Commentary: Latest Reports from The Washington Posts ‘Fact Checker’

Here are the latest reports from The Washington Posts ‘Fact Checker’.

Hillary Clinton’s claim that the ‘highest per capita number’ of crime guns in New York come from Vermont

“[Sanders] frequently says, ‘We’re a small, rural state, we have no gun laws.’ Here’s what I want you to know. Most of the guns that are used in crimes and violence and killings in New York come from out of state. And the state that has the highest per capita number of those guns that end […]

Ted Cruz’s exaggerated claim that Arizona is spending ‘hundreds of millions’ less after tough immigration law

“You’ll recall several years ago Arizona put in place really tough laws on illegal immigration. And they were criticized loudly for putting those laws in place. And it was interesting, this Wall Street Journal article, because it talked about what happened in the wake of that law, which is, a great many of the illegal […]

Sanders’s claim that Panama Free-Trade deal enabled more offshore tax scams

“What the Panamanian free-trade agreement did is enable large corporations and the wealthiest people — not just in this country but around the world — to participate in massive tax-avoidance schemes.  I was on the floor of the United States Senate in opposition to the Panama free-trade agreement for precisely that reason. What I was […]

Refereeing a week of feuding between Clinton and Sanders
The Democratic race got heated this week, with both candidates engaging in an increasingly testy feud. We fact-checked several claims made by both candidates this week, and many of our fact-checks were a response to reader requests. Here are some of our fact-checks from the week on Clinton and Sanders; check out our round-up at the end […]

John McCain’s claim he has ‘nothing to do with’ the McCain Institute

“I’m proud that the institute is named after me, but I have nothing to do with it — except that they use my name just as the Goldwater Institute uses Goldwater’s name.” — Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), quoted in news report, April 4, 2016 McCain is facing questions about his ties to an eponymous nonprofit, […]

Sanders’s incorrect claim that Clinton called him ‘not qualified’ for the presidency

“She [Hillary Clinton] has been saying lately that she thinks that I am, quote unquote, not qualified to be president.” — Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.), at a rally at Temple University, Philadelphia, on Wednesday Many readers have asked about these remarks by Bernie Sanders, which led him to list the ways that he thought the former […]

Clinton’s claim that a Wisconsin judge compared birth control to ‘murder’

“Right now, there is a [Gov. Scott] Walker-appointed judge running for the highest court in this state. She has actually said—I had to read this three times—she has actually said birth control is ‘morally abhorrent,’ and doctors who provide it, namely birth control, and women who use it, namely birth control, are ‘party to murder.’ Let […]

Is Hillary Clinton really ahead of Bernie Sanders by 2.5 million votes?

“He’s won some, we’ve won some, but I have 2.5 million more votes than he does.” — Hillary Clinton, in an interview on ABC’s “The View,” April 5, 2016 The Clinton campaign often points to the fact that the former secretary of state has received more votes than her challenger, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. […]

Bernie Sanders’s false claim that he has released his full federal tax returns

Jake Tapper: “Let’s talk about taxes, specifically about your tax returns. I have to say, I’m kind of surprised that you haven’t gone further on transparency. You released the summary page of your 2014 tax returns. Hillary Clinton has posted on her website the last eight years of her personal returns, all of the returns. […]

Pro-Trump super PAC misleads viewers about Ted Cruz’s stance on refugees and immigration

“Ted Cruz? He wanted to let in more Syrian refugees and give more amnesty to illegal immigrants. That won’t protect my family. Donald Trump will.” — Speaker in new ad by pro-Donald Trump group, Great America PAC A pro-Trump PAC is airing a new ad in Wisconsin ahead of the state’s Tuesday primary. In the spot, a […]

Trump’s nonsensical claim he can eliminate $19 trillion in debt in eight years

Donald Trump: “We’ve got to get rid of the $19 trillion in debt.” Bob Woodward: “How long would that take?” Trump: “I think I could do it fairly quickly, because of the fact the numbers…” Woodward: “What’s fairly quickly?” Trump: “Well, I would say over a period of eight years. And I’ll tell you why.” […]

