The FBI secretly recorded a longtime political ally of California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) during a federal corruption investigation that has since expanded to include the governor, his wife and members of his inner circle, according to the attorney for Newsom’s former chief of staff.
Alexis Podesta, a veteran Democratic strategist and former California cabinet official, wore a wire beginning in June 2024 while cooperating with federal investigators, attorney McGregor Scott said. Scott represents former Newsom Chief of Staff Dana Williamson, who pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, filing a false tax return and making false statements to the FBI.
“Alexis wore a wire, and Dana did not,” Scott told The California Post.
The disclosure helps explain why numerous Sacramento political insiders and lobbyists reportedly received FBI notification letters last fall informing them that their conversations had been intercepted during the investigation, despite many having little or no direct contact with Williamson.
Republican Assemblyman Josh Hoover said he was among those who received one of the letters.
“I don’t know how these investigations work, but it sounds like they cast a pretty broad net across the Capitol community to see what they could find,” Hoover told The California Post.
Another source familiar with the matter told the outlet that at least four Sacramento insiders received similar notifications. One recipient reportedly expressed surprise because they had never met Williamson.
The revelation comes after Newsom announced last month that he, his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom and several members of his inner circle were under federal investigation. Shortly after making that announcement, the governor sent a fundraising email for his political action committee.
Newsom has accused President Donald Trump of directing the Justice Department to investigate him for political reasons ahead of a potential 2028 presidential campaign.
Sources familiar with the investigation, however, told The California Post that federal investigators have spent the past year examining not only the governor but also members of his staff and his wife’s financial records.
Podesta has not been charged with a crime.
Her attorney, Bill Portanova, has acknowledged that she is the uncharged co-conspirator referenced in Williamson’s indictment and confirmed that she has cooperated with federal investigators.
The governor’s office declined to comment on Podesta’s role, describing it as a personnel matter.
Williamson pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme that prosecutors say diverted roughly $225,000 from a dormant campaign account belonging to former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, per the New York Post.
According to prosecutors, the funds were disguised as legitimate consulting payments and ultimately benefited Becerra’s former chief of staff, Sean McCluskie.
Court records also allege that Williamson shared confidential California government information with Podesta regarding a corporate client identified in previous reporting as Activision Blizzard.
Williamson’s plea agreement states that investigators recorded a June 2024 conversation in which she and Podesta discussed responding to a California Public Records Act request involving the state’s litigation against the company.
Campaign finance records cited by The California Post show Becerra’s campaign committee paid Podesta Company primarily through monthly $10,000 installments during 2023 and 2024.
