Reporting from Sacramento — Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom on Thursday announced he will place his ownership interest in the collection of wineries, hotels, restaurants and other investments that made him a millionaire into a blind trust, a step he said “goes beyond anything required by law.”
Since his election in November, Newsom has been weighing how to handle his array of assets in the hospitality business, collectively known as the PlumpJack Group, a multimillion-dollar business enterprise that grew from a wine shop he opened in San Francisco in 1992. Those holdings have the potential to create ethical conflicts between Newsom’s job as California’s chief executive and his business interests.
“Governor-elect Gavin Newsom is announcing today that he will be the first governor in the history of California to release his tax returns every year, just as he has done as a candidate,” Newsom’s spokesman Nathan Click said in a statement. “Newsom will also disclose his personal and business holdings each year on his statement of economic interest and separate himself from the PlumpJack Group wine and hospitality businesses that he has built.’’
Bob Stern, coauthor of California’s 1974 Political Reform Act that dictates the state’s conflict-of-interest laws, praised Newsom’s decision.
“That’s as much as anybody could ask him to do, except for selling all the properties, which I wouldn’t recommend him doing,” Stern said Thursday.
Stern added, however, that placing those assets in a blind trust does not remove the potential that Newsom could face a possible conflict of interest as governor. Under the law, Newsom is required to disclose all assets in the blind trust until those assets are sold, Stern said.
Newsom is in the process of transferring title to and control of the businesses into the blind trust, Click said. Newsom selected family friend Shyla Hendrickson, an attorney and certified public accountant with more than two decades of experience in the investment management business, as trustee, he said.
Under the terms of the blind trust, Hendrickson will have total authority over the assets, Click said, including the power to sell off Newsom’s business ownership without consulting him. She also is barred from discussing those decisions with Newsom.
Picking a family friend to serve as trustee is allowable under state law, Stern said, adding that the fact that Newsom’s sister, Hilary Newsom Callan, serves as president of the PlumpJack Group is “not a problem” under the law.
State law does not require Newsom to divest from PlumpJack Group or release the names of his business associates. And Newsom can legally sign bills or take executive action beneficial to his companies if those decisions affect all Californians or a significant segment of the population in the same way they affect him.
Newsom has yet to announce any details about the financial interests of his wife, documentary filmmaker Jennifer Siebel Newsom, whose foundation could also raise questions for the incoming governor.
Siebel Newsom’s foundation, the Representation Project, which helps fund her documentaries along with education programs and community outreach “to challenge limiting gender stereotypes and shift norms,” has in the past received financial support from Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and AT&T. PG&E and its foundation reported donating $100,000 to the Representation Project in 2017, $85,000 in 2016 and $10,000 in 2015, according to federal tax records and a list of PG&E’s charitable donations on the utility’s website.
As president of the foundation, Siebel Newsom received a salary of $150,000 in 2016, according to the most recent publicly available disclosures filed with the Internal Revenue Service. The foundation also reported paying Girls Club Entertainment, Siebel Newsom’s production company, $150,000 that same year. Newsom’s spokesman said the board of directors of the Representation Project is in the process of determining her future role with the foundation.
In 2018, PG&E also donated $58,400 to Gavin Newsom’s gubernatorial campaign and $150,000 to Citizens Supporting Gavin Newsom for Governor 2018, an independent expenditure committee that backed his candidacy.
Next year, the California Legislature is likely to consider a bill to provide financial relief for any utility whose equipment was involved in a wildfire in 2018. PG&E could face billions in potential liability costs for the deadly Camp fire near Chico, which killed at least 86 people and destroyed thousands of homes.
If approved by lawmakers, the bill would land on Newsom’s desk.
This isn’t the first time Newsom has had to address the intersection of his political and business lives. After he was elected mayor of San Francisco in 2003, Newsom sold his interests in the PlumpJack Group businesses in San Francisco to his longtime friend and business partner, oil heir Gordon Getty, for $1.7 million, according to a financial disclosure filed with the city. But Newsom held on to his investments outside the city limits, including in Napa Valley wineries and a hotel and gift shop at the Squaw Valley ski resort near Lake Tahoe.
“The mayor chose to take this unprecedented action because he feels it is in the best interest of San Francisco for its chief executive not to own businesses that operate in the city,” Newsom’s then-press secretary, Peter Ragone, told the San Francisco Chronicle in April 2004.
