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11,189
1
I never once asked that (Megyn Kelly) be removed" as a debate moderator.
January 28, 2016
candidate biography;debates
donald trump
Donald Trump is the former president of the United States. He was elected the 45th president of the United States on Nov. 8, 2016.  He has been a real estate developer, entrepreneur and host of the NBC reality show, "The Apprentice." Trump's statements were awarded PolitiFact's 2015, 2017 and 2019 Lie of the Year. In N...
national
36
85
120
194
360
179
an interview on CNN
Trump said, "I never once asked that (Megyn Kelly) be removed" as a debate moderator. This statement greatly downplays Trump’s comments ahead of the debate, even if his absence really had more to do with a mocking Fox News release in the end. Trump mused about skipping the debate because of Kelly for a couple days befo...
3,264
5
We have over 25 million people who live in Texas and less than 2 percent of them have" concealed handgun licenses.
February 22, 2011
guns
jeff wentworth
Jeff Wentworth, a state senator from San Antonio, lost his bid for the 2012 Republican nomination for the seat.
texas
1
0
1
0
0
2
a TV interview
We also wondered whether other states had a similarly low percentage of concealed handgun-license holders. According to a fact-sheet posted on the National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action’s website in April, 40 states have laws allowing individuals to carry handguns, with Florida issuing more carry p...
16,703
4
The Russians are violating all of the rules, treaties, understandings that they committed to that actually kept the peace in Europe for nearly 70 years.
November 13, 2019
foreign policy;military;nuclear
william taylor
Ambassador William Taylor is the top American diplomat in Ukraine. A career diplomat and U.S. Army veteran, he has worked in every presidential administration of both parties since 1985.
national
0
1
0
0
0
0
impeachment inquiry testimony
Taylor said, "The Russians are violating all of the rules, treaties, understandings that they committed to that actually kept the peace in Europe for nearly 70 years." Experts told us that "all" is an exaggeration, but that Russia has violated numerous treaties and agreements, including by its invasion and armed aggres...
19,653
0
A McDonald's restaurant in Elkton, Md., was permanently closed "due to a sex trafficking investigation.
April 26, 2021
facebook fact-checks
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
null
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a Facebook post
"It has been brought to our attention of a fictitious Town of Elkton MD Facebook page circulating a story regarding the closure of the McDonald’s Restaurant located at Routes 213/40," the post said. "We thank everyone for their calls and concerns regarding this account and have made the appropriate notifications to FB....
22,873
1
Abortion pills are dangerous and "1 in 5 women will suffer a complication.
March 27, 2023
abortion;public health;facebook fact-checks
alliance defending freedom
Alliance Defending Freedom is a conservative Christian legal organization.
national
0
0
1
0
1
0
a Facebook post
A video from Alliance Defending Freedom claimed abortion pills are dangerous and that "1 in 5 women will have a complication." The statistic appears to be based on a flawed study that experts said misclassified complications. The study’s lead author said the misconstrues the research. More than 100 studies spanning mu...
17,931
1
Says Nancy Pelosi "made millions in coronavirus insider trading.
April 2, 2020
financial regulation;government regulation;facebook fact-checks
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
california
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a Facebook post
An article widely shared on Facebook claimed Nancy Pelosi "made millions in coronavirus insider trading" over the course of 10 weeks. Her husband, Paul Pelosi, used call options to purchase Amazon stock, and investment that gained about $1.1 million in 10 weeks. The gain on his Facebook investment was about $100,000. B...
1,147
3
The Baucus health care bill "would drastically restrict the use of flexible spending accounts (FSAs) in order to help pay for health care reform.
October 14, 2009
taxes
save flexible spending plans
Save Flexible Spending Plans is an advocacy organization that opposes restrictions on flexible spending accounts in health care reform efforts. It is sponsored by the Employers Council on Flexible Compensation, a group that promotes the accounts.
national
0
0
1
0
0
0
a news release
Getting back to our statement, the organization Save Flexible Spending Plans said the Senate Finance Committee "would drastically restrict the use of flexible spending accounts (FSAs) in order to help pay for health care reform." Yes, it would restrict them, but even Save Flexible Spending Plans says the new restrictio...
22,269
3
They were "never my comments" that a woman can't get pregnant from rape.
October 20, 2022
abortion;crime
yesli vega
Yesli Vega, a Prince William County supervisor, is the 2022 Republican nominee for Virginia's 7th Congressional District Seat. She is running against incumbent Democrat Abigail Spanburger. Vega was born in Houston to Salvadoran immigrants and reared in Northern Virginia. She is a graduate of American Military Universi...
virginia
0
1
1
0
0
0
an interview
Vega said "those were never my comments," when a TV reporter recently asked her whether she believes a woman can’t get pregnant from rape. She was referring to taped comments she made in the spring when an unknown woman questioned Vega about her abortion views. Vega didn’t say a woman can’t get pregnant from rape. To t...
20,485
0
Virginia man arrested for having Minecraft worlds that were exact replicas of classified U.S. military bases.
October 28, 2021
fake news;facebook fact-checks
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
null
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a post
(Read more about our partnership with Facebook .) Krakow, who is a reporter at the Anchorage Daily News, wrote on Twitter that the article is fabricated and she did not author it. David Hulen, the editor of the newspaper, told Reuters that the newspaper never wrote or published the article. The image of the article pre...
2,568
3
Before we even passed health care, 4 millions kids got health insurance that didn't have it before, through the Children's Health Insurance Program.
October 27, 2010
families;health care
barack obama
Barack Obama is the former president of the United States. Obama also served as a U.S. senator from Illinois. He was born in 1961 in Hawaii, where his parents met as students at the University of Hawaii. Obama's father is from Kenya and his mother is from Kansas. He graduated from Columbia University and received his l...
national
124
165
163
71
71
9
an interview on "The Daily Show."
They show, as we would expect, only a modest increase in the program's enrollment. In ruling on our statement, Obama is correct to credit for signing the Children's Health Insurance Program into law after Bush had vetoed it. But he was exaggerating by using the 4 million estimate prematurely. It will take awhile for t...
5,031
3
President Obama is shrinking our military.
February 4, 2012
federal budget;military
mitt romney
Mitt Romney is a U.S. senator from Utah. He ran for president in 2012 as the Republican nominee, losing to incumbent President Barack Obama. Prior to that, Romney served one term as governor of Massachusetts, elected to the post in 2002. He was born in 1947 in Michigan, where his father was governor from 1963 to 1969. ...
national
31
33
58
35
32
19
Las Vegas, Nev
Romney is right that the military is "shrinking," partly due to a winding down of overseas wars and partly due to congressionally enacted budget limits. But to say, as Romney did, that this is being done by Obama -- without acknowledging Republican actions -- ignores what really happened. A majority of House and Senate...
604
1
Barack Obama "openly supported (opposition leader) Raila Odinga during his visit to Africa in 2006.
August 1, 2008
foreign policy
jerome r. corsi
Jerome R. Corsi is the author of The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality. He is a senior staff writer for the conservative news Web site WorldNetDaily.com. In 2004, he co-authored a book attacking Democratic nominee John Kerry, Unfit for Command: Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against John Kerry.
national
0
0
0
0
3
1
his book <i>The Obama Nation</i>.
Instead of opening businesses and engaging in commerce, people come to rely on patronage and payback as a means of advancing. Instead of unifying the country to move forward on solving problems, it divides neighbor from neighbor." Corsi states that Obama "openly supported" Raila Odinga. We found public statements from ...
2,086
4
Obama's approval numbers 'are in the low 40s.'
August 15, 2010
pundits;this week - abc news
matthew dowd
Matthew Dowd is an author and MSNBC analyst. In 2021, he briefly ran for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor of Texas. He served as chief political strategist to Republican President George W. Bush.
national
1
4
3
0
1
0
a roundtable discussion on ABC's "This Week with Christiane Amanpour''
And among the 16 polls from the month prior to the show, the average was, once again, 45 percent. So over the course of the last month, Obama's approval rating in independent, traditional-format polls has consistently averaged approximately 45 percent -- that is, in the mid 40s, rather than the low 40s. However, the tw...
