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☆ The ‘sleeper case’ trying to stop Trump and the RNC from intimidating voters and poll workers
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-12 | by ( Devan Cole | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —A nearly four-year-old legal effort by Black voters to convince a court to prevent former President Donald Trump and the Republican Party from potentially intimidating voters and poll workers is quietly coming back to life as the 2024 election approaches. First brought in the days following the 2020 election, the lawsuit has moved slowly through the federal courts in Washington, DC, as Trump’s claims of presidential immunity from civil lawsuits were being litigated. It coincidently has landed before US District Judge Tanya Chutkan, the judge handling the federal election subversion charges against Trump. Attorneys for Trump and the RNC have asked to dismiss the case, saying any conduct at issue constitutes protected political speech. A federal judge found the two men liable for targeting Black voters in 2023, saying that their actions ran afoul of the KKK Act, the VRA and other laws.

Persons: Black, Donald Trump, coincidently, Tanya Chutkan, Trump, Rajiv Parikh, “, ”, ” Chutkan, Jack Smith, Weeks, “ It’s, Parikh, they’ve, Ruth Greenwood, Greenwood, Jacob Wohl, Jack, Harris Organizations: CNN, Republican Party, US, Trump, Republican National, Republicans, GOP, Black, Democratic Party, RNC, Black voters, Ku Klux Klan, White, Michigan Welfare Rights Organization, Democratic National Committee, Harvard Law School, Democratic, Capitol Police, Biden Locations: Washington ,, Michigan, “, New Jersey, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Charlottesville , Virginia, Texas

☆ Conservative activists reach $1 million settlement deal with New York AG for running a 2020 voter suppression campaign
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Devan Cole | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Conservative activists Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman have agreed to pay $1 million to the New York attorney general’s office and others for running a voter suppression campaign targeting Black voters during the 2020 election. If the pair “fail to pay at least $105,000 by December 31, 2024, and do not address the failure to pay within 30 days, the amount will increase to $1.25 million,” James’ office said. “Wohl and Burkman orchestrated a depraved and disinformation-ridden campaign to intimidate Black voters in an attempt to sway the election in favor of their preferred candidate,” James said in a statement. In 2022, an Ohio judge ordered the two men to spend 500 hours registering low- and middle-income voters in the Washington, DC, area after authorities in Ohio accused them of running a voter suppression campaign in multiple states. Other criminal charges against Wohl and Burkman are pending in Michigan.

Persons: Jacob Wohl, Jack Burkman, Letitia James, James ’, ” James ’, “, Burkman, ” James, ”, David Schwartz, robocalls “, Wohl Organizations: CNN — Conservative, New, Black, ”, Wohl, National Coalition, “, Federal Communications Commission Locations: New York, Ohio, Washington, DC, Michigan

☆ 2 Men Fined $1.25 Million for Robocall Scheme to Suppress Black Vote
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Lola Fadulu | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Two right-wing political operatives who used a robocall campaign to try to discourage Black New Yorkers from voting in the 2020 election will pay up to $1.25 million for their actions, the New York State attorney general’s office announced on Tuesday. During the summer of 2020, around 5,500 New Yorkers received robocalls falsely claiming that if they voted by mail, their personal information would be sent to law enforcement agencies, debt collectors and the government. The calls were made at a time when many states were encouraging voters to cast their ballots by mail because of the coronavirus pandemic. One New Yorker was so disturbed by one of the calls that he experienced “severe anxiety and distress and ultimately withdrew his voter registration,” according to the attorney general’s office. The office said the calls came from a “sham” organization called Project 1599, which was created by the operatives, Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman.

Persons: general’s, robocalls, Jacob Wohl, Jack Burkman Organizations: New York, Yorkers Locations: New York State

☆ FCC votes to outlaw scam robocalls that use AI-generated voices
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The unanimous FCC vote extends anti-robocall rules to cover unsolicited AI deepfake calls by recognizing those voices as “artificial” under a federal law governing telemarketing and robocalling. The FCC’s move gives state attorneys general more legal tools to pursue illegal robocallers that use AI-generated voices to fool Americans, the FCC said. “Bad actors are using AI-generated voices in unsolicited robocalls to extort vulnerable family members, imitate celebrities, and misinform voters,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel in a statement. In 2021, the FCC announced a $5 million proposed fine against right-wing operatives Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman for allegedly using illegal robocalls to discourage voting in the 2020 election. As the FCC updates its interpretation of federal law, some US lawmakers have proposed revising the law directly to further deter illegal robocallers.