As governor, Newsom could face an array of potential ethical dilemmas as long as his assets in the PlumpJack Group remain in the trust.
For example, a corporation could conceivably try to curry favor with the new governor by renting out a bank of rooms at the PlumpJack Squaw Valley Inn or by throwing lavish parties at the Forgery bar in San Francisco, both among Newsom’s holdings. In those scenarios, the spending would likely not have to be disclosed.
Newsom has held campaign events at his restaurants and other businesses for years. His gubernatorial campaign spent more than $83,000 at his businesses from 2015 through election day, campaign finance records show.
In 2014, the California Democratic Party held a fundraiser at Newsom’s CADE Estate Winery in Napa Valley, paying the business $4,229. Just after Newsom was elected mayor of San Francisco in 2003, two Bay Area labor groups spent more than $1,000 at PlumpJack Wines, Newsom’s wine store.
Newsom has vowed to issue an executive order prohibiting state executive branch agencies from doing business with PlumpJack entities. He will also divest from all common stock that he owns in publicly traded companies. According to his latest financial disclosure, Newsom held stock in Intel Corp. and Merck & Co. worth $4,000 to $20,000 in total.
Napa Valley wineries have brought in hundreds of thousands of dollars in income for Newsom annually, according to financial disclosure records and business filings with the secretary of state’s office. Three wineries in the PlumpJack Group founded by Newsom and Getty generated nearly $800,000 in just one year for Newsom, according to his 2015 federal tax returns. Newsom and Getty — who are connected through Getty’s friendship with Newsom’s late father, who once managed Getty’s family trust — share multiple business interests.
Under state law, Newsom will not have to declare a conflict of interest when making a decision — whether to sign legislation or approve an administrative action — unless it “explicitly” affects one of his companies or investments, according to state Fair Political Practices Commission regulations.
For example, Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) is sponsoring a bill that would allow bars in San Francisco, Los Angeles and seven other cities to serve alcohol until 4 a.m. The legislation passed this year but was vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown. If the bill passes again in the new legislative session, Newsom’s restaurants and bars would benefit financially if he signs it. But he still would be able to so without declaring a conflict of interest because the rules would apply to all restaurants and bars in those cities, not just his.
“He’s certainly allowed to sign bills dealing with wineries or dealing with restaurants,” Stern said.
In this 2004 photo, then-San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, left, Gordon Getty and then-Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown enjoy a pre-dinner glass of wine during an event at Newsom’s PlumpJack Winery in Oakville.
(Eric Risberg / Associated Press)
Although Newsom might be one of the wealthiest governors ever to serve in California, the issues posed by his assets aren’t new to the office, Stern said.
Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger sold off stock and many other investments, placing the proceeds in a blind trust, although he had also disclosed investments outside the trust, including his Hollywood entertainment firm, Oak Productions.
While in office, Schwarzenegger was criticized for accepting a consulting job for a publisher of health and bodybuilding magazines — Muscle & Fitness and Flex — because a significant portion of the publications’ revenue came from advertising by makers of nutritional supplements. Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill that would have created a list of banned substances for interscholastic sports and barred supplement manufacturers from sponsoring school events.
Rob Stutzman, a GOP strategist and former communications director for Schwarzenegger, said it was difficult to wall off some of Schwarzenegger’s business interests because they were tied to the “personal brand” of the Hollywood action star and former champion bodybuilder.
The best option in those cases is asking full disclosure from public officials, he said.
“I don’t think [Schwarzenegger’s situation] is unique. I think it’s just a matter of scrutiny and watching it,” Stutzman said.
“In Newsom’s case, if he can’t sell PlumpJack or other things he owns, he’s not going to be blind,” said retired attorney Colleen McAndrews, a former member of the state Fair Political Practices Commission who advised Schwarzenegger on setting up a blind trust when be became governor.
Local government politicians are most affected by the state’s conflict-of-interest law because cities and counties approve regulations, permits, land use restrictions and other items that could affect a single business or part of town. It would be rare to see a conflict arise under state law for the governor, however, because most of the action taken by the state’s chief executive affects all Californians equally, McAndrews said.
“You don’t have to recuse if a decision affects the public the same way it affects you,” she said.
Rick Scott, the wealthiest governor in Florida history who in November was elected to the U.S. Senate, came under intense scrutiny after he placed his assets in a blind trust. Multiple Florida news outlets reported that Scott’s blind trust made identical investments in a separate, private account for his wife, raising questions about just how “blind” the governor was to the trust.