23,285
1
Police say thousands of people witnessed a "demonic portal opening above White House.
July 11, 2023
facebook fact-checks
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
null
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a Facebook post
Eventually, the video’s host refers to a December blog post about conservative political consultant Roger Stone claiming that a demonic portal had opened above the White House "around the time the Bidens moved in. "  Stone said he asked a friend who is a police officer in Arlington, Virginia, to investigate the suppose...
7,048
3
Under Gov. John Kasich's budget proposal, "the top one percent in Ohio will pay $10,000 less in income tax each year, but Ohio's working and middle class families will pay more.
February 19, 2013
state budget;taxes
dan ramos
Dan Ramos is member of the Ohio House of Representatives, elected in 2010 to represent the 56th District. This is his first public office. A Lorain native, Ramos is a graduate of Lorain Admiral King High School and The Ohio State University.
ohio
0
1
1
0
1
0
a news release
The numbers are credible, but Ramos’s statement implies that every working and middle-class family would pay more under the reform. According to the ITEP numbers, 20 percent of Ohioans earn between $51,000 and $78,000 per year, and would begin to see an average yearly savings of about $75. The line between middle- and ...
6,305
3
Says he "will protect your guaranteed benefits" in Medicare while "Mitt Romney would take away Medicare as guaranteed benefits.
September 12, 2012
health care;medicare;message machine 2012
barack obama
Barack Obama is the former president of the United States. Obama also served as a U.S. senator from Illinois. He was born in 1961 in Hawaii, where his parents met as students at the University of Hawaii. Obama's father is from Kenya and his mother is from Kansas. He graduated from Columbia University and received his l...
national
124
165
163
71
71
9
a campaign commercial
In the ad, Obama said he "will protect your guaranteed benefits" in Medicare, while "Mitt Romney would take away Medicare as guaranteed benefits." Obama when he refers to "guaranteed" Medicare benefits under today’s system. Currently, Medicare does "guarantee" a form of health coverage for seniors and, in the shorter ...
17,463
3
Says fluid milk production limitations mean grocery stores are short on milk even as farmers are dumping it
April 3, 2020
economy;coronavirus
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
wisconsin
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a Facebook post
That is a factor, but it over-simplifies the situation a bit. Disappearing markets for cheese, butter and other dairy products in restaurants play a critical role in the suddenly changing dairy economy as well, experts say. Milk is being dumped not just because it can’t be bottled in the proper way, but because the ove...
9,670
2
There would be tens of thousands of jobs created" if President Barack Obama approved the Keystone XL pipeline.
November 6, 2014
environment;jobs;punditfact
anna kooiman
Anna Kooiman is a co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend.
null
0
0
0
1
0
0
a segment on "Fox & Friends"
Kooiman said the Keystone XL pipeline would create "tens of thousands of jobs." A State Department review found the project could support -- not create -- 42,100 jobs. But that number needs considerable explanation and does not amount to tens of thousands of full-time jobs in the most common sense of employment. The fi...
19,684
1
California Gov. Gavin Newsom "just let 76,000 inmates out of jail.
May 4, 2021
criminal justice;elections;crime
john cox
John Cox is a Republican businessman who lives in San Diego County. He is a candidate in the 2021 election to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom. He ran and lost in the 2018 race for California governor.
california
0
1
3
0
3
0
a campaign press conference
"  That’s just .  The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation expanded a good behavior and rehabilitation program that will make 76,000 inmates eligible for somewhat shorter sentences. The agency made this move without much public notice, but did so using authority granted under voter-approved Proposit...
12,545
0
Lindsay Parkhurst wants to take away programs like Social Security and Medicare that seniors have earned throughout their lifetimes.
September 21, 2016
medicare;social security
katherine cloonen
State Rep. Katherine Cloonen, D-Kankakee, represents the 79th District. She has served in the General Assembly since January 2013. 
illinois
0
0
0
0
0
1
a campaign ad
In a campaign ad posted on Facebook, Cloonen said, "Lindsay Parkhurst wants to take away programs like Social Security and Medicare that seniors have earned throughout their lifetimes." With Social Security and Medicare being federal programs, state lawmakers have no say in setting benefit levels for these programs. Ad...
19,166
3
Says a video shows Joe Biden boasted in 2006 "about voting for '700 miles of fence'" and "talking about immigration in some entirely different ways than he does today.
January 20, 2021
immigration;candidate biography
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
null
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a Facebook post
A Facebook post says that a video shows Biden boasted in 2006 "about voting for ‘700 miles of fence’" and "talking about immigration in some entirely different ways than he does today." In the 2006 video clip, Biden did talk about voting for a 700-mile fence. He said he made the vote mainly to fight drug trafficking, n...
13,262
3
El Paso is the "safest city in the state of Texas, safest city in the United States.
March 31, 2017
city government;crime
beto o'rourke
Beto O’Rourke is a former representative of Texas’s 16th Congressional District. He represented the district from 2013 until 2019, when he gave up his seat to run a senate campaign against incumbent Ted Cruz, which O’Rourke lost. He received a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Columbia University. In 2019, h...
texas
7
11
7
6
2
0
a U.S. Senate campaign speech
O’Rourke said El Paso is the "safest city in the state of Texas, safest city in the United States." This declaration ties to disputed CQ Press rankings, rooted in FBI-published statistics, that appear annually despite the FBI’s advice against using its data to compare communities. The cited rankings also didn't conside...
6,427
5
Says "Portland has higher standards than feds on allowed police use of force.
September 25, 2012
city government
sam adams
Sam Adams is the mayor of Portland. Before that he was a city commissioner and , for 11 years, was chief of staff to then-Mayor Vera Katz.
oregon
3
2
5
3
2
0
a tweet
But the policy also adds these two pieces of direction: 1) "It is the policy of the Bureau to accomplish its mission as effectively as possible with as little reliance on force as practical." 2) "The Bureau expects members to develop and display, over the course of their practice of law enforcement, the skills and abil...
15,135
0
Says Sen. Bill Nelson is a socialist.
September 19, 2018
congress;government regulation;taxes
rick scott
Rick Scott, a wealthy Florida businessman, was first elected Florida's 45th governor on Nov. 2, 2010 and re-elected Nov. 4, 2014. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2018 and is running for re-election in 2024.
florida
15
36
42
42
38
8
a campaign appearance
Scott’s description of Nelson as a "socialist" is an red scare tactic. The definition of socialism is a government takeover of production, and Nelson hasn’t called for that. Scott’s campaign pointed to Nelson’s support for Gillum, the Democrat running to the left of Nelson in the governor’s race. While Nelson has show...
11,413
5
One would have to go back more than a century to find a scenario where a president's nominee for the Supreme Court was confirmed by the opposition party in the Senate when the vacancy occurred during an election year.
February 22, 2016
supreme court
jeff flake
Jeff Flake, a Republican, represents Arizona in the U.S. Senate. He was elected to the Senate in 2012, after serving in the U.S. House.
arizona
3
1
0
0
1
0
a statement
Flake said, "One would have to go back more than a century to find a scenario where a president’s nominee for the Supreme Court was confirmed by the opposition party in the Senate when the vacancy occurred during an election year." He’s right. Flake’s carefully crafted statement rules out potential exceptions, such as ...
6,017
1
In 2010, Betty Sutton "voted to destroy Medicare.
July 30, 2012
health care;medicare
national republican congressional committee
National Republican Congressional Committee
ohio
4
5
9
20
14
9
a news release
In fairness, both parties play this game. Sutton falsely accused her Republican opponent, Rep. Jim Renacci, of voting to "end Medicare" because he supported Republican budgets that would privatize the program and provide vouchers. PolitiFact Ohio gave Sutton a on the -O-Meter for making the . That doesn’t make the GOP...
