{"id":15859,"date":"2026-06-17T23:32:04","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T23:32:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=15859"},"modified":"2026-06-17T23:32:04","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T23:32:04","slug":"newsom-steered-millions-to-favorite-charities-including-those-tied-to-first-partner-wife","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=15859","title":{"rendered":"Newsom steered millions to favorite charities, including those tied to \u2018first partner\u2019\/wife"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

California\u2019s powers-that-be have steered more than a half-billion dollars of other people\u2019s money to their favorite charities and causes since 2011 \u2014 and way more than half of that haul came at the behest of Gov. Gavin Newsom.<\/p>\n

Read more Man who died in Texas plane crash was a key figure in seeding Austin\u2019s technology boom<\/a><\/p>\n

That includes millions donated to nonprofits tied to Newsom\u2019s wife, which may have something to do with the federal investigation into Newsom and \u201cfirst partner\u201d Jennifer Siebel Newsom.<\/p>\n

These donations often come from businesses and people hoping to influence elected leaders, steer public policy, demonstrate their stellar citizenship to the masses, or perhaps a bit of all three. While state law sets caps on gifts and campaign contributions to politicians, there\u2019s no limit on these so-called \u201cbehested payments\u201d to politicians\u2019 pet projects.<\/p>\n

Critics say it\u2019s another way for the well-heeled to curry official favor, while lawmakers say they\u2019re simply using the power of their bully pulpits to make the world a better place. Consider:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Total charitable contributions made at the request of all<\/em> California lawmakers totaled $555.9 million over the past 15 years, according to data from the Fair Political Practices Commission.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Total charitable contributions made at Newsom\u2019s<\/em> request totaled $347.2 million. That\u2019s more than 62% of all behests over the time period.<\/p>\n

\u2022 About $4.3 million of the Newsom behests went to his wife\u2019s California Partners Project, just one of several nonprofits she\u2019s involved with.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not a good look.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no question that Newsom has used this privilege far more frequently than other elected officials,\u201d said political strategist and academic Dan Schnur. \u201cAs long as he files the required disclosure forms and there is no evidence of an explicit quid pro quo, he is entirely within the law. But many people believe that an official should not be able to make requests such as these on behalf of organizations in which their own family members are involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sean McMorris, Transparency, Ethics and Accountability Program Manager for California Common Cause, a nonpartisan good-government watchdog, agrees.<\/p>\n

\u201cBehests often go to good causes, but they are ripe for abuse,\u201d he said. \u201cPoliticians in positions of power can direct money in a way that they otherwise would not be allowed to do under campaign finance or conflict-of-interest laws. They really exploded during the pandemic and afterward, a lot of politicians realized, \u2018This is a kind of an avenue I can use.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more UN food agencies warn acute hunger will worsen in 13 hot spots as famine risks rise<\/a><\/p>\n

Which is not to say that all politicians use behests with ill or nefarious intent. A lot of this money does indeed go to good causes \u2014 Newsom\u2019s list includes groups working on wildfire recovery, public health initiatives, housing, education and much more.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThe problem is,\u201d McMorris said, \u201cit\u2019s connected to politics.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s where this perception of pay-to-play becomes prevalent. The public is not stupid. There\u2019s a reason why these politicians primarily reach out only to people, entities and special interests who typically have interests before them or need votes from them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Things get even stickier when the politician asks for donations to an organization where that politician, or an immediate family member, hold a position of power or receives an income. A loophole in campaign finance and conflict-of-interest laws, he said.<\/p>\n

Clearly, there\u2019s a game being played here. There doesn\u2019t have to be an explicit quid pro quo. Those who want to stay in the good graces of the powerful view behests as a great opportunity to gain favor and influence.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd it\u2019s legal,\u201d McMorris said. \u201cThey don\u2019t have to try and defend themselves. A lot of the justification is, \u2018The ends justify the means,\u2019 because the money is usually going to a good cause. But the means do matter. If the ends have to justify the means, then the means are probably questionable.\u201d<\/p>\n

In San Francisco, voters passed a law that didn\u2019t forbid behests outright \u2014 it simply prohibited behests from people or entities with business before the city. And politicians promptly sought to gut it, seeking \u201cwaivers\u201d allowing them to extract donations from exactly those people or entities with businesses before the city.<\/p>\n

Which tells you just about everything you need to know about behests. It\u2019s not just about the good and the righteous. It\u2019s about power.<\/p>\n

In related news, Newsom has had some run-ins with the FPPC over late filing of behested payments, and is facing a $31,500 fine. We asked the governor\u2019s office for its take on all this, but didn\u2019t hear back by deadline. We\u2019ll let you know if\/when we do.<\/p>\n

Read more Dodgers come from behind to sweep Rays despite rough start from Shohei Ohtani<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Columnist Teri Sforza writes that some say behests often go to good causes, but ‘they are ripe for abuse.’<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15858,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,42],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15859","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion-columnist","category-represents-the-opinion-of-the-author-who-is-either-a-paid-columnist-or-an-unpaid-guest-columnist"],"yoast_head":"\nNewsom steered millions to favorite charities, including those tied to \u2018first partner\u2019\/wife - Silicon Valley Moving Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=15859\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Newsom steered millions to favorite charities, including those tied to \u2018first partner\u2019\/wife - 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