(The Center Square) – Independent journalist Nick Shirley blasted California for its political climate and lack of fiscal accountability during an address Tuesday night near the University of Mississippi.
California is trying to suppress citizen watchdogs, Shirley warned a crowd of 200 or so students at a Turning Point USA event at Booth's BBQ Restaurant.
Shirley highlighted his ongoing legal battle against California over a contentious state law that Republicans dubbed the "Stop Nick Shirley Act."
Also known as Assembly Bill 2624, the legislation is from Assemblymember Mia Bonta, D-Alameda, Calif., who's married to another Democrat, California Attorney General Rob Bonta. The law has drawn heavy criticism from Republicans who believe it targets independent reporters who expose public fund abuses.
"After Minnesota, I went and set my sights on California, and now I'm currently suing the state of California for this new law they created to try and stop me," Shirley told the crowd. "It's been dubbed the Stop Nick Shirley Act. They don't want to have people like us go out and expose this fraud."
The law takes effect Oct. 1, 2027.
Shirley argued that California's political environment has grown so restrictive toward fiscal accountability that top business leaders have compared its regulatory control to foreign regimes.
"California is so bad, when I met Elon Musk, he said California is basically like China," Shirley told the crowd. "That's where I did some more research on it, and then I started seeing this new law that's being passed by the attorney general's wife, and then they go vote on it, and not a single Democrat votes against it."
California has conceded the state has its share of fraud. In recent days, Attorney General Bonta announced that 103 home service providers throughout the Golden State have been charged with Medi-Cal fraud. In April, Bonta held a press conference to discuss $267 million in alleged hospice fraud.
When asked what goes through his mind when he reads about these things, knowing the Stop Nick Shirley Act may prevent more fraud from being uncovered, Shirley said it is twisted.
“I am happy he goes and does his job," Shirley said about the attorney general. "I'm sure they bust these fraudsters."
Shirley added that state officials previously brushed off concerns regarding rampant fraud until independent reports forced public transparency.
"Then I go and expose it, and just four days after, I believe, he [Rob Bonta] then celebrates a fraud bust,” said Shirley, responding to a question from The Center Square. “So I think it is all very twisted. I think it is good he is exposing fraud.”
America First Legal, in partnership with John W. Howard of JW Howard Attorneys, filed the federal lawsuit on behalf of Shirley in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. Attorney General Bonta and another Democrat, Secretary of State Shirley Weber, are named in the lawsuit.
Shirley’s attorneys argue the so-called Stop Nick Shirley Act violates the First Amendment, the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment, and Article I, Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution, which outlines powers that belong to the federal government, not the states.
“Nick Shirley has been exposing fraud that too many people have tolerated or facilitated for decades,” AFL President Gene Hamilton said in a press release. “California was so threatened by that work that the Attorney General’s own wife introduced a bill to silence Mr. Shirley, in violation of the First Amendment. Governor Gavin Newsom gladly signed it. This will not stand.”
Newsom did not make a public statement at the Aug. 23 bill signing.
According to previous reporting by The Center Square, Democrats defended the bill as a measure that would ensure the safety of employees and volunteers at groups that provide immigration services.
“Right-wing agitators are intentionally misrepresenting my legislation, AB 2624, because they believe that people who have dedicated their careers to serving their community should be silenced and forced into the shadows,” Assemblymember Mia Bonta said in a video message previously sent to The Center Square. “People who work to help immigrant communities should not have to fear being doxxed for doing so.”
Mississippi State Auditor Shad White, a Republican who introduced Shirley at Tuesday’s event, echoed Shirley's concerns over government waste and emphasized that state auditors across the country rely on independent journalism to launch official reviews into taxpayer fund misuse. White noted that cutting out fraud, waste and abuse is critical for delivering direct tax relief to working families.
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