In a rambling and incoherent appearance today at an event with the Retired American Warriors (RAW) PAC, Trump once again revealed just how little he knows about our military and national security. When asked about how he would defeat ISIS, Trump—who has no real plan to defeat the Islamic State—deflected by criticizing President Obama. He repeatedly disparaged the military and once again doubled down on his bigoted call for racial profiling. Trump even commented on the “newness” of Russia’s nuclear capability. We’re not even going to touch that one.
Here are Trump’s most egregious lies from today’s event:
LIE #1: TRUMP FALSELY CLAIMS THAT “OUR ARMED FORCES” ARE “DEPLETED”
THE LIE: TRUMP: “Speaking of failure, when we do our question and answer period, you look at what’s happened with our Navy in terms of the number of ships and our armed forces generally, how they are so depleted, how they are at almost record-setting lows and in some cases absolute record-setting lows, it is very very unfortunate and very very dangerous for our country.” [Herndon, VA, 10/3/16]
THE TRUTH: PolitiFact said that Donald Trump’s claim that our military has been “totally depleted” was untrue. “‘Our military’ has been ‘totally depleted.’ While military spending has decreased, the United States’ defense budget is larger than the next seven to eight countries combined. And while the number of ground troops and Navy ships have shrunk, size is no guarantee of military might. In fact, experts say the Army and Navy of today are much more capable than they were decades ago.” [PolitiFact, 6/22/16]
LIE #2: TRUMP FALSELY CLAIMS THAT OUR MILITARY IS “GOING AWAY”
THE LIE: TRUMP: “The Navy, Air Force, Marines. Everything is going away. At a time when certainly we are at a top priority for making sure that doesn’t happen. We are not respected to the extent that we were. We keep going like this, we won’t be respected at all. ” [Herndon, VA, 10/3/16]
THE TRUTH: PolitiFact: “Experts say the Army and Navy of today are much more capable than they were decades ago.” “‘Our military’ has been ‘totally depleted.’ While military spending has decreased, the United States’ defense budget is larger than the next seven to eight countries combined. And while the number of ground troops and Navy ships have shrunk, size is no guarantee of military might. In fact, experts say the Army and Navy of today are much more capable than they were decades ago.” [PolitiFact, 6/22/16]
LIE #3: TRUMP NONSENSICALLY SAYS THE U.S. SHOULD HAVE “KEPT THE OIL”
THE LIE: TRUMP: “And when it comes to the military, you know, I always say keep the oil. I said don’t go in. But I said keep the oil. Had we kept the oil, you wouldn’t have ISIS because they fueled their growth with the oil. ” [Herndon, VA, 10/3/16]
THE TRUTH: Washington Post Fact Checker said that Donald Trump’s claim that the U.S. “should have kept the oil in Iraq” was “nonsensical.” “‘I have long said that we should have kept the oil in Iraq.’ This is nonsensical. The Bush administration invested a lot of diplomatic effort in assuring Middle Eastern allies that the United States was not invading because of Iraq’s oil fields. Moreover, oil revenue was crucial to ensuring a functioning Iraqi state — which is why insurgents often targeted the oil sector in Iraq. In any event, seizing the oil of a sovereign nation after invading it would be considered a ‘grave breach’ of the Geneva Convention, one of the cornerstones of international law, as well as other international agreements. Maybe Trump’s staff should arrange a tutorial on international law.” [Washington Post, 8/16/16]
Donald Trump’s assertion that the U.S. should have taken Iraqi oil was a plan that would be in violation of the Geneva Conventions. “Seizing Middle Eastern oil is a decade-old Trump idea, but it contradicts both his own positions as well as international law. Trump is right that oil is a major source of funding for the terrorist group, but he’s not the only one aware of this. The United States has been targeting ISIS’ oil assets since the beginning of the air campaign in 2014. Trump did not detail how the United States would have been able to take and control the oil fields of a sovereign country, but it would have required invading Iraq (which Trump falsely says he was against from the beginning), maintaining a U.S. presence there and convincing the Iraqi government to give up their claims on their own resources. And there’s also the Geneva Conventions, which Trump has already proposed to violate by calling for the deaths of families of terrorists. International law prohibits destroying or seizing enemy property.” [PolitiFact, 8/15/16]
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“Donald Trump has finally admitted that he has no strategy to defeat ISIS. It’s a shocking reversal that exposes just how out of his depth Trump is on national security issues. The Donald once claimed he knew ‘more than the generals’ about ISIS and had a ‘secret’ plan to defeat the Islamic State. Now, it’s clear those comments were a lie—he’s punting to the generals because he has no plan. The startling hypocrisy doesn’t end there. Trump lied about his support for the war in Iraq, the intervention in Libya and the removal of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. He claimed that he is committed to protecting America’s cyber security—yet just a few months ago asked Russia to hack the U.S.
