Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra is looking to move on from the Biden Administration and making plans for his post-administration career.
Could he be planning a gubernatorial run in California?
From Politico:
Not only has Becerra had conversations over the past weeks about making the move, he or emissaries have approached political firms about standing up a gubernatorial campaign to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2026, two people briefed on those discussions told POLITICO.
Becerra, a former longtime member of Congress from Los Angeles and California attorney general, also has spent more than $130,000 over the last year for “campaign consultants,” activity that has not previously been reported in the media. The political outreach and payments have occurred even as Becerra has continued to state publicly that he’s solely focused on his Cabinet job in Washington.
Becerra sidestepped questions about plotting for a gubernatorial run in his home state when initially approached by POLITICO. But he did acknowledge the strict legal parameters he’s under in his current role.
“I am secretary of HHS and, by law, I have to be secretary of HHS and nothing else,” he said at a recent event in San Francisco. “So I’m gonna do my job as best I can.”
More over at Politico:
Xavier Becerra plots political future after Biden administration https://t.co/awg0E8YtZJ
— POLITICO (@politico) April 23, 2024