California Governor Gavin Newsom has escalated his political feud with Donald Trump by launching a provocative new website that catalogues the former president's associates with criminal convictions.
The site, launched on Tuesday 16 December 2025, aims to "detail the criminal records, corruption cases, and extremist ties of the people Donald Trump elevates, protects, pardons, and surrounds himself with," according to Newsom's announcement.
Crime Stats and Political Attacks
Newsom's team paired the website's launch with fresh crime statistics showing a continued decline in violent crime across major Californian cities. The governor used this data to draw a sharp contrast with Trump's circle.
"With crime dropping — again — California is proving what real public safety leadership looks like," Newsom stated. "Meanwhile in D.C., Trump is a felon who surrounds himself with scammers and drug traffickers."
In the official news release, Trump is branded the "criminal in chief," with the word "felon" superimposed across his 2023 mugshot. Newsom said the resource was created so "Californians, and all Americans, can see who he elevates and who he protects."
Who Features on the List?
The website uses AI-generated mugshots to highlight individuals connected to Trump. Among those featured is Changpeng Zhao, the billionaire founder of cryptocurrency exchange Binance. Zhao was pardoned by Trump in October 2025 after pleading guilty to money laundering charges in 2023. Newsom's release notes Zhao's ties to the Trump family's crypto venture, World Liberty Financial.
Another prominent name is Juan Orlando Hernández, the former president of Honduras. Pardoned by Trump, Hernández was described by the US Justice Department as central to one of the "largest and most violent drug-trafficking conspiracies in the world." He was sentenced last year to 45 years in prison for accepting bribes and importing 500 tons of cocaine into the United States.
The list also includes Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the dark-web Silk Road marketplace, and former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, both of whom received pardons from Trump.
Mirroring Trump's Tactics
This move is seen as the latest effort by Newsom's team to adopt Trump's own combative political playbook. For months, the governor and his press team have trolled Trump by mimicking his aggressive, all-caps social media style and generating AI memes at the president's expense.
Newsom accused Trump of trying to rig the mid-term elections, framing the website as a public resource that uses official channels to target political adversaries—a tactic he suggests was pioneered by the Trump administration itself.
The launch underscores the intensely personal and digital nature of modern political rivalry, where data, satire, and online platforms are weaponised to shape public perception ahead of crucial electoral contests.