“What’s clear is that Trump has no clue how to protect the American people and lacks the judgement and temperament to serve as Commander-in-Chief. A Trump presidency would endanger the American people, isolate our allies and give comfort to our country’s greatest adversaries.”
Donald Trump just proposed a purity test to enter the United States — one he and his supporters would likely fail. Despite speaking from a teleprompter, Trump’s speech was as mendacious, bizarre and bigoted as ever. Trump once again lied about his record of supporting the Iraq War and the intervention in Libya. His ‘extreme vetting’ proposal is simply a rebranding of his bigoted ban on Muslims. He claims he wants work with other countries to fight ISIS, but has spent the past year disparaging our closest allies and undermining the NATO alliance.
“Trump still has no detailed plan to keep America safe and no amount of teleprompter speeches can hide the fact he is utterly unfit to be Commander-in-Chief.
Last night, The New York Times reported on the discovery of secret ledgers showing that a pro-Kremlin Ukrainian political party had earmarked $12.7 million in cash payments for Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. Manafort played a central role in deposed Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s successful campaigns for Prime Minister in 2006 and the presidency in 2010—but the relationship didn’t end there. The Times investigation uncovered a deep web of ties between Manafort and pro-Kremlin figures in Ukraine.
The story about possible payments from Ukrainian officials to Manafort is just the latest revelation about the Trump campaign’s troubling connections to the Kremlin. Trump has praised Vladimir Putin, seemingly defended Russia’s annexation of Crimea and threatened to unravel the NATO alliance if Russia invaded a U.S. ally. Trump surrogates reportedly took out a plank in the Republican platform pledging to provide arms to Ukraine to fight Kremlin-backed rebels.
]]>Five days later, he’s right back to where he started.
Tonight in Pennsylvania, Trump claimed that he could lose the election because of “cheating” and seemed to suggest that his supporters patrol the state looking for signs of voter fraud. He accused Hillary Clinton of being ISIS’ “most improved player.” He said his comments calling President Obama the founder of ISIS were only “somewhat sarcastic.” And for the second time today, he told a protester to “go back to mommy.”
He even told attendees he was rushing his speech because “I want to get the hell out of here. “
It was a fitting end to an unhinged week in which Trump told more than 58 lies to the American people, accused the president of founding ISIS and seemed to suggest his supporters take violent action if he is not elected.
TRUMP ON PRESIDENT OBAMA:
So I’ve been saying, and I’ll keep saying because it’s true, but somewhat sarcastically I’ve been saying he’s [President Obama] the founder of ISIS, and I say she’s a close second. [Altoona, PA, 8/12/16]
TRUMP ON HILLARY CLINTON:
Trump just said Hillary Clinton is going to be “Most Improved Player” for ISIS, said MVP last time. She’s going to be 6th man before long.
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) August 12, 2016
TRUMP ON CHEATING IN THE ELECTION:
The only way we can lose, in my opinion, I really mean this, Pennsylvania, is if cheating goes on. I really believe it. [Altoona, PA, 8/12/16]
TRUMP ON PROTESTERS:
Go home to mommy. Go home. And do you know the nice part, her mother is voting for Donald Trump. [Altoona, PA, 8/12/16]
TRUMP ON BEING IN PENNSYLVANIA:
I want to get the hell out of here, I want to go home. [Altoona, PA, 8/12/16]
Not!
Just three days after his latest campaign “reset,” Trump delivered another low-energy, meandering, off-message speech (complete with charts and graphs) in which he accused President Obama and Hillary Clinton of founding ISIS and claimed that Clinton is ISIS’ “most valuable player.” The speech went downhill from there. Trump went on to lie about this past support for the Iraq War, his positive poll numbers and the unemployment rate (according to Trump it is over 20 percent.)
The crowd’s reaction? Very little applause and lots of very awkward silences.
]]>Tonight’s performance is another example that Donald Trump is dangerous, dishonest and unfit to be president.
