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Top Democrat, Californias Chief of Staff, Dana Williamson and Secretary of the California Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency Alex Podesta are federally indicted for corruption of public office and embezzling covid relief funds
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/14/how-californias-ultimate-power-broker-went-down-00653137
How California’s ultimate power broker went down
Gavin Newsom's former chief of staff scaled the heights of California politics with a take-no-prisoners style. This week, it came crashing down.
Soon after Dana Williamson re-entered the inner echelons of California’s Democratic power structure in early 2023 — taking over as Gavin Newsom’s chief of staff — she was discussing directing a senior attorney to resolve a state discrimination lawsuit against a former corporate client, according to an indictment unsealed this week.
And when a whistleblower began seeking public records about the Newsom administration’s involvement in that case, Williamson derided the request to her close associate and alleged co-conspirator Alexis Podesta.
“Fuck her,” Podesta said, according to a transcription of the secretly recorded June 2024 conversation included in the indictment against Williamson. “They don’t really know who they are messing with.”
“They really don’t,” Williamson replied. “It’s bad for them.”
Few people in California politics have accumulated as much influence — or as many detractors — as Williamson did while serving multiple governors and cementing herself as a sought-after counselor to campaigns and interest groups in Sacramento. She built a reputation as a ruthlessly effective and at times caustic operator with a penchant for dealmaking and an expertise in wielding power, earning both fear and respect in Sacramento.
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/14/how-californias-ultimate-power-broker-went-down-00653137
How California’s ultimate power broker went down
Gavin Newsom's former chief of staff scaled the heights of California politics with a take-no-prisoners style. This week, it came crashing down.
Soon after Dana Williamson re-entered the inner echelons of California’s Democratic power structure in early 2023 — taking over as Gavin Newsom’s chief of staff — she was discussing directing a senior attorney to resolve a state discrimination lawsuit against a former corporate client, according to an indictment unsealed this week.
And when a whistleblower began seeking public records about the Newsom administration’s involvement in that case, Williamson derided the request to her close associate and alleged co-conspirator Alexis Podesta.
“Fuck her,” Podesta said, according to a transcription of the secretly recorded June 2024 conversation included in the indictment against Williamson. “They don’t really know who they are messing with.”
“They really don’t,” Williamson replied. “It’s bad for them.”
Few people in California politics have accumulated as much influence — or as many detractors — as Williamson did while serving multiple governors and cementing herself as a sought-after counselor to campaigns and interest groups in Sacramento. She built a reputation as a ruthlessly effective and at times caustic operator with a penchant for dealmaking and an expertise in wielding power, earning both fear and respect in Sacramento.
