Tagami, who later hired Staples, who had previously paid Perata as a consultant. In early November 2004, Perata became the official target of a probe by the Justice Department under Republican President, George W. Bush. The FBI, the US Attorney's Office, and a federal grand jury investigated whether Perata took bribes or kickbacks from friends and campaign donors in exchange for his help. That same year, Perata was also criticized when he described as "crackers" - a disparaging slang term for poor Southern whites - some San Diego-area residents who stridently opposed a bill to give illegal immigrants the ability to obtain driver's licenses. In May 2007, the East Bay Express, an alternative weekly in the Bay Area, published a two-part investigation of Perata. The articles suggested that between 1998 and 2007, Perata spent more than $1 million of campaign cash on parties and high-end lifestyle expenditures, amounting to more than one-quarter of the total he raised for his reelection campaigns in that time. The same free publication also alleged that Perata had manipulated liberal causes, such as antiwar sentiment, for his own political ends. and had used campaign donations to support his lavish lifestyle. The FBI investigation lasted five years. No arrests or indictments occurred, and in early 2009, Justice Department officials closed the case and announced they would not be filing any charges. References External links Public Record of Don Perata's Concealed Handgun Permit Don Perata Political History Yes on infrastructure propositions Metro Investment Report Perata interview Offices held 1945 births County supervisors in California Living people Politicians from Alameda, California American people of Italian descent Democratic Party California state senators Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly Saint Mary's College of California alumni American gun control activists San Francisco Bay Area politicians Activists from California 21st-century American politicians