“STUPID BOARDS”
]]>TRUMP’S LIE: “If you are a foreign power looking to weaken America, you could not do better than Hillary Clinton’s economic agenda.”
THE TRUTH:
Hillary Clinton’s new spending would be mostly offset by new revenues and would have a negligible effect on the national debt, while Donald Trump’s would send it “soaring.” “Clinton proposes $1.45 trillion in new spending, but it would be mostly offset by new revenues. The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, which pushes for reducing the national debt, concluded that Donald Trump’s tax and budget proposals would send the national debt soaring over the next 10 years — by another $11.5 trillion — while Clinton’s proposals would have a negligible effect. The group said neither candidate had offered a plan to reduce the national debt, but Trump’s plans would add significantly more debt than Clinton. The group says that under Clinton’s plans, the national debt — now 75 percent of the gross domestic product — would reach 87 percent of the gross domestic product by 2026. By contrast, the national debt would reach 127 percent of GDP under Trump’s proposals.”
No worries, Donald, you’re still set to win the Gold Medal in lying — big league!
USA! USA! RIGHT?:
We don’t win in virtually every category.
GUILTY BY ASSOCIATION:
Where’s my vet?
Trump just called out at his NH rally to ‘my vet’ Al Baldasaro, the one who said Hillary Clinton should be shot for treason.
— Michael Finnegan (@finneganLAT) August 7, 2016
DEPARTMENT OF THINGS YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE TO REASSURE VOTERS ABOUT:
I’ll be the last one to use nuclear, believe me.
LIE
“[Hillary Clinton] has put all of us at great, great risk with what she’s done, while supporting economic policies that have destroyed our economy.”
THE TRUTH
CNN Money: “Strong: U.S. economy adds 255,000 jobs in July.” “The U.S. economy added 255,000 jobs in July and the unemployment rate remained at 4.9%. It far surpassed expectations of economists surveyed by CNNMoney, who had predicted a gain of 182,000 jobs.
‘Employment growth remains strong,’ says Jim O’Sullivan, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, a research firm.
Politico: Many economists say Donald Trump’s proposals — from big import tariffs to mass deportations — would hurt the very demographic that supports him in the greatest numbers: less educated voters struggling in a tepid U.S. economy. If Trump policies actually went into effect, these economists say, prices for goods lower-income Americans depend on could soar and a depleted low-end labor force could trigger a major downturn.
LIE
“I’m the one who didn’t want to go into Iraq.”
THE TRUTH
PolitiFact rated Trump’s claim he opposed the Iraq War “even before the war started” as “False.” “On the Iraq War, Trump said, ‘I was among the earliest to criticize the rush to war, and yes, even before the war ever started.’ The record just doesn’t support this. We could only find one example of Trump commenting on the Iraq War before the invasion where he seemed apprehensive but not vehemently opposed to the operation. In another interview, Trump said he supported the invasion. This claim rates False.
LIE
“Every American family should be alarmed that her plan leaves their children vulnerable to drug cartels that control the Mexican border.”
THE TRUTH
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump “continues to assert that crime is spiking because of illegal immigration… but this claim remains unsupported.” “Trump’s wild rhetoric over deporting all unauthorized immigrants for bringing crimes like murder into the U.S. underscores a common public misperception that violent crime is correlated with immigration, especially illegal immigration. He continues to assert that crime is spiking because of illegal immigration, this time in California, but this claim remains unsupported. Clearly, there are plenty of isolated incidents where an innocent American was killed by a known criminal who was in the country illegally. But let’s put this problem into perspective. In 2014, Americans were 159 times more likely to die from falling, 15 times more likely to die from auto accidents involving distracted drivers and four times more likely to die from injuries from a construction job than an undocumented immigrant was to be convicted of homicide, then released.
