Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

California AG Tries To Laugh Off Using Campaign Cash On Legal Fees

Pi.1415926535/Wikimedia Commons

Democratic California Attorney General Rob Bonta brushed off using $500,000 in campaign funds on legal services, joking that he made an “audible gasp” when he saw the final bill.

Bonta spent $468,000 from his 2026 reelection campaign on legal services after authorities questioned him during a federal bribery investigation, according to local outlet KCRA3. He appeared on KCRA3’s “California Politics 360” on Sunday, saying he was shocked by the price tag after journalist Ashley Zavala asked whether the services “really cost that much.”

“Yes. The attorneys that I had were working around the clock to be responsive, to be efficient, to be comprehensive, to be completely forthcoming in all of our information that we were providing in an effort to assist and help the federal government,” Bonta said.

“I will say I may have had an audible gasp when I saw the final legal bill, but these are attorneys that charge at not insignificant rates and they were working many hours to make sure that we were providing all the information, all the documents, everything that the federal government sought in our effort to be helpful and to assist them,” Bonta added.

Bonta was questioned as part of an investigation into Oakland businessmen David Trung Duong and Andy Hung Duong’s January indictment. A press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California states the two were charged with bribery offenses and making false statements to government agents.

WATCH:

Zavala continued pressing Bonta on his spending, asking if he could explain how much the law firm Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati charged him and when those legal fees began.

“It all happened pretty quickly in sort of the late summer and early fall of 2024. So it was all compressed. And the chart, the billable rates, you can just look at any private law firm’s website and see that there’s rates at $1,000 an hour, $2,000 an hour, $3,000 an hour,” Bonta responded.

However, the KCRA3 journalist pushed back on the attorney general, asking what price he was actually paying the law firm.

“These are very high rates,” Bonta said. “There were ranges because there were different attorneys and it’s based on experience and your role in the firm and every attorney charges at a different rate, but they were in the thousands of dollars range, yes.”

The Duongs previously donated to Bonta’s campaign, with records showing the two gave $24,300 to his reelection. The broader Duong family contributed a total of $155,000.

Before Bonta’s interview with Zavala, KCRA3 questioned his campaign adviser Dan Newman about the fees. Newman argued the spending was “absolutely proper,” saying it was necessary given “the nature of the charges against the people implicated.” Loyola School of Law Professor Jessica Levinson told the outlet the only clear justification for using campaign funds would be if the investigation was directly related to the Duongs’ donations.