Persons: “, ”, Jessica Rosenworcel, “ We’re, Joe Biden, robocalls, Jacob Wohl, Jack Burkman, Andrew Schwartzman Organizations: Washington CNN, Federal Communications Commission, FCC, Protection, New, Authorities, YouMail, House Democrats, Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, ” Locations: New Hampshire, Texas

☆ New Hampshire voters are getting bogus robocalls with an imitation of Biden's voice telling them not to vote in the state's primary
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some Democratic voters in New Hampshire received calls appearing to be from Biden. The deepfakes of the president pushed Democrats to skip Tuesday's primary election in New Hampshire. AdvertisementJust before the first (but unofficial) Democratic primary of the 2024 election, voters in New Hampshire said they've received phone calls telling them not to turn out from an unlikely source: President Joe Biden. "We know the value of voting Democratic on our votes count," an inauthentic recording of Biden said in the call. The message continued, adding that participating in the Democratic primary in New Hampshire "only enables the Republicans in their quest to elect Donald Trump again.

Persons: Biden, —, they've, Joe Biden, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, Donald Trump, Dean Phillips —, Marianne Williamson, Prince, Phillips, Jacob Wohl, Jack Burkman Organizations: Democratic, Service, NBC News, New Hampshire, PAC, Democratic National Committee Locations: New Hampshire, Carolina, Cleveland

☆ Right-wing operatives sentenced to 500 hours of voter registration for 2020 election robocall scheme
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Summer-Concepcion-Byline-Jm.Jpg | Summer Concepcion | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

A pair of right-wing provocateurs were sentenced Tuesday to spend 500 hours registering voters after pleading guilty to telecommunications fraud in connection with robocalls made before the 2020 election. Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman were also sentenced to two years of probation and 12 hours a day of electronic monitoring for six months, according to prosecutors in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. “These two individuals attempted to disrupt the foundation of our democracy," prosecutor Michael O’Malley said in a statement. Last year, New York Attorney General Letitia James sought $2.7 million in penalties over robocalls allegedly aimed at suppressing the Black vote ahead of the 2020 election. Burkman and Wohl gained attention for several unsuccessful schemes to attack opponents of former President Donald Trump with false accusations of sexual misconduct and other criminal activity.

☆ 2 right-wing operatives must spend 500 hours registering voters after pleading guilty to running a 2020 voter suppression campaign
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Two right-wing operatives pleaded guilty to running a robocall scheme before the 2020 election. On Tuesday, Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman were sentenced to work 500 hours at a voter registration drive. The men set up thousands of false robocalls that targeted mostly Black neighborhoods. Both Wohl and Burkman have a history of coming up with unfounded claims and conspiracy theories targeted at Democratic Party politicians. A Daily Beast report at the time found that both Burkman and Wohl tried to convince several young Republican men to make similar accusations.

☆ Right-wing operatives plead guilty to 2020 election robocall scheme
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Zoë Richards | Zoë Richards Is The Evening Politics Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

A pair of right-wing provocateurs pleaded guilty on Monday to telecommunications fraud stemming from robocalls made shortly before the 2020 election. Jacob Wohl, 24, and Jack Burkman, 56, each pleaded guilty to one felony count, a spokesperson from the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office confirmed. Both men were indicted in October 2020 on eight counts of telecommunications fraud and seven counts of bribery in connection with trying to influence voters through robocalls on Aug. 26, 2020, that contained disinformation about mail-in voting ahead of the November election. The remaining charges were dismissed Monday, according to Wohl’s attorney, Mark Wieczorek, who declined to comment on his client's guilty plea. Assistant Prosecuting Attorney James Gutierrez said Burkman and Wohl were "held accountable" for infringing on voters' rights.

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