Nebraska independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn responded Wednesday after leaked audio surfaced in which he appeared to make disparaging remarks about some rural supporters of President Donald Trump.
The recording, first reported by the Omaha World-Herald, captured a speaker describing a hypothetical Trump supporter in Red Cloud, Nebraska, as someone primarily interested in being on the “winning team.” The speaker later suggested that such voters’ lives “probably suck,” using profanity during the remarks.
Osborn, who is challenging Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts in November, appeared on CNN’s “Inside Politics” after the recording became public.
Asked by host Dana Bash whether the voice on the recording was his, Osborn replied, “It sure sounds like me.”
Osborn denied that the comments represented his broader view of Trump supporters, saying he has spoken with Trump voters throughout Nebraska while campaigning.
He argued that the comments were intended to describe frustration among voters who believe the political system has failed them. Osborn said Trump had successfully appealed to people who were angry with the political establishment by presenting himself as an outsider.
Osborn also acknowledged that his wording could be viewed as disrespectful.
“I don’t remember the context of this one particular conversation,” he told CNN, adding that the comments sounded out of character. He said he would apologize to people who were offended by the remarks and attributed the language in part to frustration with economic and political conditions.
The original recording contained several profane references to a fictional rural voter identified as “Billy Bob,” with Osborn saying the individual lived near a Trump store in Red Cloud and displayed a Trump flag. He also referred to the voter’s wife as “Mary Jane, or Mary Jo.”
Osborn is running as an independent against Ricketts and has said he would not caucus with either major party if elected. Nebraska Democrats are not fielding a Senate nominee after the state party’s central committee voted in August not to fill a vacancy on its ballot line, a decision party leaders said was part of their strategy of supporting Osborn’s independent campaign.
The former industrial mechanic, Navy veteran and union leader previously ran for the Senate in 2024 against Republican Sen. Deb Fischer.
Official Nebraska election results show Fischer received 499,124 votes compared with 436,493 for Osborn, giving Fischer approximately 53% of the vote to Osborn’s 46.5%, per The Gateway Pundit.
Ricketts criticized Osborn following the release of the recording.
“Dan Osborn was caught making derogatory comments about rural Nebraskans in another leaked audio,” Ricketts wrote on X, according to the source report. He accused Osborn of showing a lack of respect for people living in the state and said he would continue representing Nebraskans across all regions.
Osborn, however, told CNN that his remarks stemmed from frustration over issues affecting Nebraska residents, including agricultural costs, farm finances and other economic pressures.
“We’re all angry right now,” Osborn said, adding that people sometimes say things differently when they are frustrated.
The Nebraska Senate election is scheduled for Nov. 3.
