Political Quotes

“I rise today to introduce the ``Anti- Spoofing Penalty Modernization Act of 2019'' with my colleague, Senator Sinema, who serves with me on the Senate Committee on Aging, which I chair. I am also pleased that Senators Hawley, Peters, and McSally have joined as original cosponsors. This morning, the Senate Aging Committee held its 23rd hearing in the past six years to examine scams targeting our Nation's seniors. Scams the Committee has examined include the infamous IRS imposter scam the Jamaican Lottery scam, computer tech support scams, grandparent scams, elder financial exploitation, identity theft, and the notorious ``Drug Mule'' scam--where seniors are tricked into unwittingly serving as drug couriers. Two things are central to nearly all of these scams: first, the scams are initiated by robocallers who cast a wide net in their hunt for potential victims, and second, the scammers ``spoof' the victim's Caller-ID to mask their identity, a key to the success of their outrageous frauds. When victims see the ``Internal Revenue Service'' or the ``local Sheriff's Department'' pop-up on their Caller-ID, they are understandably worried, scared, and often easily hustled into doing whatever the scammers demand. Last year, robocallers generated more than 26 billion unwanted calls that reached American mobile phones. When landlines are included, the number soars to 48 billion. In Maine alone, our residents received an astonishing 93 million robocalls last year.…”