2,061
5
Exporters are using a federal loophole to "deceptively sell products made from cat and dog fur" to U.S. consumers.
July 28, 2010
trade
hank johnson
Hank Johnson, a Democrat, represents Georgia's 4th Congressional District
georgia
2
3
4
3
0
0
a statement
The resolution unanimously passed the House of Representatives on July 28. Johnson was one of 170 sponsors. It has not gone before the U.S. Senate. Johnson's comments caught us off-guard, but the issue of cats and dogs being used as fur and their inhumane treatment is a problem. We rate his statement on the issue as .
4,778
2
Says murder is the chief cause of death for pregnant women.
December 6, 2011
crime;women
kyleen wright
Kyleen Wright, the mother of four boys, says that she is a past president of Greater Tarrant Right to Life. She calls the Texans for Life Coalition the largest pro-life group in the state.
texas
0
0
0
1
0
0
a Twitter message
For such women in 2008, the latest year of available data, homicide ranked behind motor vehicle accidents, poisonings, malignant tumors, suicides, poisonings and heart disease among causes of death, our check of a CDC database indicates. We’re ready to rule. The Palladino study, suggesting more pregnant and postpartum ...
441
5
Every family health insurance policy has "a $900 hidden tax" to subsidize health care costs of the uninsured.
April 29, 2008
health care
hillary clinton
Hillary Clinton was the 2016 Democratic nominee for president. She served as U.S. Secretary of State during the first four years of the Obama administration. She is formerly a U.S. senator from New York, first elected in 2000. She was a candidate for president in 2008. She previously served as first lady when her husba...
national
72
76
70
43
31
9
South Bend, Ind
“Or some woman... that just gets diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis." “I don’t mind doing it,” O’Reilly said. Clinton’s point was that, to an extent, family health policy holders already are shouldering some of the burden for the uninsured. There may be some debate about whether the number is exactly $900 a year, as she...
7,001
3
Says if Congress doesn't avoid the sequester, "tens of thousands of parents will have to scramble to find child care for their kids.
February 19, 2013
bipartisanship;children;congress;corrections and updates;debt;deficit;families;federal budget
barack obama
Barack Obama is the former president of the United States. Obama also served as a U.S. senator from Illinois. He was born in 1961 in Hawaii, where his parents met as students at the University of Hawaii. Obama's father is from Kenya and his mother is from Kansas. He graduated from Columbia University and received his l...
national
124
165
163
71
71
9
Washington, D.C
The president warned that if Congress didn’t take action, "tens of thousands of parents will have to scramble to find child care for their kids." The sequester does hit two big programs that affect parents’ child care or their need for it — a subsidy program and the early childhood education program Head Start. The gov...
16,922
1
The State Capitol Police "recommended" banning guns at the Capitol.
January 10, 2020
public safety;guns
virginia house democratic caucus
The House Democratic Caucus consists of the 32 Democrats in the 100-member Virginia House of Delegates. Its chairman is Del. Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax.
virginia
0
1
0
0
1
0
a committee meeting
House Democratic leaders (Filler-Corn, Herring and Simon) said four times they were imposing a gun ban at the Capitol at the "recommendation" of the Capitol Police. But Pike, the chief of the Capitol Police, says the Democrats had decided among themselves there would be a gun ban and approached him afterwards to work o...
9,280
5
The No. 1 cause of death for African-American males 15-34 is murder.
August 24, 2014
criminal justice;crime;punditfact
juan williams
Juan Williams is a Fox pundit.
null
1
1
3
2
0
0
comments on Fox News Sunday
Williams said that the No. 1 cause of death for black men 15-34 years old is murder. CDC data supports the . Out of all causes of death, homicide claimed about 40 percent of black lives between 15 and 34 years. This was significantly higher than the national average for males of that age group, and all other racial gro...
16,742
1
The Ukrainian government just indicted the Burisma gas company & named Hunter Biden for accepting millions of dollars from a slush fund.
November 20, 2019
criminal justice;impeachment;facebook fact-checks
viral image
Graphics, pictures and charts shared on social media give chain emails a run for their money when it comes to spreading too-good-to-be-true claims all over the Internet. A common form is is the "Internet macro," which uses an easily recognized and repurposed image (called a meme) wth superimposed text to make a funny b...
null
4
13
35
53
711
331
a Facebook post
Anders Aslund, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council who researches kleptocracy in Russia, told NBC that the lawmakers pushing new allegations at the press conference — Oleksandr Dubinsky and Andriy Derkach — are "professional disinformers. "  "This is generally known in Ukraine," he said, "this is not outstanding ne...
10,498
1
Muslims "attempted to establish the first Islamic Sharia court inside the United States in the town of Irving, Texas.
June 29, 2015
legal issues;religion
chain email
Chain emails circulate on the Internet, usually anonymously, making a variety of political claims.
texas
6
5
9
11
44
107
a chain email
The chain email said Muslims "attempted to establish the first Islamic Sharia court inside the United States in the town of Irving, Texas." Not so; news stories and the Islamic Tribunal website indicate a few Muslim individuals teamed up to offer Sharia-governed, non-binding mediation services in the Dallas-Fort Worth ...
5,540
5
Says Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell voted for a toll lane on MoPac.
April 16, 2012
transportation
brigid shea
Brigid Shea, a former member of the Austin City Council, won election as the Precinct 2 member of the Travis County Commissioners Court in 2014. She earlier helped found Save Our Springs, a group devoted to protecting Barton Springs.
texas
1
1
1
0
0
0
an Austin mayoral debate on KXAN-TV
During the debate, Shea responded to Leffingwell’s description of the plan to add a managed lane to each side of a stretch of MoPac by calling it a toll lane and saying Leffingwell had voted for it in a transportation plan. Our conclusion is that except for a select few kinds of motorists, drivers who use the new lanes...
18,545
3
Says Tommy Tuberville "quit on his players" all four times that he was a college football coach.
October 1, 2020
candidate biography;sports
doug jones
Doug Jones is the Democratic nominee in the U.S. Senate special election in Alabama.
null
0
2
2
1
1
0
an ad
Jones claimed Tuberville "quit on his players" all four times that he was a college football coach, suggesting he betrayed the players. But the circumstances of his departures are not that cut and dried. Tuberville shocked players and university administrators when he abruptly quit Mississippi and Texas Tech in order t...
6,847
5
Abraham Lincoln "visited and some say even danced in (the Ohio Senate) chamber.
January 7, 2013
history
keith faber
State Rep. Keith Faber is running for state auditor in 2018. His hometown is Celina, in western Ohio.
ohio
3
0
1
1
0
0
the Ohio Senate
But we know that Lincoln visited the Statehouse on several occasions, and that he attended receptions and a ball. And Faber left himself room to two-step by phrasing the about dancing as "some say." Some do say, and not without justification, that he danced there. He didn’t dance with Kate Chase, which is a bit of lor...
112
3
First, he said he would take all of our troops out in six months, and now he acknowledges it would take a year.
October 12, 2007
iraq
joe biden
Joe Biden is the president of the United States. A Democrat, Biden served as a Delaware senator from 1973 (elected at the age of 29) until 2009. During his time in the Senate, he served as chair of the Foreign Relations Committee, chair of the International Narcotics Control Caucus and chair of the Judiciary Committee....
national
25
64
65
52
55
7
null
In a Richardson campaign video, a narrator says Richardson's time frame to withdraw troops is "as quickly as they can safely exit the country." His web site -- www.getourtroopsout.com – emphasizes withdrawal in a matter of months, citing several past examples of large troop movements that have occurred in "as little as...
22,788
1
Silicon Valley Bank "donated $73M to 'BLM Movement'
March 15, 2023
financial regulation;race and ethnicity
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
null
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a headline shared on Facebook
Facebook posts claimed Silicon Valley Bank "donated $73M to 'BLM Movement.'" The stemmed from a database kept by the Claremont Institute. It showed that since 2020, Silicon Valley Bank had donated or pledged to donate more than $70 million to causes "related" to the Black Lives Matter movement. The institute defined "...
