The FBI was eavesdropping last year when a top aide to Gov. Gavin Newsom unleashed a string of profanities while venting about a public records request from an unidentified individual.
“Double shit on her!” said Dana Williamson, Newsom's chief of staff, repeating the f-word throughout the conversation. He also called another person a “moron,” according to federal court documents made public this week.
Before Wednesday, few people outside the California political bubble likely knew Williamson's name.
She is now embroiled in a scandal involving political consultants and illicit payments that threatens to haunt her former boss, Newsom, as she challenges President Trump and looks ahead to the 2028 presidential race.
Williamson, a smart and astute negotiator who bridged the overlapping worlds of government, business and work in Sacramento, is also someone who picked unnecessary fights and launched cruel missives, political consultants and friends said this week.
Federal agents arrested Williamson on Wednesday at his home in Carmichael, a suburb of Sacramento. His lawyer, former United States Attorney. McGregor Scott was furious at how the arrest was handled and said she was seriously ill and needed a liver transplant.
Federal prosecutors allege she conspired to divert money from the state campaign accounts of one of her former clients for false services and falsified documents related to her COVID loan.
She is also accused of lying on her tax returns about luxury items and services, including a $150,000 birthday trip to Mexico, which she allegedly tried to pass off as business expenses, according to the government.
Williamson, who pleaded not guilty to the charges this week, appeared in court in Sacramento. She appeared solemn during the hearing; At one point, he reportedly raised his handcuffed hand to wipe away a tear and left without speaking to reporters.
Court documents filed this week paint a picture of both a scheming player and a fragile individual. “I'm scared,” he wrote in a February 2022 text message to a colleague as they discussed the alleged money laundering scheme, which was reportedly in the early planning stages.
Public affairs consultant Steven Maviglio has known her since they both worked in President Clinton's administration, and then in the administration of Governor Gray Davis. She is now trying to raise a legal defense fund for herself.
He described Williamson as a “no nonsense, no nonsense, do it” person who “spoke frankly, sometimes to the point of offending people”.
He regularly swore profanities, he added.
In another recording captured by the FBI, Williamson joined two colleagues last year at a restaurant near the state Capitol in Sacramento. The government was asking questions about the money he received through his COVID loan.
He complained about the “f—” drama and said his Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan was “busted,” before adding another curse word. According to federal officials, he created phony contracts in an attempt to show that COVID money was used appropriately.
There is little sympathy from his detractors. Gil Durán, former press secretary to Gov. Jerry Brown, who worked alongside Williamson, compared her to a “mob boss” in an interview with CNN. She also has numerous defenders in Sacramento, many of them women, who see her as a tough and inspiring figure.
The details of the federal documents sent shockwaves beyond Sacramento and the state Capitol this week.
“I am stunned by the allegation and find it hard to believe,” said Alison Gaulden, who supervised Williamson when she worked as associate vice president of public affairs for Planned Parenthood Mar Monte from 2002 to 2004.
Gaulden described her as “incredibly bright and well-versed in politics. I have admired how she has grown in her career.”
Williamson, who grew up in Santa Rosa, moved between the public and private sectors and served under three governors, Davis, Jerry Brown and Newsom.
At Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E), she worked alongside two other women who would become notably influential in her life: Nancy McFadden, Brown's late adviser, and Alexis Podesta, a veteran California politician who also appears in federal court papers filed this week.
Podesta is the person identified as “Co-Conspirator 2,” but he has not been charged and is cooperating with investigators, according to his attorney.
Williamson was hired as a senior adviser to Brown and later promoted to cabinet secretary.
While working for Brown, Williamson publicly advocated for children's health and testified in favor of legislation that would eliminate the state's personal belief exemption for childhood vaccines. She said the issue was significant to her because she was a mother of four children.
“Usually staff don't talk about bills, the good thing about the governor is that he respects that we are people first,” Williamson told the San Francisco Chronicle. “This was important to me.”
Business advocates appreciated his direct approach when he worked for Brown.
“She was very direct, she was a good person to work with,” said Stuart Waldman, president of the Valley Business and Industry Association. He said he hadn't dealt with her in years.
She bounced between private and government work, drawing criticism from groups like Consumer Watchdog for her “revolving door” career.
In one episode, she was allegedly seen negotiating for her energy clients in Brown's office as the state negotiated the details of a grid deal, sparking outrage from the watchdog group.
She created her own government relations firm, Grace Public Affairs, which handled a variety of campaigns, including the Proposition 27 online sports betting initiative, which appeared on the 2022 ballot but did not pass.
His clients included California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and former attorney. Gen. Xavier Becerra, whose campaign fund was allegedly raided by Williamson and others.
In 2017, I had a close group of friends who had also reached the top of their professions. But to those not in her inner circle, she was all elbows, one political expert said this week.
At the California Democratic Party headquarters in downtown Sacramento, a bronze statue of Williamson's then-five-year-old daughter was installed as part of a campaign to promote female empowerment following Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's defeat in 2016.
Among those behind the statue were Williamson's friends Robin Swanson, a Democratic communications consultant, and Angie Tate, then the top fundraiser for the California Democratic Party.
The installation was intended to mimic the “Fearless Girl” statue on New York's Wall Street, which shows a 4-foot-tall young woman staring defiantly at the famous charging bull statue.
In 2022, Newsom's office announced that Williamson would join his office as chief of staff. Although the two weren't particularly close when she joined, she quickly became part of their inner circle, Politico reported at the time.
Anthony York, Newsom's former communications director and former LA Times reporter, told Politico at the time that Williamson was not intimidated by the governor's celebrity status. “She doesn't care about anything, which is part of what makes her so great,” York said.
During his time in Newsom's office, he worked with former Senate leader Darrell Steinberg on the successful passage of Proposition 1, which borrows billions of dollars for mental health services, and it was a personal issue for his family.
“I had a particularly difficult experience with my husband that I learned a lot from…when the incident happened with him, I learned about all the holes in the system,” she told KQED.
He moved from Elk Grove last year to Carmichael and bought a home for $1.695 million, according to property records. Records show her linked to several homes in Elk Grove, including one that went into foreclosure in 2012.
Williamson sent combative messages, including posts or text messages on social media, often at night. Among his targets: California Labor Federation President Lorena González and U.S. Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Rocklin), whom he called an “entertaining idiot” in X.
He targeted former Assemblyman Kevin McCarty during his campaign last year for Sacramento mayor. She called him a “devil” on X and urged others not to vote for him, before her comment was removed a few days later.
Newsom placed Williamson on leave when she informed him last year that she was under criminal investigation. Her last day in office was in November 2024. At the time, the governor said in a statement that “her insight, tenacity and big heart will be missed.”
This week, a spokesman for the governor took a different tone: “Ms. Williamson no longer serves in this administration. While we are still learning the details of the allegations, the Governor expects all public servants to maintain the highest standards of integrity.”
