LIE: Tarkenton said the United States has had the “most anemic recovery in modern history.”
THE TRUTH
FactCheck.org: “The U.S. economy was growing at a yearly rate of 1.1 percent in the first three months of 2016, after growing at a rate of 1.4 percent in the final three months of 2015.”
Florida Gov. Rick Scott claimed the U.S. has ‘world-record high debt,’ when, in fact, it doesn’t, at least by the measure economists prefer. And he said the U.S. economy is ‘not growing,’ when it is. […] The most recent figures from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis show the U.S. economy was growing at a yearly rate of 1.1 percent in the first three months of 2016, after growing at a rate of 1.4 percent in the final three months of 2015. These are ‘real’ growth figures, adjusted for inflation. Furthermore, the U.S. economy has shown positive growth each year since the end of the 2007-2009 recession. GDP rose by 2.5 percent in 2010, 1.6 percent in 2011, 2.2 percent in 2012, 1.5 percent in 2013, 2.4 percent in 2014 and 2.4 percent for all of 2015.
Daily Beast: The economy “is growing. We rated his claim false.”
For this fact-check, we looked at whether he’s right that the U.S. economy isn’t growing. One way to measure this is looking at gross domestic product, which, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, has grown by between 1.5 and 2.5 percent every year since 2012. In addition to the growing GDP, experts also disputed Scott’s claim, pointing to other positive economic signs such as growing private sector jobs and a declining unemployment rate. The economy might not be growing as fast as Scott would like, but it is growing. We rated his claim False.
Marsha Blackburn said that 94 percent of Planned Parenthood’s services were abortions.
BRAZILE: All across this country, Jake, Republicans are trying to restrict, trying to… BLACKBURN: That is wrong. BRAZILE: …defund planned parent. Planned Parenthood which provides… BLACKBURN: Yes, we do. Planned Parenthood doesn’t need the money. BRAZILE: …mammogram services. (CROSSTALK) BLACKBURN: No, 94 percent of their business — 94 percent — BRAZILE: No, 97 percent. BLACKBURN: Ninety-four percent is abortion services. (CROSSTALK) BRAZILE: Ninety-seven percent is for non-abortion services. (CROSSTALK) BLACKBURN: For abortion services, 1800 — absolutely. (INAUDIBLE). Go to their website. Their main business — they are America’s biggest abortion provider.
In 2013, 3 percent of Planned Parenthood’s services were related to abortion.
42% STI/STD Testing & Treatment, 34% Contraception, 11% Other Women’s Health Services, 9% Cancer Screening and Prevention, 3% Abortion Services, 1% Other Services
In defending Trump, Mary Fallin proves she’s just like Trump.
Mary Fallin on Donald Trump: “I think he’s trying to campaign as a racial healer.”
Donald Trump has tried to campaign as someone who can bridge racial divides, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin said Sunday. ‘I think he’s trying to campaign as a racial healer,’ Fallin said on CNN’s ‘State of the Union.’ ‘I think that has been part of his message, if you watch what he said this week, you know he talked about how devastating it was for Dallas, how we need to respect our law enforcement, how we need to pray for those who are killed and those who are injured. I think that is his intent; I trust him with his words, and I think we all need to move towards being compassionate, loving, healing, but yet also respecting our law enforcement.’
Donald Trump on Mexican immigrants: “They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.”
When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.
In an interview, Mr. Trump said U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel had ‘an absolute conflict’ in presiding over the litigation given that he was ‘of Mexican heritage’ and a member of a Latino lawyers’ association. Mr. Trump said the background of the judge, who was born in Indiana to Mexican immigrants, was relevant because of his campaign stance against illegal immigration and his pledge to seal the southern U.S. border. ’I’m building a wall. It’s an inherent conflict of interest,’ Mr. Trump said.
Donald Trump at a campaign rally: “Oh look at my African-American over here.”
‘We had a case where we had an African-American guy who is a fan of mine,’ Mr. Trump said of an event in Arizona in March. ‘In fact I want to find out what’s going on with him.’ As his voice trailed off, Mr. Trump noticed a man in the crowd. ‘Oh look at my African-American over here,’ Mr. Trump said. ‘Are you the greatest? Do you know what I’m talking about?’ Mr. Trump then returned to speaking about the Arizona episode. The man he had pointed to, Gregory Cheadle, a local real estate broker running for a Republican nomination for a congressional seat, said in an interview Friday night that it was ‘surreal’ to be called out by Mr. Trump.