10,629
0
Says Michele Bachmann said, "The Chinese built a Great Wall 5,000 years ago. You don't see any illegal Mexicans in China.
August 17, 2015
immigration;punditfact
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
null
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a meme
A meme says that Bachmann said, "The Chinese built a Great Wall 5,000 years ago. You don't see any illegal Mexicans in China." We found no that Bachmann ever said this, and her spokeswoman said she did not, in fact, say it. The meme seems to have satirical origins but is now being passed off as fact. We rate the state...
605
0
Barack Obama "rejects everyone white, including his mother and his grandparents.
August 1, 2008
candidate biography
jerome r. corsi
Jerome R. Corsi is the author of The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality. He is a senior staff writer for the conservative news Web site WorldNetDaily.com. In 2004, he co-authored a book attacking Democratic nominee John Kerry, Unfit for Command: Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against John Kerry.
national
0
0
0
0
3
1
his book <i>The Obama Nation</i>.
It's also worth noting that photographs document the Obama wedding and Obama's maternal grandparents visiting him at college. In August 2008, Obama took a weeklong break from the campaign to visit his maternal grandmother at her home in Hawaii. To conclude that Obama "rejects everyone white, including his mother and hi...
18,813
1
40,000 rejected vote by mail ballots in DeKalb County need to be cured by Friday or they will be tossed.
November 4, 2020
elections
tweets
Twitter is a messaging service where people often discuss politics. Individual messages are called Tweets.
georgia
2
4
6
12
98
39
a post
Every legal vote will be counted." The tweet is . We rate it . This fact check is available at IFCN’s 2020 US Elections FactChat #Chatbot on WhatsApp. Click here , for more.
6,573
2
Says Barack Obama was silent on Iran "when the students took to the streets in Tehran and the people there protested, (and) the Green Revolution occurred.
October 22, 2012
debates;foreign policy
mitt romney
Mitt Romney is a U.S. senator from Utah. He ran for president in 2012 as the Republican nominee, losing to incumbent President Barack Obama. Prior to that, Romney served one term as governor of Massachusetts, elected to the post in 2002. He was born in 1947 in Michigan, where his father was governor from 1963 to 1969. ...
national
31
33
58
35
32
19
a foreign policy debate
Romney said that Obama was silent "when the students took to the streets in Tehran and the people there protested, the Green Revolution occurred." Romney was referring to the aftermath of the June 13, 2009, re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, which led to massive protests. Two days later on June 15, in respon...
16,928
3
In Florida children are required to take their first standardized test within 30 days of beginning kindergarten and Gov. DeSantis wants to extend that requirement to preschoolers.
January 13, 2020
education
bernie sanders
Bernie Sanders is a senator from Vermont. Sanders was first elected to the Senate in 2007 and was re-elected in 2012 and 2018. The senator also ran an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 2016, losing the Democratic primary to Hillary Clinton. From 1991 until 2007, he was the representative of Vermont’s At-Large Distr...
florida
21
62
48
26
18
0
a Sun Sentinel op ed
Sanders said, "But in Florida children are required to take their first standardized test within 30 days of beginning kindergarten and Gov. DeSantis wants to extend that requirement to preschoolers." Kindergarten students do take a standardized screening test during the first 30 days. We didn’t find any that DeSantis ...
10,239
3
Baltimore spends the third highest per capita on its public schools.
May 3, 2015
education;punditfact
chris wallace
Chris Wallace is the host of "Fox News Sunday."
null
0
1
3
0
0
0
a broadcast of "Fox News Sunday"
Wallace said that Baltimore ranks third in per capita school spending.  That's only if you look at the 100 largest school districts. Among the top 500, Baltimore ranks 20th. Among school districts with at least 5,000 students, Baltimore ranks 160th in spending. Wallace's is partially accurate but leaves out important...
8,489
5
Seventy-five percent of the young adults in this country are not mentally or physically fit to serve.
February 25, 2014
military
bing west
Bing West is a Marine veteran of the Vietnam War and a former assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs in the Reagan administration. He is the author of numerous books on military affairs.
rhode island
1
0
0
0
0
0
a radio interview
Bing West said 75 percent of young adults in the United States were physically or mentally unfit to serve in the military. The Defense Department and a non-governmental organization have both done research that support his . We find the statement   . (Comment on this ruling on providencejournal.com. If you have a you'...
19,690
2
Joe Biden is proposing that any family who tries to pass a business or a farm down to their son or daughter or grandson or granddaughter are going to pay a huge new tax.
May 2, 2021
taxes
chris christie
Chris Christie announced June 6, 2023 that he is running for the Republican nomination for president. Christie was the governor of New Jersey and a candidate for the Republican nomination for president in 2016. As governor, Christie won office in 2010 and was re-elected in 2014. Prior to that, he was U.S. Attorney for ...
null
21
20
27
11
17
8
remarks on ABC's "This Week"
Christie said, "Joe Biden is proposing that any family who tries to pass a business or a farm down to their son or daughter or grandson or granddaughter are going to pay a huge new tax." Biden is proposing a series of new taxes that could hit large inheritances in a significant way. But Christie is to frame these as h...
14,296
1
Says he's a "retired U.S. Navy officer.
February 14, 2018
candidate biography;military
george p. bush
George Prescott Bush, formerly a corporate lawyer, won election as Texas land commissioner in 2014. He's renominated to seek a second term in 2018.
texas
0
1
1
1
4
0
a mailer pointed out by challenger Jerry Patterson
In a voter mailer, Bush says he’s a "retired U.S. Navy officer." Bush served nearly a decade as an officer in the Navy Reserve. But that doesn’t make him a retired officer, we find. At minimum, Bush would need to have served longer to call himself that. We rate this self-description . – The statement is not accurate. ...
8,064
3
Obamacare "was the Republican plan in the early '90s.
November 12, 2013
health care;punditfact
ellen qualls
Ellen Qualls is a Democratic strategist and former adviser to Nancy Pelosi. She previsouly worked as a television reporter in Virginia.
null
0
0
1
0
0
0
comments on Fox News Channel
Qualls said the Affordable Care Act "was the Republican plan in the '90s." The bill she had in mind did have a strong roster of Republicans behind it, and it did share many major features with the Affordable Care Act. There were some significant differences but in a side-by-side comparison, the similarities dominate. H...
2,424
4
Never once did they (House Republicans) actually cut spending or reduce the state budget. Even when they cut taxes in 2005, they increased spending.  They never paid for their tax cuts.
September 22, 2010
state budget;taxes
armond budish
Rep. Armond Budish, a Democrat from Beachwood, Ohio, formerly was speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives. Be became the minority leader in 2011 after Republicans regained control of the House in the 2010 elections.
ohio
2
3
2
0
1
0
a news conference
Still, the impact in 2007 of the tax cuts was fairly light compared to the impact that had been projected for the current budget -- $4.2 billion. But when lawmakers adopted  Strickland’s proposal to push back the final year of the income tax cuts that pushed back some of the effect. The state actually ended up with $3....
22,145
1
An anti-vaccine activist documented intimidation tactics used against her the day before she was killed.
October 17, 2022
facebook fact-checks
viral image
Graphics, pictures and charts shared on social media give chain emails a run for their money when it comes to spreading too-good-to-be-true claims all over the Internet. A common form is is the "Internet macro," which uses an easily recognized and repurposed image (called a meme) wth superimposed text to make a funny b...
null
4
13
35
53
711
331
an Instagram post
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Coroner’s Office also ruled that Vaughan wasn’t killed. She died of natural causes, according to findings from its death investigation that were made public in February 2021. The investigation included an autopsy, in-depth toxicology screening, interviews and a medical record review, ...
15,215
3
Says Florida's economy "is largely propped up on low-wage work.
