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An undercover video published by a conservative outlet this week appears to show Ruark Hotopp, a national vice president of the AFGE union, admitting he had the personal information of “one” ICE agent and telling someone named “McCollister” that the person would “take it from here.” If true, the tape ties union hostility to a high-profile Nebraska Senate campaign and raises real questions about who in the campaign machine knew what and when. Voters deserve answers — not PR denials dressed up as “no involvement.”
What the tape actually says
In the recording, Hotopp can be heard saying, “I don’t have any bulls**t ICE agents that have been doxxed; I only have the one,” and later recounting, “So I was telling McCollister about it; he’s like, ‘Do you got that guy’s information?’ I said, ‘I absolutely do.’ He’s like, ‘Alright, I’ll take it from here, chief.’” Townhall identifies the “McCollister” Hotopp names as Dan McCollister, who serves as communications director for Independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn. McCollister has issued a straight-up denial, saying he had no role in releasing any personal information and that the campaign had no knowledge of the matter.
Why this matters: doxxing is not political theater
Doxxing federal employees is not a prank. It is a serious invasion of privacy that can endanger lives and undermine law enforcement. The tape comes against the backdrop of the fatal incident involving Renee Good and an ICE agent identified in earlier reporting as Jonathan Ross. Hotopp’s tone — smirking while referencing the agent and saying the man “was a duespayer in our local” — makes this more than idle chatter. If union leaders are trading personnel files with campaign staff, that is a slippery slope from political advocacy into harassment or worse.
Campaign ties and the appearance problem
Hotopp is a senior AFGE official who publicly endorsed Dan Osborn and even showed up at Osborn’s launch. Campaign finance records show a person named Dan McCollister was on Osborn’s payroll, and Hotopp’s remarks put the two names in the same sentence. That is the appearance problem: even if the campaign did not publish the agent’s personal data, the tape suggests coordination or at least willingness to hand over sensitive information. Voters should not accept “trust us” from a campaign when a union official is bragging on tape about possessing a federal agent’s private details.
Demand answers and accountability
The tape as published raises several urgent follow-ups: verify the video’s provenance, confirm whether any private data was actually posted or shared, and get clear statements from Hotopp, AFGE, McCollister and the Osborn campaign — with documents, not just denials. If wrongdoing is proven, there must be legal consequences; if not, the Osborn campaign still owes Nebraskans an explanation for why their operation has such close ties to a union official bragging about targeting federal officers. Politics should be rough and honest, not a cover for doxxing. Voters, and the agents who enforce our laws, deserve better than silence and stonewalling — and candidates running for the Senate should be judged accordingly.
