Beto Campaign Sued Over Excessive Robo Texts
Potential class action complaint is seeking $500 per alleged infraction
If you’ve been following the Texas Senate race, you’re probably aware that Beto Campaign text messages have become a running joke. I blogged about the bizarre text messages a few months ago.
Not only are the text messages sent to voting demographics well outside of Beto’s support base (something I believe is intentional data mining), but they’ve been sent with annoying frequency and often addressed to a name other than the recipient’s. I, for instance, continue to receive text messages from the Beto Campaign for Brianne. In case you missed it, my name is not Brianne.
In any case, Sameer Syed, a Texas voter, filed a complaint against the Beto Campaign alleging the campaign has violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. The TCPA prohibits, “calling or text messaging individuals on their cell phone using an automated dialing system without their consent, except for emergency purposes,” according to the South East Texas Record.
The complaint was filed as a potential class action suit.
While Beto O’Rourke believes “Texas deserves better,” at least one Texan believes he’s owed $500 for each unsolicited text received from the Democratic hopeful’s U.S. Senate campaign.
Seeking damages under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, Sameer Syed filed a potential class action lawsuit against Beto For Texas on Oct. 18 in the U.S. District Court for Northern Texas, Dallas Division.
The TCPA prohibits calling or text messaging individuals on their cell phone using an automated dialing system without their consent, except for emergency purposes.
Syed alleges he began receiving text messages from Beto’s campaign in 2018, around nine in total from different phone numbers.
When he called the numbers that sent the texts, the calls resulted in error messages or disconnected dial tones, illustrating that the texts did not originate from cell phones but rather from an automated telephone dialing system, according to the lawsuit.
Syed maintains the campaign never had permission to text or call his cell numbers.
“The calls placed by Defendant to Plaintiff were regarding political campaign activity and not for emergency purposes,” the suit states. “Under the TCPA … Defendant is liable to Plaintiff for at least $500.00 per call.
“Moreover, Defendant’s willful and knowing violations of the TCPA should trigger this Honorable Court’s ability to triple the damages.”
Syed is represented by Dallas attorney Shawn Jaffer.
According to Houston’s ABC News affiliate, Beto’s Campaign claims a large grassroots campaign in compliance:
On Sunday, O’Rourke’s campaign told Eyewitness News their grassroots program is the largest the state has ever seen, and is completely compliant with the law.
Full complaint is here:
Syed v. Beto for Texas by Legal Insurrection on Scribd
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Comments
My whole family got hit. So, that would be $2,000.
I was so ticked when my son’s new phone gets a text message asking the 15 year old sho he was going to vote for.
Beto a name Robert uses to give the false impression that he is Hispanic and he does not fall off his skate board! ……EMPTY SUIT!!,
A campaign worker for Beto knocked on my door yesterday. I informed her that as a former Democrat, I would vote Democrat over my dead body. In retrospect, I should have wasted her time by discussing Beto- such as how his El Paso County Judge father helped get Beto’s DWI charge dismissed. Etc.
Sounds like the campaign might have a use for all those $millions after all.
Oh come on Kemberlee, tell me you wouldn’t swoon if Beto called you “Brianne” … 😉 (j/k)
“”violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.””
I’ve gotten so many spam/robocalls in the past 6 months I finally just stopped answering my phone and blocking every number I didn’t recognize.
#1. Beto is a friend of the Kennedys.
#2. The rules don’t apply to the Kennedys.
#3. Therefore the rules don’t apply to Beto.
Q.E.D.
He obviously goes to the same dentist as the Kennedys do.
And Mr. Ed.
If he loses to Cruz, he already is on retainer (pun intended) to re-do the Ipana Bucky Beaver commercials.
Well, what else is he going to do with all the money he raised in California?
I believe that is the whole point of Beto and the other fringe candidates we are informed are “running ahead” in races they have no prayer of winning.
Putting a radical hard left candidate against Cruz in Tx:
-keeps the radical left on the plantation, and sucks up the money the rabid fringe would not shell out for a moderate Dem candidate;
-Pushes their narrative as being mainstream. CNN and NYT says he’s up by 99 points against Cruz! Abolish Ice! Abolish Gender! Free Palestine! Free Money for the World!! That’s a winning platform!!
-Brings money in from other states that they can transfer to their coffers;
– And best, when they lose, they will say – BETO WAS SO CLOSE! Send money for Beto 2020 [suckers].
I’ve received the texts and I’ve replied to them by return text. And they have replied back, which set up for some interesting conversation threads.
One of the fun ones was their advocacy for mail-in ballots. I pointed out to them that mail-in ballots are only counted if they could make a difference in the outcome; and accused them of attempting to disenfranchise me. Oh yes, that one was a fun series of exchanges!
I give credit to Beto’s gang for attempting to engage beyond the traditional Dem base. I wish the GOP would do that, too. There are many, many Black and Hispanic votes that could be picked up if we bothered to try.
President Trump stated that (unlike Obama) he intends to be President of all Americans. That means going outside of the base. Our candidates would do well to emulate that message, and adhere to its promise.
got one in maine last week.
blocked the number.
yet another reason to abolish the 17th
I’d love for those guys to set up a place where people could sign up for class action status…. that would be lots of fun!