GateHouse newspapers reported this year that the couple’s financial holdings in the pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, which makes drugs to combat hepatitis C, had grown substantially. Florida’s Medicaid program has spent millions on those drugs, the report found.
Jamie Court, president of the nonprofit Consumer Watchdog, said that regardless of what the incoming governor decides to do regarding his assets, Newsom should provide full disclosure of all his financial interests.
“I think the governor has to be very open about his business relations, even beyond what the law calls for,” Court said. “If he hides anything, believe me, we will find out later and it won’t be good.”
Times staff writer Maloy Moore contributed to this report.
A Gavin & Stacey icon is tipped to be joining the celebrity line-up for the 2026 season of Strictly Come Dancing – which will see Emma Willis, Johannes Radebe and Josh Widdicombe take over as judges
Gavin & Stacey star Melanie Walters is reportedly joining the 2026 Strictly cast(Image: BBC)
Gavin & Stacey star Melanie Walters is the latest celebrity to have reportedly signed up to the 2026 season of Strictly Come Dancing. A report has claimed the 64-year-old actress will be throwing on sequins and hitting the ballroom floor as one of the star contestants for the upcoming 24th season of the long-running BBC show.
Sitcom fans will know Melanie as Gwen West in Gavin & Stacey – which aired its last ever episode in 2024 – and is also known for playing Bonnie Bevan in Hollyoaks, and for guest roles in a string of shows including Doc Martin, Casualty, and Beyond Paradise. Now fans may be able to see her in a whole new light as a contestant on the BBC’s iconic dance show.
The 2026 cast has started to be unveiled – with an EastEnders favourite and an Australian music icon among the confirmed cast so far. A report has now suggested that Melanie will be the next celeb to be announced as part of the upcoming line-up.
A source told The Sun on Sunday: ““Melanie is loved across the country for her role as Gwen. The Gavin & Stacey Christmas special in 2024 saw millions of fans turning in for the final episode of the series. BBC bosses are very excited to have landed Melanie given her popularity.”
When asked for a statement, the BBC responded to the Mirror to say: “We don’t comment on speculation.” EastEnders star Lacey Turner, who has played Stacey Slater in the BBC soap since 2004, was the first 2026 contestant to be announced – with Australian singer and recent Eurovision contestant Delta Goodrem also unmasked as a participant.
Fans will recall that Love Island star Dani Dyer was forced to drop out of the 2025 contest after suffering an early injury during the competition – but she has now been granted the chance to fight for the glitterball trophy again as she will return as a 2026 contestant. While celebrity hairstylist Chris Appleton has also been unveiled as a season 24 participant.
After being announced as the first contestant for 2026, Lacey said in a statement: “I am so excited to being making my way to the dance floor this year to be a part of Strictly Come Dancing! I am a huge fan and can’t quite believe I will be taking part and not watching at home this year! I look forward to meeting everyone and learning a new skill!”
While Love Island’s Dani declared: “I am so excited to be back in the ballroom this September. I just cannot wait to get my dancing shoes back on and hopefully this time around I can actually make it to week one! I’m just over the moon and cannot wait to find out who else is doing it!”
Meanwhile, singer Delta – who was a favourite to win the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, but missed out on the crown – expressed her excitement at taking part in Strictly. She gushed: “I’ve been incredibly honoured to perform on many different stages throughout my career – from tv, theatre, film sets, to touring my own shows around the world, there is however one stage I’ve never stepped onto and that is the ballroom floor! I’m absolutely thrilled to be joining Strictly and can’t wait to get started!”
Chris – who has styled the hair of celebrities including Kim Kardashian and Ariana Grande – said: “I’m thrilled to be joining Strictly Come Dancing and coming home to the UK for this incredible experience. I’ve always believed that the best things happen when you take a chance and try something new. I may know my way around a salon floor, but the dance floor is a whole different story – and I can’t wait to get started.”
A lot is riding on the 2026 season of Strictly – which will be the first to air since the shock resignations of hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman. Fans were blindsided last year when they abruptly announced they were to exit the show at the end of 2025 just weeks after the 23rd season started to air.
Model-turned-presenter Emma Willis will front the show alongside former Strictly professional Johannes Radebe and stand up comedian Josh Widdicombe. Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, Motsi Mabuse and Craig Revel Horwood have all been confirmed as returning as the panel of judges.