Fact checking the Clinton-Sanders spat over Big Oil contributions

“I have money from people who work for fossil-fuel companies. I am so sick — I am so sick of the Sanders campaign lying about me.” — Hillary Clinton, to a Greenpeace activist, March 31, 2016 “The fact of the matter is Secretary Clinton has taken significant money from the fossil fuel industry. She raises […]

Fiorina’s claim that Hillary Clinton supports abortion ‘up until the moment’ of birth

“Hillary Clinton supports that a child can be aborted any time up until the moment it is born, literally.” –Carly Fiorina, interview on Fox Business Network, March 30, 2016 Former GOP presidential hopeful Carly Fiorina, now a supporter of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), appeared on Fox to make the case that front-runner Donald Trump had fishy […]

Donald Trump’s claim he evolved into ‘pro-life’ views, like Ronald Reagan

“I’m pro-life, and I was originally pro-choice. I will say this, that as a developer and as a businessman I’m not sure I was ever even asked the question, ‘Are you pro-life, pro-choice?’ … I have evolved. I talk about evolving all the time. And by the way, you know who else evolved? Ronald Reagan evolved. Because […]

Trump’s claim that the U.S. pays the ‘lion’s share’ for NATO

“NATO is costing us a fortune, and yes, we’re protecting Europe, but we’re spending a lot of money. Number one, I think the distribution of costs has to be changed.” –Donald Trump, interview with The Washington Post editorial board, March 21 “NATO is unfair, economically, to us, to the United States. Because it really helps […]

Chelsea Clinton’s bungled answer on her mother’s college affordability plan

“What matters to me as a voter is that my mom is not only the only candidate on either side of the aisle who tells you exactly how she is going to pay for everything, but she doesn’t expect to rely on things that are unlikely, like that [Sanders’s plan]. So she says, going forward, […]

Trump’s smear of Time magazine as the source for his ‘facts’

“I took a story out of Time magazine, and the story was exactly what it said. It said a $2.2 billion deficit. Now If Time magazine’s wrong, then they should apologize, and I’d, then I would certainly apologize for reading Time magazine. But Time magazine gave that information.” — Donald Trump, interview with Charlie Sykes, […]

Does Tammy Duckworth really want to accept 200,000 refugees from Syria?

“Tammy Duckworth wants to accept 20 times more refugees than the president — 200,000.” — Voiceover in new Mark Kirk ad, which is followed by video of Duckworth saying, “I signed on for 200,000 refugees.” Sen. Mark Kirk (Ill.) is one of the most endangered Republicans in the Senate, facing a tough race against Rep. […]

Ted Cruz’s false claim the San Bernardino shooter ‘posted publicly on social media a call to jihad’

“The San Bernardino terrorist, the female terrorist, posted publicly on social media a call to jihad. The Obama administration refused to look at social media because they didn’t think it would be politically correct to look at social media.” –Sen. Ted Cruz, interview on CNN, March 23, 2016 “If you look at the San Bernardino […]

John Kasich’s abortion policies in Ohio: pro-life except for rape, incest and life of the mother?

“Look, you know, I don’t make a lot of speeches about this. I am pro-life with the exceptions of rape, incest and the life of the mother.” –Gov. John Kasich, interview on CNN, Feb. 15, 2016 Ohio is often considered a success story for opponents of abortion rights and an oppressive state for abortion-rights supporters. […]

Ted Cruz campaign’s inaccurate claim about NYPD’s program spying on Muslim communities

“We will do what we can to help them fight this scourge, and redouble our efforts to make sure it does not happen here. … We need to empower law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized.” — Ted Cruz, statement in response to attacks in Brussels, March 22, 2016 “Local, state […]

All of Donald Trump’s Four-Pinocchio ratings, in one place

There’s never been a presidential candidate like Donald Trump — someone so cavalier about the facts and so unwilling to ever admit error, even in the face of overwhelming evidence. At last count, nearly 65 percent (17 of 27) of our rulings of his statements turned out to be Four Pinocchios, our worst rating. By […]

Donald Trump flip-flops, then flips and flops more on H-1B visas

For someone who has strong words about the current state of immigration, Donald Trump certainly has inconsistent ideas about what to do about it. Immigration has been the Republican front-runner’s signature issue since he entered the race. He has stuck to his early idea of building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, but has shifted several […]

