• Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom solicited millions of dollars in behested payments for his wife’s charity and left-wing organizations over the past 12 years, according to a California government website.
• California’s behested payments system allows public officials and lawmakers to solicit payments from individuals or organizations to another individual or organization, according to a California government website. 
• “California law permits what amounts to explicitly a shakedown of donors and corporations for money for their own pet projects,” Scott Walker, president of the Capital Research Center, an investigative think tank, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. 

Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom has used his office to solicit millions of dollars in behested payments for his wife’s charity and various left-wing organizations over the past 12 years, according to a California government website.

California’s behested payments system allows public officials and lawmakers to solicit payments from individuals or organizations to another individual or organization “for a legislative, governmental or charitable purpose,” according to California’s Fair Political Practices Commission. In total, since 2011 Newsom solicited over $300 million in donations for various causes while governor and lieutenant governor, including his wife’s California Partners Project, the left-leaning Tides Foundation, consulting fees to the former mayor of Los Angeles, and climate activist organization the Aileen Getty Foundation. (RELATED: California’s LGBTQ Caucus Solicited Over $1 Million For Activist Group Boosting Their Legislation)

“California law permits what amounts to explicitly a shakedown of donors and corporations, for money for their own pet projects,” Scott Walker, president of the investigative think tank Capital Research Center, told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Between the years of 2020 and 2023, Newsom solicited more than 20 payments for his wife’s California Partners Project totaling over $2,300,000, according to the payments tracker. The organization focuses on the advancing “equal pay and women’s representation on corporate boards” and creating “a more equitable California,” according to its website.

Groups solicited for payments to his wife’s organization include the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria and the Lisa Stone Pritzker Family Foundation, founded by the wife of billionaire John Pritzker, according to the payments tracker.

“It’s not going in that officeholder’s account, but they solicit the money and it goes into another account. So, say a charitable or nonprofit account,” political strategist Duane Dichiara told the DCNF.

Newsom solicited donations of over $12 million dollars on behalf of the Tides Foundation between 2020 and 2021, according to the payments tracker. The Tides Foundation previously mounted a press campaign attempting to get corporations to withdraw from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (COC) because they believe the COC does not support enough pro-green policies, and the foundation also donated to groups attempting to get Donald Trump off the ballot.

In 2023, Newsom solicited $500,000 to the Aileen Getty Foundation, a climate activist organization founded by the heiress of billionaire oil tycoon John Paul Getty’s fortune, Aileen Getty, according to the payments tracking system. Aileen Getty previously donated over $1 million to the activist group Just Stop Oil, which is known for having activists glue their hands to concrete and throw tomato soup at paintings, according to the Daily Mail.

Newsom also solicited over $380,000 in donations for Antonio R. Villaraigosa LLC in 2022 and 2023, which appears to be operated by former Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa for “strategic advice,” according to the payments tracking system.

Meta was solicited in 2022 by Newsom for a payment of over $500,000 to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) for “Ad credits for COVID-19 public awareness efforts,” according to the payment tracking system. Newsome also solicited Mark Zuckerberg’s foundation, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, for four payments totaling over $735,000 for COVID-19 public awareness campaigns.

Newsom solicited $10,000,000 from Google in 2020 to pay for California’s COVID-19 awareness campaign, according to the payments tracking system. He also solicited a $2,700,000 payment from Google in 2022 for CDPH’s COVID-19 awareness campaign.

Newsom’s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

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