Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman — far-right political operatives known for peddling misinformation — are now facing even more massive fines over a robocall scheme that spread lies about mail-in voting in 2020.
Specifically, the scheme claimed via its messages to targets that voting by mail would make personal details vulnerable to efforts like collecting old credit card debts, carrying out outstanding warrants, and implementing mandatory vaccine requirements that were never actually rolled out on a societal level as the claims in the outreach campaign appeared to suggest.
One script cited by New York state Attorney General Letitia James in an update on her challenge to Wohl and Burkman claimed falsely that “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 debts” if voting by mail. (It then referenced the mandatory vaccination lie.) Well, Wohl and Burkman now have at least $1 million in additional penalties, an amount that increases to $1.25 million if they fail to pay a certain portion of the overall total in a timely fashion.
“Under the agreement, Wohl and Burkman conceded a $1 million judgment to OAG, NCBCP, and individual plaintiffs. If Wohl and Burkman 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,” explained that press release from James, who sued the duo.
In prepared remarks, James herself said the two “orchestrated a depraved and disinformation-ridden campaign to intimidate Black voters in an attempt to sway the election in favor of their preferred candidate.” “NCBCP” refers to the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, which was involved in the case alongside state authorities.
Wohl and Burkman are known in part for spreading a past series of false claims of sexual misconduct ensnaring prominent, liberal political opponents of theirs.