As news of the new presenting line-up last month, Emma declared: “To be stepping into the Strictly ballroom is something I can’t quite comprehend.” While Josh added he was: “giddy with excitement, honoured and a little overawed to be given the chance to step into the biggest shoes in television”.
And Strictly pro Johannes – who danced professionally on the series from 2018 through 2025 – said returning to the series as a new presenter was “beyond anything I ever imagined”. The 2026 season of Strictly is expected to begin airing in September.
James Corden has revealed he dislikes one of Gavin & Stacey’s iconic episodesCredit: GettyThe writer and show star admitted that the series’ second episode was ‘very bad’Credit: PA
Despite being much-loved by fans, James has revealed that he was not a fan of the show’s second ever episode – despite it being the one where the titular characters get engaged.
Describing the episode as a “very, very, very bad half hour” whilst talking at theBBC Comedy Festival, James explained that he felt they were “backed into a corner” by the episode ending with Gavin proposing to Stacey.
The episode sees Gavin – played by Mathew Horne – travel to Wales to make up with Joanna Page’s character Stacey following a dispute, and ends with him proposing.
Despite noting some “saving graces” in the writing, he added: “It’s an awful episode”.
James and Ruth have signed a multi-million pound deal with AppleTV+ for a follow-up series.
They will star in the ten-part comedy drama alongside an all-British cast.
Set in the UK, filming begins next year with the hotly-anticipated show due in 2027.
The deal, believed to worth up to £8million, was agreed amid interest from BBC, Netflix and Amazon Prime.
A show insider said: “In what has unquestionably been a pretty miserable year for Brits, there is finally something to cheer — a new James and Ruth co-production.
“As you might expect, it is uplifting, gentle and very funny.
“They wanted to bring something full of heart and warmth back to screens; water cooler moments for all the family.”
SACRAMENTO — Newborns won’t be leaving the hospital empty-handed in California.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Friday that the state is partnering with Baby2Baby to provide 400 free diapers to every newborn. Baby2Baby is a national nonprofit based in California that provides clothing and other basic necessities to children.
The governor said it would help families with the rising cost of living.
“Since the pandemic, we have seen the cost of diapers go up by 45%,” said Newsom, speaking at a press conference in San Francisco. “One out of four families skip meals to pay for diapers.”
The new program, dubbed the Golden State Start, will launch this summer. Participating hospitals will distribute the diapers to families at the time of discharge. Forty million diapers will be distributed during the program’s first year, with a goal of later expanding the program to provide 160 million.
Newsom said the state will prioritize hospitals that serve large numbers of parents enrolled in Medi-Cal, California’s version of the federal Medicaid program providing healthcare coverage to low-income Americans. The state plans to later expand to additional hospitals and birthing centers.
The governor described the program as the first of its kind in the nation.
“We are not imitating; we are a model to others,” he said.
Kim Johnson, secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency, said the initiative would help families enjoy their first few weeks at home with a new baby.
“The first days at home with a newborn should be focused on the love, connection, and joy of an expanded family, not stress about affording diapers,” Johnson said in a statement. “This program helps ensure families can begin that journey with greater stability and peace of mind.”
The National Diaper Bank Network, a national nonprofit that tracks diaper insecurity, found about 60% of low-income families nationwide struggle with the cost of diapers and rely on less-frequent changes to get by. The organization said dirty diapers leave babies at risk of developing rashes or urinary tract infections.
It was only last week when Huntington Beach was unbeaten in the Sunset League and running away with the the league title. Now Newport Harbor (13-3) is closing fast, pulling to within one game of the Oilers (14-2) after Gavin Guy threw a five-hit shutout on Tuesday to beat the Oilers 1-0.
Guy struck out eight and walked. one. Keoni Wun drove in the game’s only run in the third inning with an RBI single. The two teams close the regular season with games Wednesday at Huntington Beach and Friday at Newport Harbor.
Marina 5, Fountain Valley 1: Jaxon Vilardi threw the complete game for Marina.
Edison 16, Corona del Mar 3: Cody Kruis had three hits and five RBIs for Edison, including three doubles.
St. John Bosco 7, Mater Dei 0: Julian Garcia struck out 10 in six innings while giving up no hits and Jaden Jackson and James Clark each hit home runs to help the Braves clinch at least a share of the Trinity League championship. Jack Champlin added two RBIs.
