Gavin Newsom, the governor of California in trouble, adopted an expanded ban on lobbying his political advisers at the request of state regulators, months after receiving criticism for dining with lobbyists at the luxurious French Laundry restaurant, in violation of his own pandemic restrictions.
Newsom, which faces a recall effort to deal with the pandemic, has banned paid and unpaid political consultants from lobbying him or members of his government, according to a memo obtained by Sacramento Bee. According to previous guidelines, adopted last December, only paid consultants were banned from lobbying.
Newsom’s top advisers announced the policy change in a memo to employees last week, according to the report. The decision followed recommendations from the California Commission on Fair Political Practices.
“No consultant, whether paid or not, should be allowed to leverage his relationship with the governor to unduly benefit a client in relation to legislative or administrative actions,” wrote the Commission on Fair Political Practices in its recommendations to management.
Newsom faced scrutiny about his ties to lobbyists after reports surfaced that he attended a birthday dinner for lobbyist Jason Kinney, a longtime unpaid adviser to the governor, at the French Laundry restaurant last November. Janus Norman, a leading lobby of the California Medical Association, was also present.
The photos showed Newsom and other diners violating several California guidelines over dinner, including banning large gatherings and mask requirements. The governor later apologized and described the tour as a “serious mistake”.
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Newsom’s management has adopted other measures recommended by the ethics committee, including a ban on receiving gifts from lobbyists and ethics training for employees.
The organizers of the recall effort against Newsom say they have already accumulated more than two million signatures, enough to trigger a vote that could remove the governor from office. Newsom would be only the second governor in the state’s history to face a revocation election.