September 30, 2018
economy
andrew gillum
Andrew Gillum won the Florida primary for governor in August 2018 and lost the November election to Ron DeSantis. He is a former mayor of Tallahassee and member of the Tallahassee city commission.
florida
0
3
5
1
1
1
an interview
Gillum said that Florida’s economy was propped up on low-wage jobs. We found that some of Florida’s job growth has been in low-wage jobs, and that the median wage level is the lowest in 11 years. However, there has been job growth in higher-paying jobs as well, and Florida is ranked 26th in low-wage jobs compared to ot...
19,036
1
CDC COVID-19 survival rates" are 99.997% for people ages 0 to 19, 99.98% for people ages 20 to 49, 99.5% for people ages 50 to 69, and 94.6% for people over 70.
December 16, 2020
public health;facebook fact-checks;coronavirus
tweets
Twitter is a messaging service where people often discuss politics. Individual messages are called Tweets.
null
2
4
6
12
98
39
a Facebook post
A tweet said "CDC COVID-19 survival rates" are 99.997% for people ages 0 to 19, 99.98% for people ages 20 to 49, 99.5% for people ages 50 to 69, and 94.6% for people over 70. The CDC has not released survival rates, and it doesn’t have the data to do so. It’s not clear where the tweet’s numbers came from, but they corr...
3,166
5
Most federal employees do not have collective bargaining for benefits, nor for pay.
February 27, 2011
labor;state budget
scott walker
Scott Walker, a Republican, is the former governor of Wisconsin. He was first elected in November 2010. He survived a recall election in 2012, defeating Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett after igniting controversy with a bill curtailing public-employee union collective-bargaining rights.  He won re-election to a four-year te...
national
26
45
39
40
44
11
an interview on NBC's 'Meet the Press'
Said Owley: "We bargain every kind of working condition imaginable." Bottom line, negotiations over working conditions are important, and so Walker's larger point -- that he is asking for  "something less restrictive than what the federal government has" -- is debatable. But in saying that most federal workers don't ha...
6,563
3
A few months ago when you were asked what's the biggest geopolitical threat facing America, you said Russia.
October 22, 2012
corrections and updates;debates;foreign policy
barack obama
Barack Obama is the former president of the United States. Obama also served as a U.S. senator from Illinois. He was born in 1961 in Hawaii, where his parents met as students at the University of Hawaii. Obama's father is from Kenya and his mother is from Kansas. He graduated from Columbia University and received his l...
national
124
165
163
71
71
9
a presidential debate
    In the debate, Obama said Romney called Russia "the biggest geopolitical threat facing America." Actually, Romney has twice drawn the distinction between his concerns about Iran and Russia. He has called Russia the biggest geopolitical foe or enemy for the U.S., but he has said the biggest threat is Iran. We rate O...
11,197
4
Today Russia holds many of our most precious national security satellites at risk before they ever get off the ground.
January 27, 2016
space
john mccain
John McCain was a U.S. senator from Arizona, a post he held from 1987 to his death in 2018. He previously served two terms in the U.S. House. He was the Republican nominee for president in 2008. McCain was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and spent his career in the military, as his father did. He was a combat pilo...
arizona
37
37
31
32
39
8
a committee hearing
McCain said, "Today Russia holds many of our most precious national security satellites at risk before they ever get off the ground." That’s correct, though the level to which that represents a risk, as McCain said, is somewhat unknown. Russia did at one point threaten to stop exporting the Russian-made engines fueling...
11,220
1
Says he was endorsed by the Valley News newspaper.
February 3, 2016
elections
bernie sanders
Bernie Sanders is a senator from Vermont. Sanders was first elected to the Senate in 2007 and was re-elected in 2012 and 2018. The senator also ran an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 2016, losing the Democratic primary to Hillary Clinton. From 1991 until 2007, he was the representative of Vermont’s At-Large Distr...
new hampshire
21
62
48
26
18
0
a campaign ad
A Bernie Sanders political ad said he had been endorsed by the Valley News newspaper and implied he had been endorsed by The Telegraph of Nashua. While each paper published laudatory editorials about the Vermont senator, neither one has so far offered him an official endorsement. In the context of an ad titled "Endorse...
6,470
2
Newgard owed more than $13,000 for unpaid taxes on his $1 million Milwaukie apartment complex.
September 20, 2012
message machine 2012;taxes
future pac (oregon house democrats)
Future PAC is the campaign committee for Oregon House Democrats.
oregon
0
0
0
3
0
1
a campaign ad
A $300,000 rental property doesn’t have the same ring as a $1 million one. Late Wednesday House Democrats shared a new version of the ad. There is no mention of the value of the property and no image of one either. We like how quickly Democrats work. We still rate the statement .
14,916
4
Says Donald Trump contradicted his own administration when he said the decision to allow blueprints for 3D-printed guns to be distributed "doesn't seem to make much sense.
July 31, 2018
foreign policy;trade;punditfact;guns
bloggers
Blog posting on the Internet
null
8
18
24
53
233
396
a blog post
A headline suggested that the government settlement that would have made 3D-printable guns available for download was actually a Trump administration decision, and that Trump said that didn't "make much sense." We could not independently determine the extent of Trump’s involvement, although Sanders said the president w...
6,899
3
As a result of National Rifle Association and other private-sector (safety-education) programs, fatal firearms accidents are at the lowest level in 100 years.
January 30, 2013
crime;guns
wayne lapierre
Wayne LaPierre is executive vice president of the National Rifle Association.
national
0
1
4
3
1
0
testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee
    LaPierre was very close to being right about his carefully framed statistic: Despite significant population growth, unintentional firearms deaths fell to a 106-year low in 2009 before tracking up slightly in 2010. But while LaPierre is probably right that NRA-sponsored safety programs played a role in this decline,...
488
3
Casualties and deaths are at (their) lowest point since literally the beginning" of the war.
June 2, 2008
iraq
john mccain
John McCain was a U.S. senator from Arizona, a post he held from 1987 to his death in 2018. He previously served two terms in the U.S. House. He was the Republican nominee for president in 2008. McCain was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and spent his career in the military, as his father did. He was a combat pilo...
national
37
37
31
32
39
8
Nashville, Tenn
Iraq Coalition Casualty Count's total was 506, which exceeded the number of Iraqi deaths in both March and April of 2005 (the site does not have monthly statistics prior to 2005). No U.S. government agency tracks Iraqi deaths, Melnyk said. So by any reasonable measure, McCain was to say casualties were at their lowest...
15,882
4
Americans "would run out of avocados in three weeks" if imports from Mexico were stopped due to a border closure.
April 1, 2019
agriculture;immigration;food
bloggers
Blog posting on the Internet
california
8
18
24
53
233
396
news articles and blogs
Experts agreed the Mexican inventory would run out within weeks. It’s possible, however, that price spikes would dampen demand for avocados and that customers willing to pay a hefty price would still find the celebrated fruit. We rate the .   – The statement is accurate but needs clarification or additional informatio...
3,117
3
Since Sherrod Brown and the Democrats "rammed" the economic stimulus bill through, "Ohio's unemployment rate has risen to 9.6 percent, above the national average.
February 17, 2011
federal budget;jobs;stimulus
national republican senatorial committee
The National Republican Senatorial Committee helps elect Republicans to the U.S. Senate.
ohio
1
3
11
18
14
7
a news release
With the brief exception of last November, you’d have to go back to 2002 to find a time when Ohio didn’t lag the nation in employment. And it ignores that Ohio’s unemployment rate has fallen for nine straight months. Context is important here because numbers can be cherry-picked too easily. And these facts are importan...
6,288
5
In Cuyahoga County ... 56 percent of weekend voters in 2008 were African American while adult African Americans comprise 28 percent of the county population.
August 24, 2012
elections
marcia fudge
Rep. Marcia Fudge, a Democrat from Warrensville Heights, is the congresswoman from Ohio's 11th district. Prior to her election to the House of Representatives, she was mayor of Warrensville Heights.  
ohio
2
4
2
0
2
0
a news release
Keeter noted that 2008 exit polling data in Ohio found that 16 percent of those who voted early - either by mail or in-person - were black voters, while 9 percent of in-person voters were black. "African-Americans statewide do appear to have made heavier use of early voting, but the exit poll did not ask how a vote was...