Trump’s trade rhetoric, stuck in a time warp

“We will keep the car industry in Michigan and we’re going to bring car companies back to Michigan.” “They [Japan] have cars coming in by the millions and we sell practically nothing. When Japan thinks we mean it, they’ll stop playing around with the yen. They’re almost as good as China.” “When Ford builds a […]

Marco Rubio’s claim that it’s ‘illegal’ to replace American workers using H-1B visas

“It is illegal now under that program [H-1B visa] to use it to replace American workers. Under that program, you have to prove not only that you’re not replacing Americans, but that you’ve tried to hire Americans. And if a company is caught abusing that process, they should never be allowed to use it again.” […]

Does the Senate have a constitutional responsibility to consider a Supreme Court nomination?

“The Republican members met behind closed doors to unilaterally decide, without any input from this committee, that this committee and the Senate as a whole will refuse to consider any nominee this year. It’s a dereliction of our constitutional duty.” –Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), floor remarks, March 3, 2016 “The Constitution is very clear […]

Donald Trump’s false claim that John Kasich ‘helped’ Lehman Brothers ‘destroy the world economy’

“John Kasich helped Wall Street predator Lehman Brothers destroy the world economy.” –voiceover in Donald Trump campaign ad, released March 11, 2016 Trump appears to be ramping up his rhetoric ahead of the March 15 Ohio primary. The Republican front-runner previously has made similar attacks over Kasich’s tenure at Lehman Brothers, but rarely so dramatic […]

What GOP candidates got wrong — and right — about Common Core

“If I am elected president, in the first days as president, I will direct the Department of Education that Common Core ends that day. … The Obama administration has abused executive power in forcing Common Core on the states. It has used Race to the Top funds to effectively blackmail and force the states to […]

Did Hillary Clinton cast a vote that led to the BP tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico?

“With Sanders scheduled to address a rally here [Tampa] tonight in this Gulf of Mexico coastal community, his campaign cited the 2006 vote on the gulf drilling bill. Sanders, then a member of the House, voted against the legislation. Clinton, then a senator, voted for the bill. After the bill passed, the oil giant BP […]

Fact-checking the 12th GOP debate

CNN aired the 12th GOP presidential debate on March 10, a prime-time event starring the four remaining aspirants for the Republican nomination. Not every candidate uttered statements that are easily fact checked, but the following is a list of 16 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we do a roundup of facts in debates. Common […]

Fact-checking the eighth Democratic debate

The Washington Post partnered with Univision to host the eighth Democratic presidential debate on March 9, a face-off between former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.). Not every statement could be easily fact-checked, but here are 12 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we […]

Fact checking the Hillary Clinton email controversy

It’s been one year since it was learned that Hillary Clinton had set up a private email system when she was secretary of state — a revelation that has dogged her campaign for the presidency. The Fact Checker has run 10 fact checks on the issue, mostly regarding dubious statements that Clinton had made to defend […]

Why Trump’s comparison of his wall to the Great Wall of China makes no sense

“The wall is going to cost $10 billion. It’s so easy. … They say you’ll never be able to build a wall. Well, it’s 2,000 miles but we really need 1,000 miles. The Great Wall of China, built 2,000 years ago, is 13,000 miles, folks. … They didn’t have cranes. They didn’t have excavation equipment. […]

Fact checking the seventh Democratic debate

CNN aired the seventh Democratic presidential debate on March 6, a pre-Michigan primary showdown between former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont held in the city of Flint. Not every statement could be easily fact-checked, but here are 13 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios […]

Clinton’s claim that Flint was poisoned because the GOP governor ‘wanted to save a little money’

In Flint, Mich., “our city’s children were poisoned by toxic water because their governor wanted to save a little money.” — Hillary Clinton, remarks on Super Tuesday, March 2, 2016 Hillary Clinton has devoted a lot of attention to the water crisis in Flint, but readers have wondered about her statement that the crisis was […]

Fact-checking the 11th GOP debate

Fox News aired the 11th GOP presidential debate on March 3, a prime-time event starring the four remaining aspirants for the Republican nomination. Not every candidate uttered statements that are easily fact checked, but the following is a list of 14 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we do a roundup of facts in debates. […]

