From the Donahue Show. Transcript No. 10089. October 8, 1979.

AUDIENCE: (Marilyn Wood) The governor mentioned that he was concerned about the poor and millions of starving children. I wonder why he wasn’t more concerned about the guardianships of the hundreds of children he signed over to Reverend Jim Jones.

GOV. BROWN: That’s not true.

AUDIENCE: There was an article

GOV. BROWN: I know there was an article, but the article was false. The state of California provides money, as well as the federal government, for local welfare programs, aid to dependent children, as well as foster care, and those programs are supervised at the local county level. And our State Department of Welfare has investigated those problems and has required the counties and local governments to tighten up. But that was never done within the approval of the state government. In fact, it was done by misrepresentation at the local level and was never brought to our attention.

AUDIENCE: But there were quotes and pictures with you and Jones, commenting on how great he was, and what a responsible person he was.

GOV. BROWN: That’s not true.

AUDIENCE: Are you denying, then, this article, this series of articles?

GOV. BROWN: Yes. It’s totally false.

AUDIENCE: You had no involvement. You’re not involved in any kind of a cover-up – and the State of California is not involved in any kind of a cover-up involving these children.

GOV. BROWN: That’s right, and if you have any information to the contrary, I’d like to hear about it.

AUDIENCE: I think you should read this series of articles*

* A series of seven articles written by Kenneth Wooden for the Chicago Sun-Times (June 1979.) California officials refused to talk to a federal Investigation Unit about the children of Jonestown. Attempts by the writer to reach even Gov. Brown’s press secretaries for rebuttal were also rebuffed.

Investigative reporter Gordan Lindsay claims he repeatedly warned Jerry Brown of the cruelty and misuse of public funds in People’s Temple. Several former Temple members who informed the Governor’s office in Sacramento of Jones’ crimes were also ignored.

Brown had accepted People’s Temple contributions and the help of the church’s children in his electoral campaigns. He had known, too, the potential votes Jones’s “troops” commanded for future campaigns for higher office.

Source: Kenneth Wooden, former reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times

“The Staff Investigative Group was informed by State Department witnesses that the U.S. Embassy in Guyana was never asked by California welfare officials to check on the welfare and whereabouts of California foster children reported living in Jonestown.”

– House Foreign Affairs Committee Report: “The Assassination of Representative Leo J. Ryan and the Jonestown, Guyana, Tragedy.”

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