Right-Wing Operatives Could Be Fined $5 Million for Election Robocalls
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman, right-wing operatives and conspiracy theorists responsible for the invention and promotion of multiple false narratives against Democrats and government officials, could face a $5 million fine from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The two operatives ran a program that sent hundreds of robocalls to key swing-state voters discouraging them from voting in the 2020 election, falsely claiming that filling out a mail ballot would send voters’ personal information to credit card companies and police departments for the fulfillment of outstanding warrants and collection of credit debts.
The proposed $5 million fine would be the largest of its kind for this type of violation, which involves calling personal cell phones without consent. The fine still needs to be affirmed by the FCC. The two men face additional charges for their voter suppression efforts from the Michigan and New York attorneys general. Wohl and Burkman have refused to take responsibility for the calls, but both men are named in the recorded message that voters received, and Burkman’s phone number came up in the calls’ caller ID, according to the FCC.