Investigation of Kleeb phone calls closed

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By ZACH PLUHACEK / Lincoln Journal Star

Whoever was responsible for the campaign call scandal that rattled the offices of Nebraska Democratic congressional candidate Scott Kleeb last fall likely will go unpunished.

The Nebraska Public Service Commission closed its investigation into the matter Tuesday, after reaching a roadblock in tracking where the calls came from.

Gene Hand, director of telecommunications with the commission, said fake campaign calls were likely made by someone who recorded one of Kleeb’s legitimate automated calls, then used it to flood homes around election time last year.

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Scott Kleeb

Scott Kleeb

“It did start out and sound exactly like the message Kleeb was using,” Hand said.

Kleeb lost to Republican Adrian Smith in the race for the 3rd District congressional seat.

He said he believed the illegitimate calls were designed to upset voters, turn them away from him or keep them from voting at all.

“I think it had a serious effect on both the election and just the faith in the electoral process,” Kleeb said. “Wherever this was employed, our turnout was down.”

So-called “robo calls” were used nationwide in elections last year, but many of those were done legally and made on behalf of candidates. 

The robocalls using Kleeb’s voice were illegal, Hand said, because the automated dialing machines used to make the calls were not registered with the PSC.

The commission requires a permit to operate such machines, and calls must be made only at certain times of the day. The sources of the calls must also be clearly identified.

The commission investigated because of several consumer complaints.

The commission was unable to find the actual source of the illegal calls, because the numbers given were “spoofed.” Whoever made the calls used technology that sent false phone number information to caller ID systems, blocking the origin of the calls.

If the commission had been able to trace calls, Hand said, it would have worked out a punishment, which likely would have included a  fine.

“We couldn’t get to that point because of the inability to identify who placed the calls,” Hand said.

Kleeb was upset by the lack of results, but did not blame the commission.

“I think it’s unfortunate that the people who did this got away with it and I don’t think that that bodes well for our faith in what it means to be a public servant or what elections should be about,” he said.

Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman vetoed a bill in May that would have restricted automated calls made by political campaigns. It would have limited the calls to two per campaign per day to each household, and restricted the hours of the calls. It also would have required a statement about who paid for the call and whether it was authorized by a candidate. And it would have applied to both state and federal campaigns.

The bill’s sponsor, Lincoln Sen. DiAnna Schimek, did not attempt to override the veto, but said she would hold the governor to his promise of support next year for legislation that would limit the calls if the restrictions were applied equally to all prerecorded calls.

Reach Zach Pluhacek at 473-7395 or zpluhacek@journalstar.com.