Gavin Newsom wants to be president so badly it’s painful to watch. His struggles — and his frustrations — flow in part from his many failures as governor of California. But his biggest challenge may be the growing revelations of welfare fraud in his state.
Bogus hospital operation, Stolen unemployment insurance, student aid scams, Missing housing fund And many other errors have reportedly cost taxpayers tens of billions of dollars, brought federal investigations and embarrassing oversight to the Golden State.
Newsom’s administration has responded by increasing its own policing of state welfare programs. In recent days, state Attorney General Rob Bonta announced charges against 14 hospital companies that billed Medi-Cal and Medicaid. $267 million in non-existent services.
But that podcaster Nick Shirley and the administrator of Medicare and Medicaid services Dr. Just happened after Mehmet Oz posted. Criminal videos About the obvious fraud in your state. In one such video, Oz describes a drive through the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles, saying, “There’s 42 hospices in this four-block area of Los Angeles. … So either there’s a lot of people dying, or you’ve got a scam that’s so good that everybody wants to get into it.”
Fraud isn’t California’s only issue, to be sure. Newsom has overseen one financial disaster after another.
Topping the list is a much talked about topic $126 billion high speed rail project Which is about 20 years late and almost 400 percent over budget. Meanwhile, fire-ravaged neighborhoods in Los Angeles rebuild Can’t move forward Thanks to unfair regulations and permit requirements. of the State Recurrent budget deficits raise taxes. Regulatory overreach and unfair climate policies make California One of the most expensive places in the country to live – Not ideal if you and your party are running on “bargain” promises.
All this has put pressure businesses and Residents flee the stateNewsom has made millions on the net since taking office.
Newsom’s ham-fisted efforts to broaden his appeal to a national audience also landed him in hot water. A year ago, trying to soften his left-leaning liberalism, the governor tiptoed into a debate about transgender athletes competing in women’s sports. He told the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk that biological men compete with girls “deeply unfair,” A position shared by a substantial majority of Americans but in stark contrast to his awakened brethren. Newsom, a longtime advocate for gay and transgender rights, received a furious backlash from activists, who saw this mainstream view as a betrayal.
Newsom faced criticism for claiming in his memoirs, “Young Man in a Hurry,” That he grew up poor. He told a podcaster, “I was picking myself up from there. … I was sitting there with Wonder Bread. [and] Macaroni and Cheese.” Critics slammed the governor’s story “poor story” Kindly privileged candidates invent to seem more relevant. In fact, his father was a judge and lawyer who worked “consigliere”, for the wealthy Getty family. who sponsored an aspiring politician.
But nothing was more terrifying than Newsom’s A recent attempt to improve its standing with black voters At a recent event in Georgia. The governor told Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, “I’m not trying to impress you. I’m trying to impress you, I’m just like you. I’m not better than you. I’m a 960 SAT guy.” He also revealed that he suffers from dyslexia, which prevents him from reading speeches – a claim met with great skepticism.
Opponents hit back, including Trump supporter Nicki Minaj Posted in X: “His way of relating to black ppl is to tell him how stupid he is and that he can’t read. That means my first reading on him was correct. He’s been handed a lot of things and never held the high position he deserves or deserves.” ouch
These many mistakes have not taken Newsom out of contention. Betting websites have him ahead of the pack of 2028 Democratic presidential candidates by a substantial margin; Most of the voters show him in second placeBehind former Vice President Kamala Harris, whose name recognition is significantly greater than hers.
But Newsome’s chances could be waning as allegations of corruption continue to undermine the Golden State. A recent article in the City Journal Claims Since Newsom took office seven years ago, the state has lost “at least $180 billion” to “massive, systematic, brazen fraud.”
Some scams mirror those in other states, such as California. Large amounts of money were distributed during the pandemic. In Newsom’s state, the authorities facilitated the rapid distribution of unemployment insurance funds. Relaxing long-standing surveillance measuresAlmost guaranteed theft. The state may have paid $1 billion in Covid-era unemployment insurance funds to state prison inmates or scammers using their names.
And the siphoning of funds was not limited to Californians; Foreigners also helped themselves Romanian-led fraud ring that defrauded $5 million.
In particular, the evasion of unemployment insurance was so widespread Rappers created songs with similar lines “You have to sell cocaine, I just claim.” It’s hard to imagine that the authorities had no idea what was going on.
It wasn’t just an unemployment insurance scam. CityJournal noted spending on Medi-Cal has increased during Newsom’s tenure Even though California’s population has declined, it went from $94 billion the year before he took office to $197 billion. And the same magazine also identified one possible reason: The program is paying for transgender surgeries for homeless illegal immigrants.
A recent poll in California’s Orange County may indicate a shift in sentiment against the once-popular governor. This shows approval of Newsom in the purple district Only 38 percentWith 55 percent disapproved – only 1 mark good than President Trump’s position.
Newsom may be in a rush to become president, but his record as governor will slow him down by at least one giant speedbump.
Liz Peek is a former partner at major bracket Wall Street firm Wertheim & Company.
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