CA AG Rob Bonta’s Wife, Mia, Is Sweating Over Her Sponsorship of Anti-Investigative Journalism Bill – RedState

As RedState reported, the California Legislature’s overwhelming Democratic majority has advanced AB 2624, a bill intended to silence YouTubers like Nick Shirley, independent California journalists like our own Jennifer Van Laar, Lori Mills, Amy Reichert, and Katy Grimes, and even citizens worried about documenting the corruption and fraud that has become a daily occurrence in the state.

As my colleague Becky Noble wrote:

California Republican state Rep. Carl DeMaio blasts his state’s Democrats for voting in favor of AB2624. The bill would make it a crime to post even a photo of a worker or client of “designated immigration support service” organizations such as CHIRLA (the NGO under investigation for funding anti-ICE riots in Los Angeles and obstructing the enforcement of federal immigration laws), thereby shielding them from scrutiny.

[…]

The bill would also allow people associated with these groups to demand the removal of any videos, even those recorded in public, and impose fines on those who post these videos online. But perhaps the scariest aspect of this bill, authored by Congresswoman Mia Bonta, wife of California Attorney General Rob Bonta, is that the main reason for this bill is to prevent investigative reporting and to intimidate journalists, as well as any sort of watchdog group or even ordinary citizens, from reporting something that raises eyebrows.

Learn more: Is California targeting investigative journalists? Congressman DeMaio sounds the alarm

Taxpayer-Funded Riots: Here’s What We Found When Following the Money in Los Angeles

Newsom & Bonta’s “big fraud” announcements are just theater when the real corruption runs much deeper in California.
Revealing the scale of this fraud – as Nick Shirley did – would put people like me at risk under their new bill.
AB 2624 is clearly… https://t.co/ULA1gOVQYA

-Lori Mills (@LoriMills4CA42) April 13, 2026

And there you have it. You would think that a politician’s wife would recuse herself and draw a clear line between what her husband does in his job and his job as a legislator. Unfortunately, that’s not how Mia Bonta works. In 2023, then-Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon appointed Mia Bonta to chair an Assembly subcommittee that controlled funding for California’s public safety agencies, including her husband’s AG office. Lots of conflicts of interest? When reporters rightly challenged Bonta on this, she dodged questions, doubled down, then caved and recused herself from any dealings with her husband’s department. Today, longtime California journalists, like those mentioned at the beginning of this article, are aided by Shirley and several other independent journalists in documenting widespread fraud in the state, as well as her husband’s terrible record of covering up said fraud. So, sponsoring this bill first, and then having the complete nerve to defend why she thinks it’s necessary, is not a good idea.

But as RedState has widely reported, Mia Bonta has never worried about optics.

Despite Bonta’s complaint in the video she posted on X, she is the one legislating by tweet. In her post, she claims that AB 2624 is the subject of “MAGA misinformation,” which is why she was forced to describe the facts surrounding the bill.

Of course, January.

WATCH:

I’m here to tell the truth about AB 2624. Let’s stick to the facts. pic.twitter.com/iJ5sPW51sg

– Assembly Member Mia Bonta (@AsmMiaBonta) April 15, 2026

“Hey guys, it’s been a day.” Shorter: I’m hammered by the truth and I can’t stand it.

Bonta continued:

And I’m going to do something I don’t usually do in response to some MAGA misinformation. Elon Musk and right-wing agitators are intentionally misrepresenting my legislation, AB 2624. Because they believe that people who have dedicated their careers to serving communities should be silenced and forced into the shadows.

Bonta didn’t like that Elon Musk called this bill out for what it is, and she’s using that, along with “MAGA,” as a dog whistle to rile up her own base.

So let’s talk about what my bill actually does. It would add immigrant service providers to the state’s “Safe at Home” program. This proven program already covers, among others, victims of domestic violence, reproductive care and gender-affirming care providers. People who work to help immigrant communities should not have to worry about being doxxed for doing so. And my bill and the Safe at Home program define that as sharing personal information with the intent to imminently incite serious bodily harm, or place someone in objectively reasonable fear for their personal safety. AB 2624 extends this existing tool to immigrant service providers, protecting them from public disclosure of their personal information and giving them real legal tools to prevent and respond to targeted harassment.

As our editor Jennifer Van Laar pointed out, no one has been targeted or harmed in these investigations, but if such a law passes, Democrats can just say it’s happening and then make it so.

And it’s the “intent” that’s the problem. My intention is never to incite harm to them or cause them to reasonably fear for their safety, and I do not publish their addresses – but I have published their images and family affiliations where relevant.

But we all know Democratic officials will say it’s… https://t.co/PDwq7k97LU

– Jennifer Van Laar (@jenvanlaar) April 14, 2026

But we all know Democratic officials will say it’s done with intent to harm.

Of course, Bonta insults Van Laar and others by claiming they can’t tell the difference between journalism and doxing.

If MAGA can’t tell the difference between journalism and doxing, it’s up to them to do so, because my bill has no provision for journalism or fraud. This bill does not infringe on the First Amendment. But sharing a front desk employee’s name and address to prevent them from doing their job is not reporting. It does not investigate fraud. This is false, and California should stick to the truth. I will continue to advance legislation rooted in East Bay values, no matter who tries to silence our voices. Others can legislate by tweet. I’ll stick to politics.

The amendment to AB2624 is co-authored by crime lover Mia Bonta; it extends privacy protections to immigrant service providers (in the same way as was the case for health workers in matters of reproduction and gender affirmation). It’s a threat to transparency and investigative reporting because it’s vague… https://t.co/yQbwrpOQGy

– Liz4SF (@incitafusio) April 13, 2026

The amendment to AB2624 is co-authored by crime lover Mia Bonta; it extends privacy protections to immigrant service providers (in the same way as was the case for health workers in matters of reproduction and gender affirmation). It’s a threat to transparency and investigative reporting because it’s vague enough to…

+ Allow deletion of video recordings, even if filmed in public

+ Impose financial fees on journalists or watchdogs who publish such recordings

+ Create a chilling effect on citizen journalism

As Katy Grimes of the California Globe said:

AB 2624 would allow activists and taxpayer-funded organizations to demand the removal of video evidence — even if it highlights misconduct — and threaten journalists with massive financial penalties.

This is not about public safety, but about protecting powerful interests.

We know that from the Andy Duong affair, to the ousted former mayor of Oakland, Sheng Thao, and other troubles involving the Bontas, it’s all about protecting their backs and those of their left-wing NGOs and their wealthy friends.

Editor’s note: The 2026 midterm elections will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both houses of Congress.

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