // KQED
Criminal records raise health concerns at Otay Mesa Detention Center // inewsource