JSerra 8, Santa Margarita 7: Blake Bowen hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh for JSerra.
Orange Lutheran 3, Servite 0: Cooper Sides gave up three hits in six innings and Marcus Greis got the save.
Sierra Canyon 11, Loyola 2: Brayden Goldstein hit a home run and double, Theo Swafford had three hits and Carl McMullen had three hits and three RBIs for the Trailblazers.
Harvard-Westlake 12, Chaminade 3: Nate Blum had three hits, Ira Rootman contributed two hits and two RBIs and James Tronstein homered for the Wolverines.
Bishop Alemany 5, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 3: Mikey Martinez had two hits for the Warriors and also got the save.
St. Francis 4, Crespi 2: Caysen Sullivan struck out six in 6 1/3 innings.
Ganesha 2, Palos Verdes 1: Logan Schmidt gave up two hits in five innings with eight strikeouts and no walks.
Brentwood 7, Viewpoint 0: Jack Kaplan threw a perfect game with 15 strikeouts.
Santa Monica 6, Culver City 5: The Vikings scored three runs in the sixth and two in the seventh to clinch the Ocean League championship. The Vikings are 23-0 in league play the last two years.
Temecula Valley 16, Vista Murrieta 0: The Golden Bears clinched the Southwestern League title. Taden Krogsgaard threw a no-hitter with 10 strikeouts and one walk.
Newbury Park 5, Westlake 4: Jack Klein had an RBI single in the sixth for the Panthers. Jaxson Neckien and Cade Atkinson each had two hits for Westlake.
Agoura 12, Thousand Oaks 2: Tyler Starling had three hits, including a home run, and Jordan Tagawa also had three hits for Agoura.
Calabasas 10, Oaks Christian 9: With two out in the top of the seventh, Oaks Christian had a chance to tie when the pitch went to the backstop. But it was retrieved and Oaks Christian’s runner was tagged out at the plate trying to score, ending the game. Michael Morales had three hits for Calabasas. Robert Sheffer hit two home runs for Oaks Christian. Luis Puls had a home run and six RBIs.
San Clemente 6, El Toro 0: Bob Erspamer struck out seven in five scoreless innings and Dax Conrad had two hits and two RBIs.
Softball
Murrieta Mesa 13, Great Oak 0: Tatum Wolff hit a three-run home run and also threw five shutout innings with nine strikeouts and no walks.
Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 3, Sierra Canyon 1: Nadia Ledon had two hits and Aliyah Garcia gave up two hits in six innings.
JSerra 5, Santa Margarita 2: Liliana Escobar struck out 14 for JSerra.
Mater Dei 6, Orange Lutheran 5: Aly Carrillo and Tulutululelei Sale each hit home runs in the Trinity League upset for the Monarchs.
Chaminade 11, Louisville 0: Finley Suppan struck out seven with no walks in six innings. Kyriel Fletcher had three hits.
In a treehouse nestled in redwoods north of San Francisco, Gov. Newsom stood cold and hungry as Sergey Brin, the world’s fourth-richest man, and his wellness-influencer girlfriend told him they were leaving the state.
It was late in the evening at a Christmas party hosted by crypto titan Chris Larsen — featuring singer Janelle Monáe and a towering abominable snowman with glowing red eyes — when Brin and his partner, Gerelyn Gilbert-Soto, confronted Newsom about a new proposal to tax billionaires in California, according to people who’ve spoken with the governor. Such a levy could hit Brin’s stake in Alphabet Inc. and his $272.6 billion fortune.
Newsom, who opposes the wealth tax, was still telling people about the lengthy exchange at the party months later, complaining of a lingering cold the pair had given him, according to the people, who asked not to be named discussing private conversations with the governor.
Brin, meanwhile, followed through. He left the state, bought a lakeside mansion in Nevada, and started bankrolling a billionaire political uprising in California.
Newsom, through a spokesperson, declined to comment on the interaction. “The governor has been very clear with everyone, no matter who they are, that this effort will do serious damage to the state, including for public safety workers and schools, at the expense of one special interest group,” Izzy Gardon, a spokesperson, said.
A representative for Brin didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Brin’s political push reflects a broader awakening among California’s ultrawealthy. Over the past six months, the proposed billionaire tax and a heated governor’s race have drawn tech titans and business leaders more directly into the state’s affairs — a space many of them have traditionally kept at arm’s length.