Wednesday, July 27
5:43 a.m. ET: TRUMP FALSELY CLAIMS, AGAIN, THAT PUTIN CALLED HIM A GENIUS
COVERAGE
11:27 a.m. ET: TRUMP ORDERS NBC’S KATY TUR TO “BE QUIET”
GENERAL TRUMP COVERAGE
7:08 a.m. ET: KILMEADE INTERVIEW: TRUMP DENIES MOCKING DISABLED REPORTER
11:15 a.m. ET: DONALD TRUMP JR. CLAIMS POTUS PLAGIARIZED SPEECH, FOLLOWING MELANIA’S SPEECH DISASTER
4:50 p.m. ET: AFTER BEING SAVED BY FIRE DEPT, TRUMP BASHES HONORED FIRE MARSHAL FOR DOING HIS JOB
COVERAGE
5:31 p.m. ET: TRUMP “AGREE[S]” WITH “LOCK HER UP” CHANT
9:33 p.m. ET: TRUMP ATTACKS GENERAL ALLEN, CALLS HIM A “FAILED GENERAL”
11:24 p.m. ET: MAUREEN DOWD COLUMN POSTED, IN WHICH TRUMP ATTACKS GHAZALA KHAN FOR NOT SPEAKING DURING THE DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION
12:08 a.m. ET: TRUMP INTERVIEW WITH 9NEWS DENVER RELEASED, IN WHICH HE LIES ABOUT PUTIN RELATIONSHIP
7:36 p.m. ET: PART OF TRUMP INTERVIEW WITH ABC NEWS’ GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS LEAKED, IN WHICH TRUMP SAYS GHAZALA KHAN WAS NOT ALLOWED TO SPEAK AT DNC
COVERAGE
9:01 a.m. ET: IN ABC NEWS INTERVIEW, TRUMP REVEALS HE DIDN’T KNOW RUSSIA ANNEXED CRIMEA AND DEFENDS PUTIN’S INVASION OF UKRAINE
COVERAGE
9:01 a.m. ET: IN ABC NEWS INTERVIEW, TRUMP ONCE AGAIN SAYS HE WILL ONLY SUPPORT NATO ALLIES WHO ARE “PAYING”
9:52 p.m. ET: NEW YORK TIMES REPORTS THAT TRUMP CAMPAIGN MANAGER MAY STILL BE ON PAYROLL OF KREMLIN-BACKED UKRAINIAN POLITICIANS
7:10 a.m. ET: TRUMP CLAIMS KHIZR KHAN “VICIOUSLY ATTACKED” HIM
7:32 a.m. ET: FORMER TRUMP CAMPAIGN MANAGER COREY LEWANDOWSKI SAYS CAPTAIN KHAN WOULD BE ALIVE IF TRUMP WAS PRESIDENT
12:36 p.m. ET: VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS RELEASES STATEMENT CONDEMNING TRUMP
12:31 p.m. ET – JEB BUSH ADVISER SALLY BRADSHAW LEAVES GOP, MAY BACK CLINTON
3:19 p.m. ET: TRUMP GOES AFTER ANOTHER FIRE MARSHAL
3:45 p.m. ET: TRUMP SAYS THE AMERICAN DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM IS “RIGGED”
COVERAGE
8:25 p.m. ET: TRUMP CALLS HILLARY CLINTON THE “DEVIL”
COVERAGE
7:12 a.m. ET: ERIC TRUMP LIES ABOUT FATHER’S APOLOGY TO KHAN FAMILY AND POSITIONS ON IRAQ AND LIBYA
7:56 a.m. ET: SITTING REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMAN RICHARD HANNA BACKS HILLARY CLINTON FOR PRESIDENT
8:39 a.m. ET: FORMER CHRIS CHRISTIE AIDE MARIA COMELLA BACKS HILLARY CLINTON FOR PRESIDENT
9:47 a.m. ET: DURING FOX BUSINESS INTERVIEW, TRUMP SUGGESTS AMERICANS PULL THEIR 401(k) FUNDS OUT OF THE STOCK MARKET
COVERAGE
11:29 a.m. ET: TRUMP SAYS HE LIKES GETTING A PURPLE HEART JUST HANDED TO HIM, THE “EASIER WAY”
COVERAGE
12:07 p.m. ET: TRUMP KICKS BABY OUT OF RALLY
COVERAGE
3:57 p.m. ET: TRUMP SAYS “I DON’T REGRET ANYTHING” REGARDING HIS CLASH WITH THE GOLD STAR KHAN FAMILY
COVERAGE
4:30 p.m. ET: WASHINGTON POST STORY BREAKS IN WHICH TRUMP REFUSES TO ENDORSE PAUL RYAN, JOHN MCCAIN, OR KELLY AYOTTE
4:55 p.m. ET: TRUMP CAMPAIGN VETERAN CO-CHAIR AL BALDASARO SAYS KHIZR KHAN “DISGRACED” HIS SON
6:31 p.m. ET: TRUMP CAMPAIGN SPOKESPERSON KATRINA PIERSON SUGGESTED THAT OBAMA AND CLINTON ARE TO BLAME FOR THE DEATH OF HUMAYUN KHAN, WHO DIED IN 2004
COVERAGE
8:06 p.m. ET: JUDGE LETS TRUMP U FRAUD CASE AGAINST DONALD TRUMP PROCEED
COVERAGE
8:30 p.m. ET: ALLY OF CAMPAIGN MANAGER PAUL MANAFORT TELLS CNBC THAT MANAFORT IS “MAILING IT IN” AND THE REST OF THE STAFF IS “SUICIDAL.”