Donald Trump: “Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.”
Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what the hell is going on. You have no choice. We have no choice.
Voters go to the polls in little more than a week, and as election day approaches, the governor’s race is heating up with the negative ads flying between Governor Mary Fallin and State Representative Joe Dorman. We took a look at the latest ad from the Fallin campaign and put it to the Truth Test. […]The ad continues with some more tax criticism, ‘Dorman even supported raising taxes on Oklahoma businesses.’
REPORTER: “In the newest ad from Governor Mary Fallin’s campaign, the point of it is clear from the very beginning […] Dr. Pat Meirick, OU Professor and Director of the Political Communications Center, is helping us fact check.” […] AD: “Dorman even supported raising taxes on Oklahoma businesses.” REPORTER: “Dr. Meirick says this point is false. Dorman opposed a tax break only.” DR. PATRICK MEIRICK: “Well I think there’s a big difference between opposing a tax break for a specific industry and raising taxes on Oklahoma businesses in general.”
The Express Star called Gov. Mary Fallin’s ad about her opponent raising taxes a “lie.”
Then there is the body of this statement. A fun little quotation [from Mary Fallin’s ad] reads Joe Dorman: Cutting taxes ‘waste of time.’ The article this ad references does have Dorman quoted as saying ‘It was a waste of time to debate it,’ referring to HB 2032, a bill Dorman argued against because of its lack of constitutionality. Had the ad said Dorman opposed HB 2032, a bill aimed at reducing taxes it would have been accurate, but that just doesn’t have the same panache. I mean who wants to go look up a random house bill from a year-and-a-half ago? It’s much better to take something completely out of context and hope no one from the paper, which also happens to be located in Dorman’s home county will call you on the lie.
Still think Priebus has any credibility?
We’ll pile on. In 2011, Priebus said the unemployment rate “rivals the Great Depression.” PolitiFact called that “herculean cherry picking.” A few weeks later, he tweeted that the average ER wait time in California is five hours due to Obamacare. The actual number was 31 minutes. Priebus even claimed that Hillary Clinton lied to the FBI—a charge FBI Director James Comey entirely dismisses.
It’s no wonder that pathological liar Donald Trump consistently praises the GOP chair.
In 2011, Reince Priebus claimed the U.S. had lost 26 million jobs under President Obama.
Asked by host Meredith Vieira whether the recent run of job growth and falling unemployment numbers ‘throw a real monkey wrench’ into his party’s argument, Priebus said, ‘No, not at all. Under this president, he’s promised millions and millions of jobs. We’ve lost 26 million jobs, Meredith, since he’s been president. He promised under an $850 billion stimulus program that we’d be on a path to recovery. We’ll none of that has come true. … I think that pointing out a snail’s pace in the job (growth) numbers is not going to be enough to undo 26 million jobs that are lost, Meredith.’
The 26 million figure he cited on the Today show was ridiculously wrong. We rate it Pants on Fire.” “Perhaps Priebus simply misspoke, or perhaps he misplaced a decimal point and ended up wrong by a factor of 10. Whatever the reason, the 26 million figure he cited on the Today show was ridiculously wrong. We rate it Pants on Fire.
Priebus: “We have unemployment that rivals the Great Depression.”
Priebus said, in part, ‘Look, I’m not defending these guys, but the fact of the matter is, we have big issues here to tackle in this country. We have unemployment that rivals the Great Depression.
PolitiFact: There is “little statistical support that it [unemployment] ‘rivals’” the Great Depression, any comparison “requires herculean cherry picking.”
First, is it fair to say that ‘we have unemployment that rivals the Great Depression’? As bad as the unemployment situation is currently — and it’s unquestionably bad — there’s little statistical support that it ‘rivals’ the situation that existed during the Great Depression…Any way you cut it, peak unemployment since the start of the most recent recession, as bad as it has been, remains well under half of the peak it reached during the Great Depression. For more than a decade, annual unemployment never fell below 14.3 percent, or a level about 40 percent higher than the worst of what we’ve seen recently. Any suggestion that the two situations are equivalent requires herculean cherry picking. So Priebus is wrong on the first claim.