Prior to this year, Brin’s last contribution in a California election cycle was 2010 when Arnold Schwarzenegger was governor and the Google co-founder largely backed climate causes. He’s now spent more than $58 million in the last four months, including an extra $9 million disclosed late Friday, but more importantly has helped mobilize a network of fellow tech titans in a push to sway state issues.
“The wealth tax was a wake up call, it was a fire that just lit up Silicon Valley literally in a matter of weeks,” said Steven Maviglio, a veteran Democratic strategist. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Altogether, ultrawealthy donors have injected more than $270 million into California’s political scene in this election cycle. Outside of the wealth tax, billionaire Tom Steyer is emerging as a top Democratic candidate for governor after the downfall of former Representative Eric Swalwell following allegations of sexual assault. Steyer, a former hedge fund manager, has spent more than $140 million in his election bid, crowding TV airwaves with ads and labeling himself a “class traitor” with a campaign modeled after Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
Ballots for the June 2 primary election start going out next week. Brin and a cohort of the ultrawealthy including Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and venture capitalists Vinod Khosla and John Doerr have plowed millions into supporting Matt Mahan, a Silicon Valley mayor, with a back-to-basics agenda and a penchant for taking on the state’s Democratic establishment.
That money has helped Mahan buy airtime and attracted controversy, but his polling numbers remain stuck in the single digits while Steyer’s well-funded progressive campaign is gaining favor with voters. Brin has also backed Republican Steve Hilton, who’s currently leading polls.
“You have two polar opposites going on. You have a billionaire running who has actually fully adopted an agenda that the vast majority of voters agree with: Taxing billionaires, funding healthcare, fighting back against ICE,” said Lorena Gonzalez, head of the state’s largest union group, the California Federation of Labor Unions. “And then you have billionaires pushing a candidate whose talking points are apologetic to the tech industry.”
The billionaire political activism in California mirrors larger shifts in Silicon Valley and the nation. President Donald Trump has given tech billionaires broad access to the White House, inviting Brin and other industry captains over for dinner and to join advisory boards.
Back in September, Trump singled out Gilbert-Soto as Brin’s “really wonderful MAGA girlfriend” at a White House dinner also attended by Mark Zuckerberg, Tim Cook and Sam Altman. She has publicly supported Republican Steve Hilton for California governor, a candidate Trump endorsed and Brin has also donated to.
In California, Brin’s newfound political action was catalyzed by the wealth tax proposal, which would levy a one-time 5% tax on billionaires to help offset federal healthcare cuts. In a Signal group chat earlier this year with other Silicon Valley elite, Brin floated the idea of raising hundreds of millions of dollars to influence California politics, according to a person who saw the message.
Brin left California for Nevada ahead of a Jan. 1 residency deadline for the proposed wealth tax. He moved to a $42 million mansion on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe, featuring two glass-walled funiculars.
Shortly after leaving California, Brin contributed $20 million to a new group dedicated to fighting the tax while also pushing pro-business and housing affordability policies, Building a Better California, making him the single largest contributor. He added $37 million over the spring, as the group quickly started supporting a trio of anti-wealth tax measures that could nullify a billionaire tax if it gets passed in an election. One of the measures, the so-called Transparency Act, has enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot, its backers claimed on Monday.
Building a Better California “remains fixed on long-term reforms supported by most Californians: housing affordability, stable funding for education, infrastructure investments, and government accountability,” a spokesperson said.
Joining Brin in the effort were other billionaires, including former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, Stripe CEO Patrick Collison and venture capitalist Michael Moritz. Peter Thiel, who also left California ahead of the New Year’s Day deadline, gave $3 million to a separate committee opposing the wealth tax.
“They don’t trust California anymore,” said David Lesperance, a tax attorney who specializes in relocations and has helped move five families out of the state because of the wealth tax threat.
Brin and his fellow billionaires helped push up the costs to gather the more than 870,000 signatures required to qualify a ballot measure. This forced the union behind the wealth tax, SEIU-UHW, to spend more on their efforts.
Now, the union says it has succeeded in getting the signatures it needed, which will likely force the business leaders opposing it into further spending.