2,537
1
When President, then candidate, Obama was asked to disclose some of his donors because there was suspicion of their being the foreign source of money into his campaign, they refused to do it.
October 24, 2010
campaign finance;transparency
michael steele
Michael Steele is the chairman of the Republican National Committee. He was formerly the lieutenant governor of Maryland, serving from 2003 to 2007.
national
4
0
1
0
1
2
an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press"
The campaign had names, and in most cases assurances from the donors, that they were American citizens. The allegation in the Washington Post story was that the campaign's vetting of foreign donations was not stringent enough up front. There was no issue of the Obama campaign willfully refusing to disclose the names of...
2,505
0
Says Rick Perry recently said he "wanted another (Texas) business tax.
October 19, 2010
state budget;taxes
kathie glass
Kathie Glass, a Georgia native, was the 2010 Libertarian candidate for governor. She moved to Texas on July 7, 1977 and got involved in the Libertarian Party in 1978, according to her campaign website. She ran for attorney general of Texas in 1982.
texas
0
0
0
0
0
2
a debate
He should have been there" at the debate. She was referring to Perry's refusal to join any debate with White unless White released additional tax returns. Our conclusion is that Glass's statement greatly distorts the Chronicle story which--if Perry had called for a new tax--would have landed on the front page. In fact,...
19,629
2
An average of nearly 5,000 Missourians were contracting COVID every day in November.
March 22, 2021
coronavirus
missouri house democratic caucus
The Missouri House Democratic Caucus consists of Democratic legislators in the Misouri state House.
missouri
0
0
0
1
0
0
a tweet
The Missouri House Democratic Caucus said that "an average of nearly 5,000 Missourians were contracting COVID every day in November."  This is an exaggeration. November was Missouri’s peak in COVID-19 cases, and daily new-case numbers were in the thousands, but to say that the average was near 5,000 every day is . We r...
4,247
4
In terms of the wealthiest Americans, we're at the lowest tax rate since the 1950s.
September 12, 2011
taxes
debbie wasserman schultz
Debbie Wasserman Schultz became the chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee in 2011 and resigned in July 2016. The Florida Democrat was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2004 after serving in the state senate. She represents Congressional District 23 in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
florida
6
15
8
7
9
3
Tampa
We won't go through the complicated analysis again -- you can read it here if you like . Suffice it to say, effective tax rates for high-earning Americans are either at their lowest level since 1960 or at least very close to their lowest level. As for Wasserman Schultz, she said: "In terms of the wealthiest Americans, ...
9,590
5
A lawyer demanded "several Houston pastors hand over to the city government many of their private papers, including their sermons.
October 15, 2014
city government;legal issues;religion
greg abbott
Greg Abbott won election as governor of Texas in November 2014, carrying 59 percent of the vote. Abbott was re-elected in 2018. Abbott, a former member of the Texas Supreme Court, served three terms as the state's attorney general before being succeeded by Ken Paxton in early 2015.
texas
15
13
13
19
15
6
a letter to David Feldman, Houston's city attorney
Five subpoenas, submitted by the City of Houston, required pastors to furnish sermons and personal communications with members of their congregation. We rate this statement . – The statement is accurate and there’s nothing significant missing. Click here for more on the six PolitiFact ratings and how we select facts t...
6,172
3
President Obama is attacking Paul Ryan on Medicare even though it is his administration with the help of Jim Langevin who cut $716 billion from Medicare.
August 16, 2012
medicare
michael riley
Michael G. Riley, a Narragansett businessman who calls himself a "small-government and free-market Republican," made an unsuccessful bid for Congress in the 2nd Congressional District in 2012. He is co-founder of the Coastal Management Group, a consulting and investment company. He has served on the Narragansett Pensio...
rhode island
0
0
1
2
1
0
a post on Riley’s Facebook campaign page
Congressional candidate Michael Riley says that with the help of U.S. Rep. Jim Langevin, President Obama "cut $716 billion from Medicare." Mr. Obama did direct $716 billion away from future Medicare spending as part of his health care reform law. But calling it a cut leaves the impression that the $716 billion is being...
18,716
5
While serving as Town Supervisor, Nate McMurray voted to raise taxes on homeowners.
October 22, 2020
taxes
chris jacobs
Chris Jacobs is a candidate for New York State Senate District 60. He currently serves as Erie County Clerk.
new york
1
2
0
3
2
0
campaign mailer
Jacobs said McMurray voted to raise taxes on homeowners while he was town supervisor on Grand Island.  McMurray said that he raised taxes slightly while he was supervisor, which is corroborated by other documents. He also said that he couldn’t do anything unilaterally, and that he was a member of a five-member board.  ...
4,984
2
A proposed mine in Wisconsin is "about two-thirds the size of Lake Winnebago.
January 27, 2012
environment;water
penny bernard schaber
Penny Bernard Schaber was elected to the Wisconsin Assembly in 2008. The Appleton Democrat is a retired physical therapist.
wisconsin
0
0
0
1
0
0
a legislative hearing
But at the hearing Bernard Schaber -- who spoke of biking around the lake -- was clearly referring to area, not volume. Our rating Bernard Schaber said "the central size" of a mine proposed for far northern Wisconsin "could be about two-thirds the size of Lake Winnebago." There’s an element of in her statement, in ter...
18,348
0
The CDC has removed the 'Covid-19 Pandemic' and replaced it with 'Covid-19 Outbreak' on their website. It was never a pandemic.
September 8, 2020
public health;facebook fact-checks;coronavirus
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
null
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a Facebook post
A Facebook post claims, "The CDC has removed the ‘Covid-19 Pandemic’ and replaced it with ‘Covid-19 Outbreak’ on their website. It was never a pandemic." The CDC website’s homepage currently refers to the "novel coronavirus outbreak," and has been using that term since January. But there is no the CDC removed the word...
18,462
5
In the last 10 years less than half of adults in the U.S. received a flu shot.
September 19, 2020
health care
michael burgess
Burgess, initially elected to Congress in 2002, founded and chairs the Congressional Health Care Caucus, which raises questions about the Democratic-steered overhaul of federal health laws that passed into law in the spring of 2010.
texas
1
0
1
1
1
0
a tweet
Burgess said "in the last 10 years less than half of adults in the US received a flu shot." Estimates on flu vaccination coverage show that, since 2010, less than half of adults each year get a flu shot. That rate is higher among older adults and children. We rate this .
2,516
5
I am very proud, as governor of Florida, that we signed the first divestment act, as it relates to Iran, divesting any investments in companies that would invest in Iran.
October 24, 2010
foreign policy
charlie crist
Charlie Crist lost the race for Florida governor as the Democratic candidate in 2022. He served as a U.S. congressman from St. Petersburg since 2017 and resigned Aug. 31, 2022 to focus on his campaign.  As a Republican, Crist served as governor from 2007 to 2011. Crist left the Republican Party in 2010 to mount a campa...
florida
15
20
21
20
11
2
a U.S. Senate debate on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
But it wasn’t until October 2007 that California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a related bill, prohibiting the state’s pension funds from investing in companies doing business in Iran. It had already done the same with Sudan in 2006, before Florida — but that wasn’t Crist’s . He said Florida signed the first divest...
7,948
0
The goal of Common Core is "to instill federally determined attitudes and mindsets in students including political and religious beliefs.
October 16, 2013
education;religion
florida stop common core coalition
The Florida Stop Common Core Coalition is a group that opposes Common Core.
florida
0
0
1
0
0
1
a report linked to on a website
The goal of Common Core "is not simply to improve academic achievement but also to instill federally determined attitudes and mindsets in students including political and religious beliefs," said an anti-Common Core group. Their , though, is flimsy at best: A computer model that has a data field for voting status or re...
