Congress Takes New Interest in Political `Robo-Calls’

[babylonsister]

Congress Takes New Interest in Political `Robo-Calls’
By Kathleen Hunter, CQ Staff


Prerecorded calls offering negative information about every Republican presidential hopeful except Mike Huckabee caused a bit of a furor in Iowa this week, and Congress just might keep stirring the pot.

The House Administration Subcommittee on Elections is considering whether political dial-a-voter messages ought to abide by the same do-not-call-list limits as commercial telemarketers. Lawmakers are concerned that some groups are using the calls to deliberately mislead voters and that the abuse could depress voter turnout.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren , D-Calif., the subcommittee’s chairman, said she may try to add such a provision to a pending bill (HR 1383) seeking stricter limits on the so-called robo-calls.

During a Thursday hearing, Lofgren said a Pew Internet and American Life Project report indicated that roughly two-thirds of Americans received the prerecorded calls during the weeks preceding last year’s election.

Rep. Melissa Bean , D-Ill., testified that the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) spent roughly $60,000 to place more than one million “robo-calls” in her district in October and November of 2006.

Bean, who won a second term with just 50.9 percent of the vote, said the calls were designed to leave the impression that they were sponsored by her supporters and not the NRCC.

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http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?parm1=5&docID=news-000002637730

[hayu_lol]

1. I wish they would outlaw all robocalls...

I get between 15 and 20 a day on my machine. Mostly financial offers from mtg bankers and/orIndian call centers for whatever--they never leave a message.