President Joe Biden and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg overstated the impact of the bipartisan, Senate-approved infrastructure bill on job creation, citing instead an economic forecast that includes the much larger and partisan “human infrastructure” bill.
Month: August 2021
Post Offers Misleading Advice on Mandatory Vaccines and Unemployment Benefits
As some companies mandate COVID-19 vaccines for employees, a social media post misleadingly tells workers who don’t want the vaccine that they can collect unemployment benefits if they are fired. In most states, workers fired for violating company policy aimed at workplace safety are not entitled to unemployment benefits.
Posts Show Manipulated Image of T-Shirt Held by DeSantis
A manipulated image online shows Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis holding a T-shirt reading, “Your mask is as useless as Joe Biden.” DeSantis and the White House have sparred, including on the issue of masks, but the original photo is from 2019 and actually shows DeSantis holding a Popeyes restaurant shirt.
Indiana Doctor Piles On Bogus COVID-19 Claims in Viral Video
In a viral video, an Indiana physician baselessly claimed that the COVID-19 vaccines, which have been shown to be safe and effective, “fight the virus wrong and let the virus become worse than it would with native infection.” He also incorrectly said no vaccine prevents infection and contended that people previously infected with COVID-19 do not benefit from vaccination, despite studies that suggest otherwise.
Video: Irish Professor Makes Unfounded Claims About Long-Term Effects of mRNA Vaccines
Tax Credit for Plug-in Electric Vehicles Still Available for Certain Models
Dozens of electric cars and trucks still qualify for a federal tax credit of up to $7,500 for buyers purchasing new plug-in electric vehicles. President Joe Biden misleadingly claimed that the Trump administration allowed the tax credit to expire, which, so far, is only the case for purchases of models made by Tesla and General Motors.
Pfizer CEO Got the COVID-19 Vaccine
The CEO of Pfizer posted a photo of himself getting the second shot of the COVID-19 vaccine on March 10. But an Aug. 5 tweet from Newsmax reporter Emerald Robinson misleadingly suggested he isn’t vaccinated. She updated the tweet hours later, acknowledging the CEO’s post — but after her claim had spread, uncorrected, on other social media.
Posts Misinterpret CDC’s Provincetown COVID-19 Outbreak Report
Social media posts are misinterpreting the results of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report, which found 74% of people in a COVID-19 outbreak were vaccinated, to argue against immunization. But experts say the statistic is misleading without more context — and doesn’t mean that the vaccines don’t work.