14,372
3
The last private rocket launch "cost $80 million. If the government did it, the same thing would have cost probably 40 or 50 times that amount of money. I mean, literally.
March 8, 2018
space
donald trump
Donald Trump is the former president of the United States. He was elected the 45th president of the United States on Nov. 8, 2016.  He has been a real estate developer, entrepreneur and host of the NBC reality show, "The Apprentice." Trump's statements were awarded PolitiFact's 2015, 2017 and 2019 Lie of the Year. In N...
national
36
85
120
194
360
179
a cabinet meeting at the White House
Trump said that at $80 million per launch, private rockets are about 40 to 50 times cheaper than NASA would spend if it did "the same thing." The $80 million figure is roughly accurate, but the key flaw in the statement is that NASA is not doing the same thing. As part of a policy decision made a decade ago, NASA has l...
10,448
3
The average age a child is trafficked into the commercial sex trade industry is between 11 and 14 years old.
June 16, 2015
children;crime
randy forbes
Randy Forbes is from Chesapeake and represents Virginia's Fourth District in Congress. He was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2001. He serves on the Judiciary Committee and the Armed Services Committee, where he is chairman of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee. Forbes previously served i...
virginia
5
3
4
1
0
0
a written statement
  Forbes wrote,"The average age a child is trafficked into the commercial sex trade industry is between 11 and 14 years old,"   This widely-circulated is based on a small-sample, national survey from the late 1990s that focused on street children who resorted to prostitution. None of the children were controlled by se...
11,131
2
Says Chris Christie "instituted an Internet sales tax.
January 4, 2016
economy;government regulation;state budget;states;taxes
conservative solutions pac
Conservative Solutions PAC is a super political action committee based in Tampa, Fla., that supports Marco Rubio for president.
national
0
0
1
3
0
0
an attack ad
Conservative Solutions' attack ad says Chris Christie "instituted an Internet sales tax." Internet businesses with a physical presence in the state were required to collect a New Jersey sales tax long before Christie took office. For businesses outside the state, Christie did expand the requirement that online business...
15,144
2
California "is hemorrhaging population.
September 28, 2018
government regulation;population;regulation;taxes
ted cruz
Ted Cruz is a U.S. Senator from Texas, first elected in 2012. Cruz also was a candidate for president of the United States in 2016. He is the former solicitor general for the state of Texas, previously serving as the director of the Office of Policy Planning at the Federal Trade Commission, an Associate Deputy Attorney...
california
8
22
21
48
47
11
a debate
Sen. Ted Cruz claimed California "is hemorrhaging population" in a recent debate. In reality, California’s population has grown by an average of 333,000 per year since 2010 due to natural births and international migration. There’s a sliver of in Cruz’s statement: The state for many years has lost more people to other...
8,672
0
Says Bruce Braley took "tens of thousands from his friends in the health insurance industry" and gave them "special favors" by voting for Obamacare.
April 8, 2014
campaign finance;health care
freedom partners
Freedom Partners, initially called the Association for American Innovation when it was established in November 2011, promotes "the benefits of free markets and a free society" and claims "over 200 members." The Washington Post reported that Freedom Partners served as a hub for political spending by billionaire industri...
national
0
0
1
0
1
1
a campaign ad
Freedom Partners’ ad claims that Braley took "tens of thousands from his friends in the health insurance industry" and gave them "special favors" by voting for Obamacare. Braley did take tens of thousands of dollars from the insurance industry, though from all types of insurers, not just health insurers. However, Brale...
21,327
0
Photo of unbroken windows proves war in Ukraine is fake.
April 23, 2022
facebook fact-checks;ukraine;russia
viral image
Graphics, pictures and charts shared on social media give chain emails a run for their money when it comes to spreading too-good-to-be-true claims all over the Internet. A common form is is the "Internet macro," which uses an easily recognized and repurposed image (called a meme) wth superimposed text to make a funny b...
null
4
13
35
53
711
331
a Facebook post
A blast radius is not infinite — the damage stops somewhere — but there’s that these cars were destroyed by Russian military forces on the ground in Bucha, not by an explosion. Photographer Emanuele Satolli, who took photos at the same scene pictured in the Instagram post, told the Greek fact-checking outlet Ellinika ...
2,525
2
Says he "voted no on the Wall Street bailouts.
August 12, 2010
economy;financial regulation;message machine 2010
glenn nye
Glenn Nye, a Democrat, represented Virginia's 2nd Congressional District from 2009 until 2011. The district includes Virginia Beach, the Eastern Shore and parts of Norfolk and Hampton. He now works as the senior political adviser at Hanover Investment Group, Alexandria. Nye was born in Philadelphia, but grew up in No...
virginia
0
0
0
1
0
0
a TV ad
So Nye says he voted against the bailout. People hearing his would undoubtedly think he was referring to the main vote on the TARP, but he wasn’t even elected when that vote was taken. He cites one vote on a procedural motion that was not substantive and that the news media did not characterize as significant, and ano...
10,096
4
Says Gov. Scott Walker's proposed reduction in university spending is "about the size of the one" under Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle, but Democrats didn't treat Doyle's cut as so dire.
March 12, 2015
education
robin vos
Wisconsin state Rep. Robin Vos, R-Rochester, has represented western Racine County in the state Assembly since 2004. In November 2012, he was elected Assembly speaker. Vos previously served on the Racine County Board of Supervisors, from 1994 to 2004.
wisconsin
2
8
4
5
5
1
an interview
By contrast, under Walker, his proposed 2015-’17 reduction comes four years after cuts of $250 million to universities in his first budget (2011-’13). Our rating Vos said Walker’s proposed reduction in university spending is "about the size of the one that happened" under Doyle, but Democrats didn’t treat that  cut as ...
21,797
1
Electric cars in California are not sustainable as only 10% of their batteries are recyclable and the state can't recycle them.
June 9, 2022
environment;climate change;transportation;facebook fact-checks
instagram posts
Posters on Instagram, where people share photos and graphics and sometimes add filters.
null
3
3
15
51
405
140
an Instagram post
A woman in an Instagram video claims California’s push for electric cars is not sustainable in part because California does not have a recycling facility that can handle the lithium-ion batteries in cars and that the recycling facilities in the country can recycle only 10% of the batteries’ material.  While California ...
21,763
1
Pens provided by Maricopa County are part of a plot to rig the Arizona primary.
July 28, 2022
elections
tweets
Twitter is a messaging service where people often discuss politics. Individual messages are called Tweets.
arizona
2
4
6
12
98
39
a tweet
Social media users have suggested there is something with the Pentel pens provided by Maricopa elections officials and that they are part of a plot to rig the Arizona primary Aug. 2. The county tested the pens and found they dry quickly, which helps during in-person voting when voters feed their ballots into the tabul...
4,651
5
Says Mitt Romney flip-flopped on a taxpayer protection pledge.
November 28, 2011
message machine 2012;taxes
democratic national committee
The Democratic National Committee is the national organization of Democrats.
national
7
8
12
9
2
0
a campaign advertisement
In 2002, Romney refused to make "a pledge in writing" on taxes. Four years later, he signed one and touted it as a selling point for his candidacy. In our book, that’s a clear flip-flop. We rate the DNC’s charge .
21,110
1
We haven't seen a single American megachurch offer anything to help Ukrainians.
March 7, 2022
religion;ukraine;russia
tweets
Twitter is a messaging service where people often discuss politics. Individual messages are called Tweets.
national
2
4
6
12
98
39
a tweet
The church’s website features ways people can help and has provided multiple updates on its efforts in the region. The Rock Church , a megachurch in San Diego, California, is directing people to its partner organization, Crisis Response International, and told PolitiFact that it’s in the process of establishing a Ukrai...
10,631
2
If I had not asked for my emails all to be made public, none of this would have been in the public arena.
