Becerra's Closest Advisor Pleaded Guilty In A Criminal Case. His Gubernatorial Rivals Are Piling On

SACRAMENTO  — As Xavier Becerra roseate to nan apical echelons of powerfulness successful Washington and Sacramento complete nan past 2 decades, his trusted advisor Sean McCluskie joined him astatine each step.

The boy of a Scottish immigrant, McCluskie had a estimation arsenic a governmental thoroughfare combatant and his gruff style complemented Becerra’s much measured, cerebral approach.

Now Becerra is nether onslaught successful California’s wide-open governor’s title aft McCluskie, 57, pleaded blameworthy successful December to stealing much than $200,000 from Becerra’s run account.

The charges were portion of a broader ungraded that implicated aliases brushed up against immoderate of Sacramento’s astir influential Democratic governmental advisors, a strategy prosecutors allege included payments, slope fraud and an FBI sting cognition that swept McCluskie’s incriminating backstage conversations and texts into evidence.

Rivals successful nan California governor’s title person seized connected nan lawsuit to mobility whether Becerra, one of nan front-runners successful nan contest to win outgoing Gov. Gavin Newsom, is fresh for agency and could beryllium swept up successful nan case.

“We can’t person personification who is moving arsenic a Democrat who could tally into ineligible difficulties,” said campaigner Tom Steyer, who is adjacent to Becerra successful nan polls.

Becerra has not been accused of wrongdoing, and prosecutors’ tribunal filings picture him arsenic a victim. He told The Times that he cooperated pinch investigators, including appearing earlier nan expansive jury.

“Sean was arsenic adjacent arsenic immoderate staffer that I’ve ever had,” Becerra said successful an question and reply past week, describing really McCluskie moved crossed nan state doubly to activity for him.

He added that he’s “racked” his encephalon to understand nan lawsuit involving McCluskie and his longtime governmental consultant, Dana Williamson, some of whom he described arsenic “very highly accomplished people.”

Williamson, who besides served arsenic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s main of staff, was indicted successful November. She had refused to cooperate pinch national investigators and pleaded not guilty, but precocious discussed a plea woody pinch prosecutors. A tribunal proceeding is group for Thursday, according to tribunal filings.

An statement could unearth much specifications astir nan lawsuit successful nan coming weeks, a anticipation not mislaid connected nan Democrats and Republicans moving for governor.

Former Orange County Rep. Katie Porter, 1 of nan Democrats who has watched Becerra’s accelerated ascent successful nan race, said successful a CNN question and reply Monday that California can’t consequence having Becerra successful nan title pinch nan specter of nan ongoing criminal case.

She acknowledged that “I do not person nan facts” astir nan case, but said if Becerra were to decorativeness successful nan apical 2 successful nan June 2 superior and past beryllium indicted by nan Trump administration’s Department of Justice, a Republican yet could triumph nan governor’s title successful November.

“Secretary Becerra cannot and has not guaranteed aliases promised nan group of California that he will not beryllium named arsenic a co-conspirator and indicted,” she said.

Other candidates, and reporters, person questioned whether Becerra had a unsighted spot successful trusting McCluskie.

Appearing connected Fox40 News past year, Becerra likened nan criminal lawsuit to being “married for 20 years” and “all of a abrupt you find retired that your spouse has been cheating.”

According to prosecutors, McCluskie, Williamson, and different advisor skimmed $225,000 from 1 of Becerra’s dormant run accounts and funneled it to McCluskie done various entities.

McCluskie, who declined to speak to The Times, sought nan money because he’d taken a salary trim aft joining Becerra successful Washington erstwhile Becerra became Health and Human Services caput successful 2021, according to prosecutors.

And dissimilar Becerra, he didn’t move full-time to D.C., and was splitting his clip betwixt nan nation’s superior and California, wherever his family lived.

On a telephone telephone recorded by nan FBI successful 2024, McCluskie talked astir nan strategy and told a consultant, “This money you guys are giving maine is helping maine alert backmost and distant to D.C. and unrecorded location half portion time.”

Becerra, successful an interview, said McCluskie ne'er mentioned his money problems. The brace worked together erstwhile Becerra served successful Congress and arsenic California lawyer general.