9:44 p.m. ET – WASHINGTON POST RELEASES TRANSCRIPT OF TRUMP INTERVIEW, REVEALED TRUMP PAUSED FIVE TIMES TO WATCH TV IN THE MIDDLE OF HIS INTERVIEW
10:29 p.m. ET: MEG WHITMAN CALLS TRUMP A “DEMAGOGUE,” SUPPORTS HILLARY CLINTON FOR PRESIDENT
10:50 p.m. ET: FORMER TRUMP CAMPAIGN MANAGER COREY LEWANDOWSKI PUSHES TRUMP’S OBAMA BIRTHER CONSPIRACY
FACT CHECKS
GENERAL TRUMP COVERAGE
Wednesday, August 3
3:17 a.m. ET: REINCE PRIEBUS IS “APOPLECTIC” OVER TRUMP
8:53 a.m. ET: GOP OFFICIALS PREPARE FOR AN INTERVENTION WITH TRUMP
9:11 a.m. ET: TRUMP STAFFERS FRUSTRATED BY TRUMP
9:19 a.m. ET: FORMER TOP GINGRICH ALLY VIN WEBER CALLS GOP NOMINATION OF TRUMP “MISTAKE OF HISTORIC PROPORTIONS”
1:12 p.m. ET: TRUMP SURROGATE BEN CARSON SAYS THE KHAN FAMILY SHOULD APOLOGIZE TO TRUMP
1:15 p.m. ET: GOP VP NOMINEE MIKE PENCE BREAKS WITH TRUMP, ENDORSES PAUL RYAN
2:26 p.m. ET: ANNOUNCEMENT BREAKS THAT TRUMP TAJ MAJAL WILL CLOSE AFTER LABOR DAY
4:04 p.m. ET: DURING RALLY, TRUMP SAYS HILLARY CLINTON FOUNDED ISIS, SHOULD GET AN AWARD
4:09 P.M. ET: TRUMP LIES ABOUT SEEING FOOTAGE OF A $400 MILLION MONEY TRANSFER TO IRAN
5:03 p.m. ET: TRUMP PUSHES RIGGED ELECTION CLAIMS, FEARMONGERS CROWD OVER VOTER FRAUD
8:22 p.m. ET: IN INTERVIEW TO WPEC12, TRUMP THINKS RICK SCOTT HAS ZIKA EPIDEMIC UNDER CONTROL IN FLORIDA
GENERAL TRUMP COVERAGE
Thursday, August 4
11:33 a.m. ET: TRUMP KEEPS LYING ABOUT SEEING AN IRANIAN PROPAGANDA VIDEO
3:22 p.m. ET: Vets take to Capitol Hill to demand Republicans unendorse Trump
7:01 p.m. ET: Pence betrays running mate’s hesitation, endorses McCain and Ayotte
FACT CHECKS
GENERAL COVERAGE
Friday, August 5
6:39 a.m. ET: TRUMP FINALLY ADMITS HE WAS LYING ABOUT SUPPOSED HOSTAGE FOOTAGE FROM IRAN
7:13 a.m. ET: FORMER CIA DIRECTOR ENDORSES HILLARY CLINTON, DENOUNCED DONALD TRUMP AS “AN UNWITTING AGENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION”
7:40 a.m. ET: TRUMP CAMPAIGN ANNOUNCES ALL-MALE ECONOMIC ADVISORY TEAM
4:28 p.m. ET: TRUMP RE-LITIGATES THROWING CRYING BABY OUT OF HIS RALLY, SAYS HE IS GOING TO TRAIN IT TO BECOME PAVAROTTI
4:49 p.m. ET: TRUMP SAYS THAT IF HE WERE PRESIDENT, JAPAN MAY “HAVE TO DEFEND ITSELF AGAINST NORTH KOREA”
GENERAL TRUMP COVERAGE
FACT CHECKS
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