By James Bradley and Flor Blanco
April 12, 2026, LAGUNA NIGUEL—A few days ago (April 9th), Governor Gavin Newsom, Democratic presidential hopeful, touted that the state Californian was still dominating the states with its stark GDP growth in 2024. The continued California exodus is but one indicator that Newsom’s masquerade as a stellar governor is ripping. Underneath the GDP is seemingly a labyrinth of fraud allegedly fueled by a Democratic machine. The grift appears to be a deep one.
Compiled by the Uncensored Beat team, this exposé deep-dives into the systemic fraud, the politicians enabling it, the powerful organizations fueling it, and the clear money trail that keeps this machine running. This report builds on years of investigations by investigative journalist Susan Crabtree, who has been exposing this corruption for over a decade through her reporting with the Government Accountability Institute and her book Fool’s Gold. In this article, we examine six key areas of alleged fraud in California, occurring under Gavin Newsom’s watch.
#1: The $30 Billion IHSS Fraud Scandal
The In-Home Supportive Services program costs California taxpayers nearly $30 billion a year and employs almost 800,000 home care providers. Fraud expert Haywood Talcove, CEO of LexisNexis Risk Solutions, estimates 20% to 40% of taxpayer funds are lost to fraud. That’s roughly $6 to $12 billion stolen every single year. Using a conservative 25% fraud rate, experts calculate at least $35 billion was allegedly siphoned off during Gavin Newsom’s time in office alone.
Official state reports only admitted to identifying about $8 million in fraud last year, a tiny 0.04% of the budget. Meanwhile, the program remains wide open to abuse. State rules prohibit random unannounced home visits. Providers bill for hours when recipients are hospitalized, in jail, dead, or even out of the country. Family members make up about 70% of caregivers, creating obvious conflicts. In LA County alone, Armenian-speaking providers are wildly overrepresented, with nearly one-third of the Armenian population appearing to be tied to the program.
#2: SEIU – The Self-Funding Fraud Machine
SEIU Local 2015, California’s largest long-term care union, represents nearly 500,000 home care and nursing facility workers, including hundreds of thousands of IHSS providers. This union collected $114.5 million in dues in 2024. Every fraudulent caregiver added to the payroll means more dues for the union, turning your tax dollars directly into their political war chest.
SEIU’s own leadership was caught red handed when Former Executive Director Alma Hernandez was charged with grand theft, embezzlement, perjury, and tax fraud. That case was uncovered by the FPPC in a routine audit, and not by Rob Bonta’s office. Bonta only acted because an independent agency forced his hand.
#3: The Politicians They’ve Bought
SEIU and other unions funneled millions into Democrats through direct contributions, PACs, and ActBlue (currently under multiple federal investigations for potential illegal foreign donations and straw donors). Documented donations include:
- Gavin Newsom — $154,300 from SEIU plus millions more from allied unions
- Rob Bonta — $54,600 from SEIU + $39,200 from SEIU Local 2015 PAC
- Adam Schiff — $15,733 directly from SEIU and SEIU-affiliated donors
- Ted Lieu — $12,900 from SEIU California State Council
- Alex Padilla — $57,400 from SEIU when running for Secretary of State
These are just the direct contributions. For real figures, add in millions more through ActBlue bundling from union networks.
#4: The Homeless Industrial Complex
California spent roughly $24 billion to $37 billion on homelessness programs since 2019. Yet, the number of homeless people has only increased. Hundreds of nonprofits receive massive contracts, pay executives six-figure salaries, and deliver almost no results. Recent scandals include a Los Angeles charity CEO arrested for stealing $23 million in homeless funds to buy a luxury mansion, Range Rover, private jet trips, and private school tuition.
#5: The EDD & COVID Unemployment Fraud Scandal
During the pandemic, California’s Employment Development Department lost an estimated $20 to $32 billion to fraud. The agency had only two people overseeing the program and failed to cross-check claims against prison rolls or immigration status. Fraudsters used names like “Mickey Mouse” and “Dianne Feinstein.” Even death row inmates collected benefits. A former EDD employee was sentenced to over five years in prison for filing nearly 200 fraudulent claims that netted $4.3 million.
#6: The Teachers Union, DEI, and the Attack on Parental Rights
The California Teachers Association has spent tens of millions supporting these same Democrats. In return, they push gender affirmation policies and DEI programs in schools that override parental rights and traditional family values. Jennifer Siebel Newsom has been a leading advocate for these initiatives. Critics say these policies squash parental authority by keeping gender transitions secret from families and prioritizing ideology over education. A recent post by Attorney, Laura Powell, announced that the CA Attorney General seeks to spend more tax payer dollars to fight for a legal loophole to allow these policies to continue despite the US Supreme Court’s March 2026 6-1 ruling deeming the policies are unconstitutional.
Duties of a State Government Gone Arwy
This is not government serving the people. This is a self-funding political protection racket — fraud creates dues, dues fund campaigns through unions and ActBlue, and politicians protect the fraud while pushing their agenda.
This is Part 1 of an ongoing investigation. In future parts we will name even more politicians with exact donation figures, dive deeper into the nonprofits, and expose how this machine is driving Californians out of the state.
The mask is off.