Trump’s false claim he built his empire with a ‘small loan’ from his father

“It has not been easy for me. And you know I started off in Brooklyn, my father gave me a small loan of a million dollars.” –Donald Trump, at a town hall appearance, Oct. 26, 2015 “He (Marco Rubio) also said I got $200 million from my father. I wish. I wish. I got a […]

Ted Cruz’s off-base claim that having women in combat leads to increased casualties

“You know, the Marines recently did studies on this, looking [at] that. Putting women in that position [in combat] ended up increasing casualties both among the women and among the men, that it decreases military effectiveness.” –Sen. Ted Cruz, FOX News forum, Feb. 24, 2016 Combat integration is a controversial topic that has come up regularly […]

Donald Trump and David Duke: For the record

Here is a full chronology of Donald Trump’s statements on white supremacist David Duke. Unlike most other top Republican officials, Trump generally does not couple his statements about Duke with a firm condemnation of Duke’s views. Instead, his answers are often reactive, such as  “I would do that [repudiate Duke], if it made you feel […]

A trio of truthful attack ads about Trump University

“We are going to have professors and adjunct professors that are absolutely terrific, terrific brains, successful. We are going to have the best of the best. Honestly, if you don’t learn from them, if you don’t learn from me, if you don’t learn from the people that we will be putting forward — and these […]

Donald Trump’s misleading claim that he’s ‘won most of’ lawsuits over Trump University

“I’ve won much of it, it’s a peanut case. … This is just people wanting to get their money back. Most of these people signed a report card where they say how great it was, then they sue you years later to see if they can get their money back.” — Donald Trump, news conference, […]

Fact-checking the 10th GOP debate

CNN aired the 10th GOP presidential debate on Feb. 25, a prime-time event starring the five remaining aspirants for the Republican nomination. Not every candidate uttered statements that are easily fact checked, but the following is a list of 13 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we do a roundup of facts in debates. “You […]

Timeline of Trump’s comments on Iraq invasion: Not loud, not strong, and no headlines

Donald Trump has said — and said he has said — a lot of things about the Iraq War. Since he entered the presidential race, Trump has touted his early opposition to the war in 2003 prior to the invasion, demonstrating his wisdom and foresight. Trump even claimed that the Bush White House approached him […]

A recent Supreme Court appointment in an election year — without controversy

“Not since 1932 has the Senate confirmed in a presidential election year a Supreme Court nominee to a vacancy arising in that year. And it is necessary to go even further back — to 1888 — in order to find an election year nominee who was nominated and confirmed under divided government, as we have […]

Recidivism Watch: Marco Rubio’s repeated claim about recidivism among Guantanamo ex-detainees

“We are not going to close Guantanamo. In fact, we shouldn’t be releasing the people that are there now. They are enemy combatants. These are literally enemy combatants, in essence soldiers — not soldiers, terrorists of foreign terrorist organizations. Many of whom, as soon as you release them, they rejoin the fight against us.” –Marco […]

Why the Clinton email scandal and Petraeus leak are not really alike

“I think maybe she will [be indicted], but I think if she isn’t indicted, the only reason is because the Democrats are protecting her. She is being protected 100 percent. Because you look at General Petraeus, you look at all the other people that did a fraction of what she did. … But she has […]

A bushel of flip-flops on approving judicial nominees

“I have a duty to nominate well-qualified men and women to the federal judiciary. I have done just that, and I will continue to do so. The Senate also has a duty — to promptly consider each of these nominations on the Senate floor, discuss and debate their qualifications and then give them the up […]

Clinton’s claim that Bush wanted to ‘give the Social Security trust fund to Wall Street’

“After Bush got reelected in 2004, the first thing he said was, let’s go privatize Social Security. … And you know what, their whole plan was, their plan was to give the Social Security trust fund to Wall Street. Imagine that.” — Hillary Clinton, remarks during an MSNBC/Telemundo Democratic town hall in Las Vegas, Feb. […]

Recidivism Watch: Sanders’s inaccurate claim that a Koch-backed group wants to ‘privatize’ the VA

“The Koch brothers and many of their allies do precisely want to privatize the VA. That’s what they want to do. I believe, along with the American Legion, the VFW, the DAV, the Vietnam Vets and virtually all of the veterans’ organizations, that that is a pretty bad idea because veterans have their own special health […]