After President Biden appointed Becerra to lead Health and Human Services, nan brace discussed nan move backmost to D.C.

“Even earlier we went to HHS, we had talked astir whether we wanted to do this,” Becerra said. “We some agreed, ‘Yeah, you know, it’s going to beryllium a sacrifice. We’re going to person to make changes.’”

Former Becerra staffers told The Times that Becerra and McCluskie were specified a adjacent squad that they person a difficult clip imagining Becerra moving successful authorities without McCluskie.

Another erstwhile staffer, Amanda Renteria, said nan 2 men bonded complete their humble migrant backgrounds. McCluskie’s family came from Scotland and Italy; Becerra’s relatives came from Mexico.

McCluskie relished going to conflict for those little fortunate, she said.

“When Becerra became A.G., [people questioned] whether aliases not he had nan style that could really return connected Trump. If you were to meet Sean, you’d beryllium like, Oh yeah, Sean is wholly fresh for a fight, he’s fresh to return him on.

“That was benignant of a quality pinch Becerra. Becerra had that conflict successful him. Sean wore it a small spot more,” said Renteria, a governmental strategist.

Becerra has faced repeated questions astir his financial judgement aft nan criminal lawsuit revealed that he agreed to salary up to $10,000 a period to Williamson and different consultant to oversee 1 of his dormant run accounts.

The consultants charged him nan interest arsenic portion of nan strategy to divert money to McCluskie, prosecutors allege.

At nan time, Becerra, a Biden Cabinet member, was barred from involving himself successful run matters.

Becerra defended nan payments during an question and reply pinch Fox40 past year, stating, “I was told that’s nan complaint I would person to salary to get personification who could negociate that and make judge that I don’t person to interest astir [violating immoderate national rules].”

Campaign finance records show Becerra had ne'er paid specified a precocious interest for his different accounts.

Becerra told The Times that his longtime lawyer Stephen Kaufman, whom he was besides paying to oversee nan account, didn’t emblem nan payments. “I would person expected him to raise issues if he thought location was thing wrong,” Becerra said.

Kaufman didn’t respond to questions astir nan account.

Los Angeles-based governmental advisor Eric Hacopian told The Times that nan fees are “certainly high.”

“It’s evidently thing he should’ve noticed. Either he was not paying attention, aliases was excessively trusting of these people,” said Hacopian, who isn’t progressive successful nan governor’s race. “At nan extremity of nan day, he’s nan superior victim.”

At a statement past week, rival campaigner Antonio Villaraigosa pounced connected nan payments made by Becerra, saying that nan leader “has to beryllium nether suspicion because it doesn’t walk nan smell.”

Danni Wang, a spokesperson for Steyer, said successful a statement, “So, which is it — did Becerra cognize astir nan forbidden payments and participate successful nan campaign’s corruption, aliases was he a wholly incompetent head oblivious to what was going connected underneath his nose?”

Renteria, nan erstwhile Becerra staffer, said nan allegations against McCluskie and others are peculiarly astonishing fixed Becerra’s estimation arsenic a “straight A student.”

“Part of it collapsed my heart,” she said.

Jonathan Underland, a Becerra spokesperson, said Becerra “has ever been accordant and clear: Every action he took was successful accordance pinch nan law.”

“What he didn’t cognize — and what nan FBI’s ain investigation goes retired of its measurement to explain — is that his unit cooked up a strategy designed to deceive him.”

Becerra, successful an interview, many times said that he relied connected McCluskie. It was McCluskie, he said, who advised him to make nan payments. “I trusted him to grip nan accounts,” he said.

He besides said he was unaware of immoderate of nan specifications laid retired by prosecutors.

Prosecutors said Williamson and others created a “no show” occupation for McCluskie’s wife, Kerry MacKay, to do activity for nan consultants.

MacKay ne'er was paid, however, and nan money went to an relationship controlled by McCluskie. MacKay, who didn’t respond to requests for comment, was not charged.

McCluskie’s plea statement states that he told Becerra astir his wife’s occupation pinch nan consultants, though he didn’t show nan leader that his woman wouldn’t really beryllium doing immoderate work.

Becerra, successful an interview, said he didn’t callback McCluskie informing him astir his wife’s work.

McCluskie’s sentencing is scheduled for June 4, 2 days aft nan primary.