Congressman Adam Schiff will not become California’s next attorney general, sources familiar with the negotiations told POLITICO. | AP Photo / J. Scott Applewhite
Rep. Adam Schiff will not become California’s next attorney general, sources familiar with the negotiations told POLITICO.
Governor Gavin Newsom decided against the appointment of the Los Angeles area congressman to head the state law enforcement agency, a post recently vacated by Xavier Becerra when he was confirmed to head the Department of Health and Human Services. It is not yet known who Newsom chose for the position of AG, although a formal announcement is expected soon.
Schiff was preparing for work with the blessing of powerful Democrats in Washington, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. A graduate of Harvard Law School and a former prosecutor who serves as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Schiff lobbied aggressively for Newsom to nominate him for the post, which in the past was a stepping stone for the U.S. government or Senate.
Schiff’s office declined to comment.
Newsom, who is facing the threat of a recall because of his treatment of the coronavirus pandemic, has spent months mostly maintaining his own advice on filling the AG position. He did many of his own analyzes of potential candidates and kept the strong external lobby under control, according to advisors and advisers to the governor and top candidates.
Others believed to be in the running include California Supreme Court Judge Goodwin Liu, who was previously married to Newsom’s former chief of staff, Ann O’Leary; and state deputy Rob Bonta, the first Filipino-American legislator and son of agricultural workers organizers in the Central Valley who graduated in law at Yale. Leaders from the Asian-American community and the Pacific Islands have recently renewed their momentum for Liu and Bonta, as hate crimes have become a major national concern, especially after the shooting last week in Atlanta.
Rick Zbur, executive director of Equality California; Deputy Ted Lieu and Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen have also been called up several times. POLITICO on Tuesday reported that the mayor of Sacramento, Darrell Steinberg, former president of the state Senate, was informed that it would not be the AG’s choice.
Zbur was also informed that he will not get the job of AG, a source with knowledge of the conversation told POLITICO on Wednesday. State Senator Anna Caballero (D-Salinas), who was supported by other state legislators and Latin defenders, also knew she would not be named, sources told POLITICO.
The case for Schiff was that he is a national figure with a frequent presence on TV and a record as a great fundraiser. But people around the governor have always considered it a remote chance for the AG show.
“What happens to Gavin is that Nancy [Pelosi] he is probably the most important political person in his life, ”said a Newsom confidant. “She was encouraging the Schiff thing. But it would never happen. They were never close, he and Schiff. We never sat with him when we were in DC ”
Although Schiff’s public presence has declined considerably in recent months after the completion of the investigation in Russia and the then impeachment trial of then President Donald Trump, he has often been mentioned as a potential candidate for President of the House (or Democratic leader) when Pelosi leaves, or as a California senator when he opens a vacancy. Newsom appointed Alex Padilla last month to fill the Senate seat for Vice President Kamala Harris.
Newsom said during an interview with MSNBC earlier this month that he would appoint a black woman to occupy Senator Dianne Feinstein’s chair if she retired before the end of her 2024 term and if Newsom remains in office until then. This proclamation apparently closed that path for Schiff.
Natasha Bertrand contributed to this report.