Carson’s claim that ’10 times’ more people are on food stamps since the 1960s

“By the time we got to the ’60s, LBJ was saying, we, the government, are going to eliminate poverty. Now how did that work out? You know, $19 trillion later, 10 times more people on food stamps, more poverty, more welfare, broken homes, out-of-wedlock births, crime, incarceration. Everything is not only worse, it’s much worse.” — […]

Recidivism Watch: Donald Trump’s repeated claim of his 2003 opposition to Iraq War, despite new evidence

Host Anderson Cooper: “There’s a report now out tonight on Buzzfeed that includes — I have not heard it — includes an audio clip of what appears to be you on Howard Stern talking on the radio on September 11th, 2002. He asked you are you for invading Iraq? You said ‘Yeah, I guess so. […]

The false claim that John Kasich supported ‘severe’ defense spending cuts

“Iran. North Korea. ISIS. Threats to America are growing but under Obama, our military is shrinking. So why did John Kasich spend his career supporting massive defense cuts? … Kasich wanted cuts so severe even Bill Clinton said they would harm defense. John Kasich: dangerously wrong on national security.” —ad by Right to Rise USA, […]

Sanders’s claim that the African-American community ‘lost half of their wealth’ in the Wall Street collapse

“As I understand it, the African-American community lost half of their wealth as a result of the Wall Street collapse.” –Bernie Sanders, Democratic debate on PBS, Feb. 11, 2016 The intensifying competition for minority votes was evident during the most recent Democratic debate, where Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton consistently pivoted to statistics about minority […]

Trump’s truly absurd claim he would save $300 billion a year on prescription drugs

“We are not allowed to negotiate drug prices. Can you believe it? We pay about $300 billion more than we are supposed to, than if we negotiated the price. So there’s $300 billion on day one we solve.” –Donald Trump, remarks at Plymouth State University, Holderness, N.H., Feb. 7, 2016 “So I said to myself […]

Rubio campaign ad echoes a false Donald Trump claim

“Today, more men and women are out of work than ever before in our nation’s history. People paying more in taxes than they will for food, housing and clothing combined.” —voiceover in new Marco Rubio ad, “Morning in America” This new campaign ad has already been mocked for opening with a scene of Vancouver (a […]

Bill Clinton and the missed opportunities to kill Osama bin Laden

“The World Trade Center came down because Bill Clinton didn’t kill Osama bin Laden when he had the chance to kill him.” —Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), remarks in the GOP debate, Feb. 13, 2016 “The responsibility of 9/11 falls on the fact that al Qaeda was allowed to grow and prosper and the decision was […]

Donald Trump attacks Ted Cruz by repeating false claims about illegal immigration

Ted Cruz: “Of course I wanted the bill to pass — my amendment to pass. … What it doesn’t mean is that I supported other aspects of the [2013 immigration reform] bill.” Donald Trump: “People want to take back their country. We want to do it in a humane way, but we don’t have a […]

Fact checking the ninth GOP debate

CBS News aired the ninth GOP presidential debate on Feb. 13, a prime-time event starring the six remaining aspirants for the Republican nomination. Not every candidate uttered statements that are easily fact checked, but the following is a list of 12 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we do a roundup of facts […]

Ted Cruz’s misleading attack that Donald Trump ‘convinced’ the government to ‘bulldoze’ a widow’s home

“Trump bankrolled politicians to steamroll the little guy, a pattern of sleaze stretching back decades. Worse? Trump still supports eminent domain today.” — ad by Ted Cruz campaign titled “Parking Lot,” released Feb. 11, 2016 Who knew such a wonky topic would find its way into political attacks in the Republican presidential race? An ad released this […]

Bernie Sanders’s claim that Hillary Clinton objected to meeting with ‘our enemies’

Sen. Bernie Sanders: “I recall when Secretary Clinton ran against then-Senator Obama, she was critical of him for suggesting that maybe you want to talk to Iran, that you want to talk to our enemies. I have no illusion. Of course you are right. Iran is sponsoring terrorism in many parts of the world, destabilizing […]

Fact checking the sixth Democratic debate

PBS aired the sixth Democratic presidential debate on Feb. 11, a post-New Hampshire showdown between former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.). Not every statement could be easily fact-checked, but following is a list of 11 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we do a roundup […]

