Dan Osborn, the Democrat-backed independent running for U.S. Senate in Nebraska, was caught on a recording calling Republican Sen. Deb Fischer a vulgar name while talking about his 2024 loss to her, according to audio obtained by POLITICO’s Daniel Lippman and published Friday.
On the recording, Osborn yelled, “And I f***ing lost to that b***h,” after playing one of his campaign ads targeting Fischer, Breitbart News reported, citing POLITICO. Lippman wrote in a post on X that the remark “offended at least one campaign volunteer.”
🚨Absolutely DESPICABLE: Democrat Dan Osborn calls Senator Deb Fischer a "b*tch" in new leaked audio
OSBORN: "I f*cking lost to that b*tch." pic.twitter.com/1b6Uzz125D
— Senate Republicans (@NRSC) October 16, 2026
According to POLITICO’s report, as summarized by Breitbart News, Osborn made the remark at a campaign-related gathering in the Omaha area this summer while the discussion turned to his unsuccessful challenge against Fischer. A campaign volunteer secretly recorded the conversation, and POLITICO obtained the audio from another person, Breitbart reported. Both were granted anonymity because they feared retaliation, according to the report.
The volunteer, who no longer helps the Osborn campaign, told POLITICO they were stunned by his language about Fischer, Breitbart News reported. The report did not say whether the remark was the reason the volunteer stopped working with the campaign, Breitbart noted.
Osborn apologizes
Osborn acknowledged the comment and apologized in a statement to POLITICO. “I’m a sailor, and sometimes I swear like one and make stupid jokes. I was wrong to speak that way about Senator Fischer,” he said, according to Breitbart News.
Fischer responded by pointing to his previous defeat. “Of course he lost and he will lose again. Pete will win this,” she told POLITICO, Breitbart reported.
Sen. Pete Ricketts, the Republican Osborn is now trying to unseat, condemned the remark in a post on X shortly after the audio surfaced. “I condemn Dan Osborn’s vulgar and disrespectful remarks about Senator Fischer. This kind of language has no place in Nebraska politics,” Ricketts wrote.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee also shared a portion of the audio on X, calling the remark “absolutely despicable” and identifying Osborn as a Democrat.
A close race in Nebraska
Osborn ran against Fischer in 2024 and lost. He now has Democratic backing in his campaign against Ricketts for Nebraska’s other Senate seat, according to Breitbart News. Lippman described him in his post on X as a candidate “who’s backed by Dems.”
Polling points to a tight contest. A YouGov survey conducted Sept. 24 to Oct. 3 found Osborn at 48% and Ricketts at 47%, with 3% undecided, Breitbart News reported.
The recording surfaced as Osborn seeks a different Senate seat two years after losing to Fischer, Breitbart noted. Election Day is Nov. 3, and Republicans moved quickly on Friday to put the audio in front of voters, as the posts from Ricketts and the NRSC show.
Osborn’s campaign has not said whether it plans any further response beyond his apology to POLITICO, and none of the reports reviewed by Daily Beltway included one.
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- Original post: Senate Republicans (@NRSC) on X, Oct 16, 2026
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