California Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton warned Saturday that massive taxpayer fraud is likely to be uncovered in the Golden State, estimating as much as $250 billion could be tied to corruption and abuse.
Speaking on Newsmax’s program The Count, Hilton said his campaign-aligned watchdog group has already identified “hundreds of millions of dollars” in fraud and that California leads the nation in waste.
“Of course, the worst in the nation, the biggest fraud is going on right here in California,” Hilton said. “We’re just getting started in California.” Not exactly shocking news for anyone who’s seen the state budget lately.
Hilton explained that scrutiny at both the federal and state levels has picked up in recent months and highlighted the launch of Cal DOGE — the California Department of Government Efficiency, created to root out fraud. His group recently released its first fraud report, and what they found didn’t take long.
“We found this just in a matter of days, going through the budget, $370 million stolen from the cannabis tax,” Hilton said. That money, which was supposed to go toward substance abuse prevention, was instead allegedly diverted to Democrat activist causes such as voter registration and so-called narrative pushing.
Hilton didn’t mince words, calling it “a slush fund for Democrat politics.”
He said his group has already referred the case for prosecution and promised there’s more to come. “We’re going to uncover all of it,” he said.
When asked how he would stop fraud if elected governor, Hilton said he plans to run “as a team,” with a proposed running mate for state comptroller and another for attorney general. According to Hilton, the comptroller would have the power to audit every organization receiving state money and shut off funding where fraud and corruption are found.
“He’s going to prosecute the fraud, and we’re going to get the money back,” Hilton said.
Hilton stressed that stopping fraud is about more than accountability—it’s about real relief for taxpayers. “When we find and stop the fraud, that’s how we reduce spending, which is how we cut taxes,” he said. “That’s what I’m going to do as governor of California.”
For a state drowning in waste and mismanagement, the idea of audits, prosecutions, and actually getting stolen money back sounds almost revolutionary. And for hardworking Californians, that’s exactly the kind of change worth fighting for.