Trump’s dubious claim that his border wall would cost $8 billion

“It’s $8 billion.… And of the 2,000 [miles], we don’t need 2,000, we need 1,000 because we have natural barriers, et cetera, et cetera, and I’m taking it price per square foot and a price per square, you know, per mile, and it’s a very simple calculation. I’m talking about precasts going up probably 35 to […]

Sanders’s claim that he ‘does not have a super PAC’

“I do not have a super PAC, and I do not want a super PAC.” –Bernie Sanders, remarks after New Hampshire primary, Feb. 9, 2016 “I am very proud to be the only candidate up here who does not have a super PAC, who’s not raising huge sums of money from Wall Street and special […]

Recidivism Watch: Donald Trump’s misleading claims about Common Core and education trends

“You look at our rankings on education in the world, we’re number 30 in the world, which is ridiculous. No. 1 in cost.” –Donald Trump, interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Dec. 10, 2016 “We’re getting rid of Common Core. We’re going to educate our children locally. We educate our children locally.” –Trump, remarks following the New […]

Democrats’ claims that a Koch-backed group wants to ‘privatize’ the VA

“This is another part of the Koch brothers agenda. They’ve actually formed an organization to try to begin to convince Americans we should no longer have guaranteed health care, specialized care for our veterans. I will fight that as hard as I can. I think there’s where we can enlist the veterans service organizations, the […]

Recidivism Watch: Hillary Clinton on endorsements of her Wall Street plan

“Everyone who has offered an opinion about the plan that Sen. Sanders has proposed and the one I put together, has said mine is tougher, mine is more comprehensive., it would be more effective — because it tries to get not just at the problems of yesterday, but the potential problems of tomorrow, going after […]

Trump’s claim that the unemployment rate is 23 percent

“They have this phony number, 5.2 percent. Everybody that quits looking for a job is considered statistically a person that has a job. It’s a phony number. You probably — real numbers like 22, 23 percent. In fact, if you look at crowds like this and crowds wherever I go, if we were really at […]

The role Sanders’s anti-assault weapons stance played in his first major loss

Every candidate for president likes to emphasize certain aspects of his or her biography. This column is a part of an occasional Fact Checker Biography series examining claims 2016 candidates make about their political or professional record. “I have a D-minus — that’s a D, like in David — voting record from the NRA. I likely lost an […]

Did Iran’s parliament approve a ‘different’ Iranian nuclear deal?

“Iran has already torn it [the nuclear deal] up. Iran has not approved the agreement that President Obama has said that they have approved. They have approved a different agreement in their parliament.” — Former senator Rick Santorum (R-Pa.), remarks in the Republican undercard debate, Jan. 14, 2016 Santorum’s claim, made during the sixth round […]

The zombie claim that 300,000 children are used as child soldiers

300,000 children are used as soldiers worldwide — tweeted around the world as a UNICEF fact In early January, an affiliate of UNICEF USA called End Trafficking tweeted that 300,000 children are used as soldiers worldwide. A reader wondered how UNICEF knew this figure, and so we decided to investigate. Shortly after we launched our […]

Ted Cruz’s claim that sexual assaults rate ‘went up significantly’ after Australian gun control laws

“And as you know, Hugh, after Australia did that [gun buyback program], the rate of sexual assaults, the rate of rapes, went up significantly, because women were unable to defend themselves.” –Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), interview on “Hugh Hewitt Show,” Jan. 12, 2016 We’ve heard politicians make all sorts of conclusions about the 1996 gun buyback program […]

600 ‘requests’ from Benghazi for better security: What this statistic really means

“Look at Benghazi, our ambassador. He wired her 500 or 600 times asking for help.”  — Donald Trump, interview on Fox News, Sunday, Dec. 13, 2015 We’re using this Donald Trump quote as a jumping-off point to explore a figure that has been widely cited since the House Select Committee on Benghazi held a hearing in October featuring former […]

Everything you wanted to know about Bernie Sanders’s record on guns

With the Iowa caucuses quickly approaching, Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt.) and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton are both focused on Sanders’s gun record: Sanders on the defense and Clinton on the offense, using the issue to cast a significant difference between Sanders and herself. The Fact Checker has written extensively about Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt.) […]

Jeb Bush’s claims about too few Friday college classes and workload of tenured professors

“There are a lot of beautiful buildings being built on college campuses, but you can’t get a course on Friday afternoon. And a professor, tenured professor, may not be teaching many more courses than one per semester.” –former Florida governor Jeb Bush (R), at a town hall event in Peterborough, N.H., Jan. 7 Bush often […]

Did the 15 richest Americans gain as much wealth as the bottom 100 million?

