Racist robocalls designed to suppress Black votes likely got $5.1 million more expensive for MAGA fraudsters Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman, thanks to a very rare, unanimous vote by the FCC.
August 25, 2021

The robocalls were shockingly racist. They were also jaw-droppingly stupid as Wohl and Burkman named themselves in the calls:

Hi, this is Tamika Taylor from Project 1599, a civil rights organization founded by Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl. Mail-in voting sounds great. But did you know that if you vote by mail, your personal information will be part of a public database that will be used by police departments to track down old warrants? And be used by credit card companies to collect outstanding debt? The CDC is even pushing to give preference for mail-in voting to track people for mandatory vaccines. Don’t be BS’ed into giving your private information to the man. Stay safe, and beware of vote by mail.

C&L readers are probably familiar with some of Wohl and Burkman’s past stunts. This one, however, seems to be getting more and more costly for them. They already face felony charges in Ohio and Michigan and a civil lawsuit in New York to the tune of $2.75 million.

As Rachel Maddow explained Tuesday night, the FCC has been rigged by Republicans to be hamstrung, almost always votes 50/50 along party lines, and accomplishes almost nothing as a result. “It’s a place where real complaints go to die,” Maddow said about the commission. So the unanimous vote to fine Wohl and Burkman $5.1 million, “the largest single fine ever levied by the FCC for a robocalls violation of any type,” according to Maddow, is a BFD.

Of course, we do not know how many votes the MAGA prank may have succeeded in suppressing. But as Maddow noted, at least the perps are getting the book thrown at them. I'll bet they are not laughing now.

The FCC fine is not final, though. The Washington Post reported that “Wohl and Burkman will have a chance to respond, and the penalty could require a commission vote before it is finalized.”

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