The Illinois man who accused Nancy Pelosi of violating federal anti-robocall laws now has $7,500 in his pocket.
During the fall of 2022, Jorge Rojas of Bolingbrook, Illinois accused former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her campaign of violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 in a 13-page lawsuit.
As well as applying to calls, that law restricts robocalling and prohibits telemarketers from contacting individuals who have placed themselves on the Do Not Call Registry.
“As the Supreme Court has explained, Americans passionately disagree about many things,” reads Rojas’s complaint. “But they are largely united in their disdain for robocalls.”
“According to the suit, Rojas received 21 texts from Pelosi’s campaign from November 2021 to July 2022 despite previously placing himself on the registry in 2008 to “obtain solitude from invasive and harassing telemarketing calls,” Business Insider reported.
He went on to argue that he “experienced frustration, annoyance, irritation, and a sense that his privacy has been invaded” by the texts.
Arguing that the texts constituted “malicious, intentional, willful, reckless, wanton and negligent disregard” for his rights, Rojas sought at least $31,500 in damages from Pelosi’s campaign, including $1,500 for each text received.
But months later, on February 22, Rojas moved to dismiss the suit against Pelosi.
And according to federal campaign finance disclosures made public on Friday, the dismissal came after Rojas received a $7,500 payment marked “Settlement” from Pelosi’s congressional campaign.
Fundraising texts sent in Pelosi’s name have achieved a certain level of notoriety — and infamy — in recent years.
“Why won’t Nancy Pelosi stop emailing me?” asked the title of a recent Los Angeles Times column, which voiced displeasure with campaign solicitations in general that are becoming increasingly aggressive.
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
In his lawsuit, Rojas printed out the text of some of the fundraising emails he received, including one that targeted Sens. Rob Portman of Ohio, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, and Richard Shelby of Alabama as they retired from office.
In February, Abigail Spanberger, a Virginia Democrat, joined “Texas Republican Representative Chip Roy in pushing legislation that takes direct aim against former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi and her husband Paul Pelosi.”
The two found themselves in the crosshairs of the then-Speaker’s own party at the end of her tenure regarding some “convenient” moves she made for herself that she had the advantage of from her top position.
During the latter part of her tenure as speaker of the House, the Pelosis’ stock trades became a major issue of contention due to the fact that they were made in a timely manner and either made money for the couple or avoided losses, leading to allegations that they had committed insider trading.
This caused angry responses even from Democrats, leading to Spanberger and Roy to ban any member of Congress from trading stocks as part of their duties in office.
“At the heart of the issue: Senators and representatives regularly get classified briefings about subjects that impact the markets and they’re able to use that information, which the rest of the public doesn’t have, to buy, sell, trade, and profit. Spanberger and Republican Rep. Chip Roy, of Texas, a co-sponsor of the bill, both said it’s fundamentally unfair and should be criminalized,” News Nation reported. “The legislation would require members of Congress, their spouses, and their dependent children to put certain investment assets into a qualified blind trust while the member is in office.”
As part of his explosive statement, the Democrat lawmaker said: “We are long overdue for a vote on legislation to ban Members of Congress and their spouses from trading individual stocks. Last Congress, we saw the TRUST in Congress Act receives the most bipartisan support of any effort to do so. We saw tremendous momentum, we saw growing support in our districts, and we saw growing recognition across the political spectrum that such reform needs to be made now. I’ve been proud to lead the charge on this issue, and I want to thank my colleague Congressman Roy for his continued partnership as we reduce potential conflicts of interest in the halls of the U.S. Capitol. Our TRUST in Congress Act would demonstrate that lawmakers are focused on serving the interests of the American people — not their own stock portfolios.”
In yet another conveniently timed stock sale, Pelosi drew the attention of everyone in January. According to a disclosure Pelosi made in late December, she sold around 30,000 shares of Google stock approximately three weeks before the Justice Department and eight states announced an antitrust lawsuit against Google’s parent company Alphabet.
The Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments Act, or PELOSI Act for short, was introduced in January by Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley. The legislation would prohibit members of Congress and their spouses from owning or trading individual stocks.
