A man who claimed that former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s campaign had harassed him with unlawful text solicitations had to pay thousands of dollars in fines.
According to recent court documents obtained by Business Insider, Pelosi agreed to pay a man from Illinois $7,500 after he filed a lawsuit against her, claiming that she had sent him 21 texts begging for money to her campaign, in violation of federal do-not-call statutes.
The plaintiff, Jorge Rojas, first sought $31,500 in damages, or $1,500 for each infraction. After receiving the reduced amount in February, he filed a motion to dismiss the case.
In the argument of the case, which Rojas filed in October 2022, he detailed a number of the absurd assertions Pelosi made in an effort to increase donations before the November elections. Her messages included the following: Democrats have a once in a lifetime chance to hold the House, Senate, and White House; Marco Rubio was in danger of losing his Senate seat in Florida; Republicans are fleeing the Senate, which was made in reference to the retirement of three Republican senators that year.
The San Francisco Democrat has come under fire from activists for her infamously frequent — and occasionally inappropriate — fundraising mailings while achieving records for her party in fundraising during her 20-year leadership of the House. She quickly launched a nationwide fundraising campaign when Roe v. Wade was overturned last year.
Less than an hour after the repealing of Roe V. Wade Nancy Pelosi uses it to ask for more donations. (2022) pic.twitter.com/0ZcytQq0VS
— crazy ass moments in american politics (@ampol_moment) June 24, 2022
Robotexts, or automated text messages from politicians, have been more popular in recent years, and so have lawsuits that aim to capitalize on any legal violations committed by political campaigns.
Politicians can frequently be held accountable for making prerecorded calls or sending texts to voters on the national Do Not Call Registry, even though they are typically immune from its restrictions.
Pelosi has been outspoken in her condemnation of former President Donald Trump since his prosecution by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for suspected financial fraud, despite recently remaining silent in her official duties as a House representative.