So where does this leave us? Today’s jobs picture is the worst it has been in decades, not just measured by unemployment rates but also by duration of unemployment. However, all of the available statistics — imperfect though they may be — suggest that today’s numbers aren’t anywhere near high enough to ‘rival’ those that prevailed for more than a decade during the Great Depression. We rate Priebus’ statement False.
Preibus: “Thanks to #ObamaCare, average E.R. wait in California is 5 hours.”
On July 7, 2014, Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus sent the following tweet: ‘Thanks to #ObamaCare, average E.R. wait in California is 5 hours: http://gop.cm/6015YqKd And ‘it’s only going to get worse.’
PolitiFact ruled the claim in Priebus’ tweet “False.”
In a tweet, Priebus said, ‘Thanks to #ObamaCare, average E.R. wait in California is 5 hours.’ The statistic was based on data from 2012 — two years before the provisions of the ACA could have had any impact. Meanwhile, the five-hour figure is just one of three measurements of E.R. wait times — and not even necessarily the best one. If you count from the time of a patient’s arrival to being seen by a health care professional, the wait time was 31 minutes in California. Even the strongest support for the claim is far from solid: A survey of emergency physicians found signs that E.R. traffic had increased since the ACA took effect in January, but the results were mixed, and this documents patient volume, not wait times. We rate the claim False.
Priebus claimed Hillary Clinton lied to the FBI.
I think she should worry about telling the truth to federal investigators and quit lying to the American people. And she should look in the mirror and ask herself what character is and what integrity is, and she’s not going to see it if she’s looking at herself. I think anyone that lies to the FBI and having an FBI Director tell the whole world that she is a bonafide liar in regard to national secrets, the most precious secrets that our country has, and she lied about them, I think that, I think someone like that isn’t even qualified to be president.
FBI Director James Comey testified that Hillary Clinton did not lie to the FBI.
FBI Director James Comey told lawmakers on Thursday that Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton did not lie to the FBI about her handling of emails as secretary of state and did not break the law. Comey told a Republican-led oversight panel in the U.S. House of Representatives that no reasonable prosecutor would charge Clinton with a crime over her use of private email servers while she was secretary of state, some of which were used to transmit classified information.
THE LIE: Reince Priebus said, “You can kiss your gun rights goodbye if she ever finds her way into the White House.”
THE TRUTH:
FactCheck.org said that Donald Trump “distorts the facts” with the claim that “Hillary Clinton wants to take your guns away” and “abolish the Second Amendment.”
Donald Trump distorts the facts when he says ‘Hillary Clinton wants to take your guns away’ and ‘abolish the Second Amendment.’ Clinton’s gun violence prevention proposal would impose restrictions, including a ban on semi-automatic ‘assault weapons,’ but it does not call for banning all guns. Trump made his remarks at a rally in Lynden, Washington, eliciting boos from his audience. As we have written before, Trump made a similar remark in a TV interview on Jan. 6, when he claimed Clinton ‘wants to take everyone’s gun away.’
CNN: “Clinton has never argued for abolishing the Second Amendment.”
Trump’s wild claim comes on the heels of an unrelenting barrage of attacks the newly minted presumptive Republican nominee has fired off against Clinton in recent days. Clinton has never argued for abolishing the Second Amendment but has called for universal background checks and stricter controls on firearms.
LIE: Priebus: “It was on her watch ISIS began to spread its wings of evil over the Middle East.”
THE TRUTH: PolitiFact rated the claim that “Hillary Clinton invented ISIS with her stupid policies. She is responsible for ISIS” as “False.”
Trump said ‘Hillary Clinton invented ISIS with her stupid policies. She is responsible for ISIS.’ There were several factors that contributed to the growing power of ISIS, but it’s misleading to pin the responsibility solely on Clinton. For starters, the roots of ISIS trace back to 2004, when Bush was president and before Clinton was Obama’s secretary of state. She did vote to authorize force in Iraq in 2002 while a senator, but that was advocated by the Bush administration and the vast majority of senators. The intervention in Libya, which she supported, did give ISIS an opening, but Trump is overstating her role by saying she is responsible for ISIS. This claim is inaccurate. We rate it False.