“A very small group of the most controversial billionaires on the planet tried to stop Californians from being able to save their local emergency rooms and hospitals — but our current signature tally proves frontline healthcare workers will prevail in bringing this commonsense proposal to voters,” said Suzanne Jimenez, SEIU-UHW’s chief of staff. “When our growing coalition files these signatures, David will have won the first round against Goliath.”
Other billionaires have bankrolled their own political initiatives, including Larsen, who set up his own network of influence groups with names like Grow California and Golden State Promise.
Many in Sacramento are skeptical that Brin and his fellow ultra-rich will succeed in swaying California state politics. They point to the failed candidacy of former eBay executive Meg Whitman, who spent around $144 million of her own fortune to become governor, or even venture capitalist Tim Draper’s longshot initiative to split California into six separate states.
“They’re trying to extrapolate from their own industry, which might have been fabulously successful, that they know something about political advertising, when they don’t,” said Garry South, a veteran Democratic strategist. “They think, ‘Hey, I’ve got money I can throw it around,’ and they don’t really do their homework.”
Political consultants describe their frustration with some wealthy tech donors, who often view their political giving through an investment lens, promising big checks and not following through if they don’t see momentum. That’s led to questions about whether the California billionaire activism would continue if Mahan’s governor bid fails and the wealth tax passes.
Even Larsen, who’s worth around $13 billion, has expressed anxiety that not enough business leaders are stepping into politics. “It’s a lot of talk, and they’re happy, but we don’t see the firepower we need to take on the SEIUs,” he said, referring to the state’s largest union.
Newsom, for his part, acknowledges that many of the state’s wealthiest residents are willing to donate significant sums of money, but want to do it on their own terms and not through a tax.
“Some will never give a penny away,” he said at a Bloomberg News event in January, not long after his encounter with Brin in the treehouse. “Some I respect. Some I don’t.”
Gavin Rossdale brought his band Bush to Stagecoach on Saturday — one of several groups at the festival this weekend with indelible rock hits from the 1990s. The 60-year-old, who recently premiered a television cooking show, also put in an appearance alongside Billy Bob Thornton, Wynonna Judd and Gavin Adcock at the fever dream that is Guy Fieri’s Smokehouse. I caught up with him between the two engagements.
This has gotta be your first Stagecoach. It is. I was waiting till I got an invite. I didn’t want to just get a ticket — I wanted to be invited.
You just did a cooking demonstration with Guy Fieri. How’d that go? Fantastic — really good fun. We had four people doing different dishes. He’s a great, great man — I love him.
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You’ve become a TV chef yourself. What’s the TV-chef-meets-TV-chef vibe? I felt a kinship. I only had to tell him — we were talking about making the food — I said to him we could cook some secreto pork. That’s the secret, perfect part of the pork that people don’t know enough about. He was so impressed after that he left me alone to just do what I want.
Guy Fieri didn’t know about it, and neither did I. Oh no, he did.
Clarification: I didn’t know about it.You were there with Gavin Adcock, which means that there were two Gavins. It was a first for me.
I know that Paramount is here at Stagecoach. Are you interested in pitching an odd-couple comedy with you and Gavin Adcock? He’s a country guy, you’re a rock guy — I think we can make this happen. He made a big steak sandwich, and I made a sort of a deep-fried chicken with rice and Japanese things. So I feel that we’re opposing sides and we could combine and make a really great balanced meal.
We’ll pitch this later tonight. How did Bush end up on a country music festival? That is such a good question — you should’ve led with that. And I don’t have any answer for it. It’s like one of those things where I’m just excited to be here and I don’t want to screw it up.
What would screwing it up look like? Choosing the wrong song.
The deepest cut. A D-side. Nobody wants it. But it’s so hard to know what everyone knows. I was trying to do the set list, but I was like, Who is everyone here? Is it real cowboys? Is it Palm Springs cowboys? Is it California cowboys? What is it?
Gavin Rossdale and drummer Nik Hughes perform with Bush on Saturday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Bush is not the only rock band at Stagecoach. The Wallflowers are here, Third Eye Blind is here. You have any beef with these other rock bands? Not on the culinary stage, because it was all chicken. But no, no — I don’t have beef with anyone. Life is too long for beefs.
If you were to play a country song, what would it be? Zach Bryan’s catalog is sensational. They’re beautiful songs, and I feel that if I spent a good amount of time, I could do a faithful version à la Bush.
So Stagecoach 2029: Gavin Rossdale sings the Zach Bryan catalog. Well, not the whole thing.