“Is the economy rigged?  Well, the fifteen richest Americans acquired more wealth in two years than the bottom one hundred million people combined.” —Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), remarks in a television advertisement We discovered this ad in the nifty new Political TV ad archive, a project of the Internet Archive, which tracks ads in key primary states. The ad itself […]

Fact-checking the seventh round of GOP debates

Fox News aired two GOP presidential debates on Jan. 28: a prime-time event starring seven candidates and an earlier debate featuring four second-tier contenders, based on an average of recent polls. Front-runner Donald Trump opted out of the debate, preferring to hold his own televised rally. Not every candidate uttered statements that are easily fact checked, but the following is a list of […]

A $43 million gas station in Afghanistan? Not so fast

“We built a $43 million gas station in Afghanistan and it doesn’t even sell the right gas.” —Donald Trump, rally in Meza, Ariz., Dec. 16, 2015 Sometimes a news report generates big headlines at first, but the corrective follow-up weeks or months later generates barely a ripple — or is ignored altogether. This is a […]

Attack ad misrepresents John Kasich’s record on taxes in Ohio

“Kasich’s budget raised taxes by billions, hitting businesses hard and the middle class even harder.” —ad by American Future Fund, released Jan. 28, 2016 This ad by dark-money group American Future Fund, a politically active 501(c)(4) nonprofit, attacks Ohio Gov. John Kasich over being an “Obama Republican.” You see more information about this ad at Political […]

Donald Trump’s misleading claims about Common Core and education trends

“I’m a tremendous believer in education. But education has to be at a local level. We cannot have the bureaucrats in Washington telling you how to manage your child’s education. So Common Core is a total disaster. We can’t let it continue. We are rated 28th in the world, the United States. Think of it, […]

Ted Cruz resurrects a very stale Obamacare claim

“President Obama told the American people that under Obamacare the average family’s premium would drop $2,500. In fact, the average family’s premiums have risen $3,000. Now, Chris [Wallace], if you’re a single mom, if you’re struggling to feed your kids, $5,500, that is real money that you can’t provide for your family.” — Sen. Ted Cruz […]

How did ‘top secret’ emails end up on Hillary Clinton’s server?

George Stephanopoulos: “You know, you’ve said many times that the emails were not marked classified. The non-disclosure agreement you signed as secretary of state says that that’s really not that relevant. It says classified information is marked or unmarked classified and that all of you are trained to treat all of that sensitively and should […]

Fact-checking the fifth Democratic debate

MSNBC aired the fifth Democratic presidential debate on Feb. 4, a showdown between former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.). Not every statement could be easily fact-checked, but following is a list of 12 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we do a roundup […]

Fact checking the eighth GOP debate

ABC News aired the eighth GOP presidential debate on Feb. 6,  a prime-time event starring the seven top-tier candidates, based on an average of recent polls. Not every candidate uttered statements that are easily fact checked, but the following is a list of 15 suspicious or interesting claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we do a […]

Sen. Tom Cotton’s claim that sentencing reform bill would release ‘thousands of violent felons’

“I don’t believe we should allow thousands of violent felons to be released early from prison, nor do I believe we should reduce sentences for violent offenders in the future.” — Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), quoted in New York Times, Jan. 30 “It would be very dangerous and unwise to proceed with the Senate Judiciary bill, […]

Elizabeth Warren’s critique of Hillary Clinton’s 2001 bankruptcy vote

“You will not find that I ever changed a view or a vote because of any donation that I ever received.” –Hillary Clinton, in the fifth Democratic debate, Feb. 4, 2016 Moments after the former secretary of state (and N.Y. senator) made this statement, the Bernie Sanders campaign issued a news release titled “Elizabeth Warren […]