ISIS gained power because of “a complex dynamic that both pre-dates and post-dates [Hillary Clinton’s] tenure as secretary of state.” “This is a carefully phrased statement — note the use of the word ‘helped’ — that tries to pin the blame on Clinton for a complex dynamic that both pre-dates and post-dates her tenure as secretary of state. To a large extent, the Islamic State of today is simply an outgrowth of al-Qaeda of Iraq. It was established in April 2004 by longtime Sunni extremist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, according to the National Counterterrorism Center. Zarqawi was killed by a U.S. airstrike in 2006, and afterward his successor announced the formation of the Islamic State — more than two years before George W. Bush left office. The Islamic State certainly gained strength and territory from the civil war in Syria, but Clinton as secretary of state had pressed to funnel arms to the rebels; she was rebuffed by the president.’
Women are paid equally for the work that we do and when a woman becomes a mother she is supported, not shut out.
THE TRUTH: Donald Trump’s statements have been anything but good for women.
Donald Trump: “I think that putting a wife to work is a very dangerous thing.”
But Donald did seem to have some limits when it came to which women he wanted in the workplace. ‘I think that putting a wife to work is a very dangerous thing,’ Donald told a television interviewer. ‘There was a great softness to Ivana, and she still has that softness, but during this period of time, she became an executive, not a wife … you know, I don’t want to sound too much like a chauvinist, but when I come home and dinner’s not ready, I’ll go through the roof, okay?’
Donald J. Trump seemed irritated. He had been grilled for two hours in a lawsuit over a failed Florida real estate project, and he told the lawyer that her questions were ‘very stupid.’ When the lawyer, Elizabeth Beck, asked for a medical break, Mr. Trump and his lawyers objected, demanding that the deposition continue. Ms. Beck said it was urgent — she needed to pump breast milk for her 3-month-old daughter, and she took the pump out to make her point. Mr. Trump erupted. ‘You’re disgusting,’ he told Ms. Beck, in a remark that is not disputed by either side. He then walked out of the room, ending the testimony for the day.
Donald Trump on working women: “I have days when I think it’s great, and then I have days where if I come home…and dinner’s not ready, I go through the roof, okay?”
I think I’m probably mixed. I have days when I think it’s great, and then I have days where if I come home — you know, I don’t want to sound too much like a chauvinist, but when I come home and dinner’s not ready, I go through the roof, okay?
Donald Trump: “The women get it better than we do folks. They get it better than we do.”
I mean. All of the men, we’re petrified to speak to women anymore. We may raise our voice,’ he said. ‘You know what? The women get it better than we do folks. They get it better than we do. If she didn’t play that card, she has nothing.
Donald Trump: “I mean, the women, some of the women, happen to be very attractive. And they have used their sexuality to win certain tasks, as we call them. And hey, that’s part of life, I guess.”
KING: “Do you think that some complaining about women use their gender to advantage in this, or is that also part of life?” TRUMP: “Women? I mean, do women use sex? Absolutely not. You’ve never known a woman to use sex, right? On my show, I get criticized when they use sex. The rest of the world, nobody gets criticized. You know, amazingly, these people were chosen. They’re young people, and they were chosen for their brain, but they happen to be attractive. I mean, the women, some of the women, happen to be very attractive. And they have used their sexuality to win certain tasks, as we call them. And hey, that’s part of life, I guess. In real life, that happens, too. I’ve known it. I’ve seen it happen. It’s actually happened to me a couple of times, Larry.
Donald Trump said pregnancy was “certainly an inconvenience for a business.”
Donald Trump has said that pregnancy is ‘wonderful’ – unless you’re an employer. In an October 2004 interview with NBC’s Dateline, Trump said pregnancy is ‘a wonderful thing for the woman, it’s a wonderful thing for the husband, it’s certainly an inconvenience for a business. And whether people want to say that or not, the fact is it is an inconvenience for a person that is running a business.’
Senator Ted Cruz only acknowledged Donald Trump to recognize his nomination and ended his remarks by telling a chorus of boo-ers to “vote your conscience,” demonstrating no confidence in the party’s nominee.
