Republican California gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton on Saturday told Newsmax he criticized Los Angeles County officials for supporting restrictions on federal immigration agents wearing masks, calling the move "offensive" and warning it puts law enforcement at greater risk as attacks on federal officers rise.
"Look, the serious point is that we have to uphold the rule of law," Hilton, a Republican, said on Newsmax's "Saturday Report," contending that Democratic leaders in California are "undermining the rule of law, undermining law enforcement."
Federal officers have practical safety reasons for allowing agents to cover their faces, he added, faulting Gov. Gavin Newsom for not condemning Los Angeles' rule.
"It is grotesque the way that Gavin Newsom is hyping up this issue," he said, while rejecting the governor's references to federal law enforcement officials being a "secret police."
Hilton promised a different approach if elected. "When I'm governor of California, I will work in partnership with the federal government to enforce the law," he said, describing current federal immigration enforcement as long overdue and tied to laws "passed by Congress."
He also pushed back on claims that immigration enforcement is broadly terrifying Los Angeles communities.
Hilton cited a visit to a Latino neighborhood in East Los Angeles during a Christmas toy drive, saying residents told him media narratives did not match what they were experiencing.
"They said it's not true at all. They don't see any difference," he said.
Hilton added that the families he spoke with supported stronger enforcement, saying they were "hard-working American citizens" who feel taxpayers are being "ripped off" by spending on those in the country illegally.
The conversation also turned to government spending oversight and welfare fraud.
Hilton contrasted what he described as a California state initiative encouraging reports about "unsafe unlawful activity" by federal agents with his own effort to collect tips on government waste and abuse.
Referencing allegations of fraud in Minnesota, Hilton said the scale should be seen as a warning for California as well.
"It's shocking the scale of the fraud and the abuse and the lawbreaking and the theft of taxpayer money," Hilton said, adding, "whatever's happening in Tim Walz's Minnesota, you can be sure it's a thousand times worse in Gavin Newsom's California."
Hilton pointed to past California losses and spending controversies, including "$55 billion" in alleged pandemic-era unemployment fraud and "$24 billion" in homeless spending, and criticized state funding for health care for illegal immigrants.
He said his tip site is meant to encourage whistleblowers to come forward. "That's why I set up Califraud.com," he said, adding he wants information "so when I'm governor, I can put a stop to it."
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