California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s celebration of 1 million claimed CalKIDS accounts quickly turned into a political argument after critics accused him of copying President Donald Trump’s children’s investment-account program. There’s one problem with that criticism: California’s CalKIDS program came first.
CalKIDS launched statewide in 2022, years before Trump Accounts were created. Newsom’s latest announcement highlighted that 1 million families have now claimed CalKIDS accounts, while the state says $82.2 million has been distributed to 151,000 students for eligible education expenses.
The clip shows Newsom and Jennifer Siebel Newsom seated and speaking about the program, intercut with scenes of them interacting with families and children at an event featuring an “Investing in California’s Kids” banner. In the video, they state: “One million California kids have claimed their CalKIDS account. First-in-the-nation CalKIDS account. These are the baby bonds; these are the accounts that you get when you get into kindergarten or first grade, up to $1,500 to offset the cost of college or a career. 4.5 million California kids can still claim their accounts, so claim your CalKIDS account today.” The footage ends with the CalKIDS logo and website.
Despite the comparisons appearing under Newsom’s post, CalKIDS and Trump Accounts are separate programs. California launched CalKIDS statewide in 2022, while the federal Trump Accounts program was established later. California has even encouraged eligible families to take advantage of both programs.
According to the accompanying post text, the announcement marks 1 million accounts claimed, with $82 million already distributed for college and career training, and encourages parents to claim a tax-free baby bond account at CalKIDS.org. The video does not show the process of claiming accounts or details of individual distributions.
Critics Accuse Newsom of Copying Trump, but Timeline Says Otherwise
Some users nevertheless accused Newsom of copying Trump. “Lmao Gavin Newsom literally just copied Trump accounts. Calkidsprogram is just another version of trump accounts,” one person wrote. Another accused Newsom of stealing Trump’s idea.
Other commenters quickly challenged that narrative. “CalKIDS predates Trump Accounts, so I’m not going to pretend you copied him,” one person wrote while acknowledging similarities between the programs.
Other viewers focused on funding and ownership of the accounts, with one saying, “The reason the Newsom family is celebrating is that ALL the money in each CalKids account belongs to the state, not our kids. Seems like another Gavin scam to me,” and another adding, “It’s not your money… taxpayer-funded.”
CalKIDS isn’t structured as an unrestricted personal cash account. The state administers the funds as scholarships that eligible students can use for qualified higher-education and career-training expenses.
Whatever similarities critics see between the programs, the timeline doesn’t support claims that Newsom copied Trump Accounts. CalKIDS launched statewide in 2022, years before the federal program. California families, meanwhile, aren’t necessarily being asked to choose between the two. The state has encouraged eligible families to take advantage of both.