The Trump family was stone faced, The Donald was irritated and Heidi Cruz was escorted out for her own safety as the storyline was defined for Night Three.
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LIE: Phil Ruffin: “I have been friends with Donald Trump for 20 years and business partners. I can tell you, as a friend he has been unbelievable. Donald’s word is his bond. Donald’s word is his bond. If Donald tells you something, you put it in the bank.”
THE TRUTH: PHIL RUFFIN REWRITES HISTORY AND FORGETS DONALD TRUMP IS A HUGE LIAR
Donald Trump: “You know I started off in Brooklyn, my father gave me a small loan of a million dollars.” [Donald Trump Town Hall, Atkinson, NH, 10/26/15]
Donald Trump: “You don’t learn much from tax returns.” [NBC’s Meet the Press, 5/8/16]
Donald Trump: “I don’t settle cases.” [Fox News Republican Debate, 3/3/16]
Donald Trump: “He [Gonzalo Curiel] is a member of a club or society, very strongly pro-Mexican, which is all fine.” [CBS, 6/5/16]
Donald Trump: “I don’t know anything about David Duke. OK? I don’t know anything about what you’re even talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists. So, I don’t know.” [CNN’s State of the Union, 2/2/8/16]
Donald Trump: “I’m self-funding my campaign.” [CNN Republican Debate, 3/10/16]
Donald Trump: “I was always against going into Iraq. In fact, I — believe me, I was always against it.” [Fox News Republican Debate, 3/3/16]
Donald Trump: “I’m leading in every poll with the Hispanics. They love me, I love them.” [Donald Trump delivers remarks following primary results, 2/20/16]
Donald Trump: “Crime is rising. People are scared.” [Speech in Briarcliff Manor, NY, 6/7/16]
Donald Trump: Hillary Clinton “wants to take all guns away from law abiding citizens.” [Donald Trump, Howie Carr Show, 6/13/16]
Donald Trump: “Don’t believe those phony numbers when you hear 4.9 and 5 percent unemployment. The number’s probably 28, 29, as high as 35. In fact, I even heard recently 42 percent.” [CBS This Morning, 11/24/15]
Donald Trump: “We pay, number one, a totally disproportionate share of NATO. We’re spending the biggest, the lion share’s paid for by us, disproportionate to other countries.” [ABC’s This Week, 3/27/16]
Donald Trump: Under the Iran deal, “if Israel attacks Iran … we are supposed to be on Iran’s side.” [John Fredericks Show, 9/3/15]
]]>Before Governor Walker was a short-lived presidential candidate for the GOP nomination, he earned himself a place in the Republican party conversation by being a union busting, budget slashing governor.
However, much like Trump, Walker lied about some of the things his reputation was built on. He claimed that special interests sent 100,000 people to protest his union busting– lie. He claimed a $535 million surplus in Wisconsin’s state budget– lie. He even lied about opening his school records. Trump and those like him can’t keep their stories straight this election and that is dangerous for America.
WALKER: “Well, in the end, I’m used to — as you know — you have been up to Wisconsin. You have seen it firsthand. The big government special interests, the powerful special interests, the union bosses and others, they will stop at nothing and all their supporters out there. They brought 100,000 protesters into our state to try and intimidate us, to back it down.”
Walker said his political opponents ‘brought 100,000 protesters into our state.’ In early 2011, tens of thousands of protesters — and perhaps as many as 100,000 on some days — participated in daily demonstrations near the state Capitol to protest Walker’s collective bargaining reform law. But there is no evidence to indicate that all or nearly all were from outside of Wisconsin. We rate Walker’s statement False.
Scott Walker lied about running a $535 million surplus in his Wisconsin budget.
Walker told debate viewers: ‘The next state budget will begin with a surplus of over half a billion dollars — $535 million to be exact.’ That rosy number flies in the face of the official estimate that uses a long-established method used by members of both parties, and the governor’s budget office. We rate the claim False.
Scott Walker lied about having “unsealed” his Marquette University student records.
Walker said he ‘unsealed’ his student records at Marquette University. In fact, he has taken only the very limited step of authorizing the school to confirm that he was in ‘good standing’ during his time at Marquette and that he voluntarily withdrew. We haven’t seen any records. We rate Walker’s statement False.