August 17, 2015
candidate biography;technology
hillary clinton
Hillary Clinton was the 2016 Democratic nominee for president. She served as U.S. Secretary of State during the first four years of the Obama administration. She is formerly a U.S. senator from New York, first elected in 2000. She was a candidate for president in 2008. She previously served as first lady when her husba...
national
72
76
70
43
31
9
an interview with Iowa Public Radio
Clinton said, "If I had not asked for my emails all to be made public, none of this would have been in the public arena." The shred of here is that Clinton’s request was the driving force behind the State Department’s decision to release the emails as soon as possible. However, multiple pending FOIA requests for her e...
3,379
0
A report in Navy Times said that 7.3 percent of Army, Navy and Marines have thought about attempting suicide.
March 16, 2011
afghanistan;military
tim ryan
Tim Ryan is a representative of Ohio’s 13th Congressional District. Ryan served the state’s 17th Congressional District from 2003 until 2013, when he assumed office to represent the 13th District. In 2019, he ran for the Democratic nomination for president. In 2022, he is running for an Ohio U.S. Senate seat.
ohio
3
10
2
0
1
1
a House committee hearing
Through a series of goofs and misrepresentations, data about actual attempted suicides among military personnel became a number cited as the percentage of those who had contemplated suicide. The numbers Ryan cited didn’t come directly from the military. Instead, he relied on material from a blog article that used fault...
16,104
1
Says when New York "implemented a program" to tax the wealthy at higher rates it saw a revenue shortfall "because of the outward migration of their top earners.
May 22, 2019
economy;taxes
mike murphy
Rep. Mike Murphy, R-Springfield, represents the 99th House District in the Illinois General Assembly. 
illinois
0
0
0
0
1
0
remarks during a press conference
Citing remarks made in February by the governor of New York, Murphy claimed that when that state "implemented a program" to tax the wealthy at higher rates it saw a revenue shortfall "because of the outward migration of their top earners." Cuomo did raise the specter of out-migration among the state’s better-off taxpay...
12,045
3
Homicides last year increased by 17 percent in America's 50 largest cities. That's the largest increase in 25 years.
July 21, 2016
criminal justice;crime
donald trump
Donald Trump is the former president of the United States. He was elected the 45th president of the United States on Nov. 8, 2016.  He has been a real estate developer, entrepreneur and host of the NBC reality show, "The Apprentice." Trump's statements were awarded PolitiFact's 2015, 2017 and 2019 Lie of the Year. In N...
national
36
85
120
194
360
179
Cleveland
Trump said, "Homicides last year increased by 17 percent in America’s 50 largest cities. That’s the largest increase in 25 years." The statement comes from a credible source -- calculations made by the Washington Post . However, in painting a bleak picture, Trump cherry-picks the Post’s overall findings -- and makes mi...
18,880
0
Says Dominion Voting System flipped votes to Joe Biden in states where Trump is bringing legal challenges.
November 11, 2020
elections;facebook fact-checks
facebook posts
Posters on Facebook and other social media networks.  
null
24
50
108
245
1,410
570
a Facebook post
Viral social media posts that the 2020 presidential election is compromised because Dominion Voting Systems flipped votes to favor Joe Biden. This is . There is no credible that the system affected any vote counts. Minor problems, including human error and temporary machine malfunctions, took place in a few jurisdict...
15,323
3
A lot of people are still dealing with lack of access to health care. There are counties out there, in my former Senate district, that didn't have doctors and providers.
October 20, 2018
health care
troy balderson
Troy Balderson is a Republican member of the U.S. House representing Ohio District 12. 
national
0
0
2
0
0
0
a television interview
Balderson said that "a lot of people are still dealing with lack of access to health care." He then spoke specifically about people in his former Ohio Senate district. It is that a number of them dealt with changes, especially in the counties we mentioned. Nearly half of all Ohio counties, each in a small market, woun...
6,435
2
Says 50 million people would lose their health insurance if Obamacare is repealed.
October 3, 2012
debates;health care
barack obama
Barack Obama is the former president of the United States. Obama also served as a U.S. senator from Illinois. He was born in 1961 in Hawaii, where his parents met as students at the University of Hawaii. Obama's father is from Kenya and his mother is from Kansas. He graduated from Columbia University and received his l...
national
124
165
163
71
71
9
a presidential debate
Obama said in the debate that by repealing Obamacare, "you're looking at 50 million people losing health insurance." He didn’t say so, but that figure is based on projections for a decade down the road, and it applies to people who don't have insurance now. If Romney repeals the health care law, some of those people wi...
12,481
2
Says Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine "want to expand (Obamacare) into a single-payer program.
October 4, 2016
drugs;health care;history
mike pence
Mike Pence is the former vice president of the United States. A Republican, Pence was elected governor of Indiana in 2012. Pence previously served for 12 years as a congressman from Indiana representing the Sixth Congressional District; he was first elected in 2000. During his time in the U.S. House of Represenatives, ...
national
5
7
21
12
25
2
the 2016 Vice Presidential debate
Pence said Clinton and Kaine "want to expand (Obamacare) into a single-payer program," suggesting that they have proposed such a change. They have not. They have promoted a public option, which would be a government-sponsored insurance plan. A lot of Democrats, such as Bernie Sanders, would like to go in that direction...
9,248
0
Says Ted Cruz "was just bribed by the Kochs to introduce a bill that would give them and their allies America's national forests, parks, and other public lands and open them for mining, drilling, fracking and logging.
July 11, 2014
environment;campaign finance;candidate biography;crime
occupy democrats
Occupy Democrats, founded in 2012, is an advocacy group created to counterbalance the Republican tea party, and to "give President Obama and other progressive Democrats a Congress that will work with them to grow the economy, create jobs, promote fairness and fight inequality, and get money out of politics!"
texas
0
2
7
1
8
4
a Facebook photo post
Occupy Democrats said Cruz "was just bribed by the Kochs to introduce a bill that would give them and their allies America’s national forests, parks, and other public lands and open them for mining, drilling, fracking and logging." If excess federal lands were put up for auction, as possible under Cruz’s amendment, any...
21,856
2
The American Rescue Plan "helped create nearly 10 million new jobs.
August 16, 2022
economy;jobs
joe biden
Joe Biden is the president of the United States. A Democrat, Biden served as a Delaware senator from 1973 (elected at the age of 29) until 2009. During his time in the Senate, he served as chair of the Foreign Relations Committee, chair of the International Narcotics Control Caucus and chair of the Judiciary Committee....
national
25
64
65
52
55
7
remarks at the White House
Biden said the American Rescue Plan "helped create nearly 10 million new jobs." Economists agree that the law probably helped boost job creation. But Biden’s 10 million figure is an exaggeration. Analysts with the Congressional Budget Office projected that, even without the law, about 8 million jobs would be added to t...
23,004
2
House Speaker "Kevin McCarthy has quietly implemented a pay raise for members (of Congress) that could be $30,000+ per person. It circumvents the Constitution by instead reimbursing their rent, utilities, & meals.
May 3, 2023
congress;facebook fact-checks
brian tyler cohen
Brian Tyler Cohen is a political commentator who hosts the podcast "No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen"
null
1
0
0
1
0
0
a Facebook post
Cohen wrote that McCarthy "has quietly implemented a pay raise for members (of Congress) that could be $30,000+ per person. It circumvents the Constitution by instead reimbursing their rent, utilities, & meals." The House’s rule change is not accurately described as a pay raise. Rather, for the first time, lawmakers ca...
978
2
In Wisconsin, the stimulus paid for a bridge to a bar called Rusty's Backwater Saloon. They've got great burgers, but no new jobs.
July 2, 2009
economy;stimulus
john boehner
John Boehner of Ohio is the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. He was formerly the Republican minority leader from 2007-2011, and was the majority leader briefly prior to that.
national
17
4
11
13
22
2
a Web ad
In fact, it's not even the main access point for Rusty's. And as for the project not creating jobs, we think Ellie Mae's sniffer is a bit off there too. The main point of the stimulus wasn't so much to create burger-flipping jobs on the other end of bridge construction projects, but to to create jobs for people doing t...