The debt-strapped Clinton campaign is appealing for money with an e-mail telling potential donors that polls “consistently” show she would beat McCain in November, and that she’s leading Obama in the popular vote. We find both claims are misleading. A number of recent polls actually show Clinton tied with McCain, or even trailing. For most of 2008, polls have shown McCain ahead.
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Nonsense in New Mexico
Rep. Steve Pearce’s campaign and an independent anti-abortion group both have attacked Rep. Heather Wilson in the hotly contested race to be the Republican nominee for an open New Mexico Senate seat. But Pearce and the group run afoul of the facts. A mailer from Pearce claims that Wilson “voted for cloning that would create human embryos specifically to be destroyed for scientific research.” Actually, she voted to make it illegal to clone humans for reproductive purposes; the bill did not address embryos to be used for research, as anti-abortion groups wanted. It’s simply false to say she voted for som
Garden State Growth
Summary
The presidential candidates aren't the only ones with election woes. New Jersey's Democratic Senate primary is slated for June 3, and both incumbent Sen. Frank Lautenberg and his challenger, U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, are letting loose:
An Andrews ad claims an editorial described Lautenberg as "doing nothing" in the midst of rising oil and food prices. The editorial actually hauls the entire New Jersey congressional delegation– including Andrews – on the carpet for not bringing enough of New Jersey residents'
The Budget According to McCain: Part II
In our last installment we looked at McCain’s pronouncements on spending cuts to help balance the budget. In Part II, we examine what he’s said on a subject that might be more pleasing to many Americans: lowering taxes. We found exaggerations and distortions here, as well.
The Budget According to McCain: Part I
McCain’s big promise is that he can balance the budget while extending Bush’s tax cuts and adding a few of his own. He likes to leave the impression that this can be done painlessly, for example, by eliminating “wasteful” spending in the form of “earmarks” that lawmakers like to tuck into spending bills to finance home-state projects. We found that not only is this theory full of holes, it’s not even McCain’s actual plan. In this story we examine the spending-cut side of McCain’s budget program. In Part II, we’ll look at what McCain has said about taxes.
Mudslinging in Mississippi
Accuracy apparently hasn’t been the top priority of the groups flinging ads onto the airwaves in Mississippi’s 1st congressional district, where voters will pick a new House member in a special election on Tuesday. Here’s what we found in this preview of the tone and types of tactics we might expect to see in other races later this year
FactCheck Wins Three Webby Awards
FactCheck.org sweeps both the Webby Award and People’s Voice Webby Award in the politics category. FactCheckED.org wins the People’s Voice Webby Award in the education category.
Gunning for Obama
A mailer sent from Clinton’s campaign to the homes of selected Indiana voters just before the Democratic primary goes after Obama for allegedly shifting his position on guns to suit his audience. The mailer’s not outright wrong in any of its statements. But the facts muddy the picture.
Running on Fumes
Summary
Late-inning ads by both Clinton and Obama in the run-up to the Democratic primaries in Indiana and North Carolina focus on Clinton’s gas tax holiday proposal. But the ads are also misleading.
Clinton’s ad claims motorists would save $8 billion during her summer "holiday," not mentioning that no economists agree with her. She herself didn’t name one when asked in a weekend tv interview.
Obama’s ad accuses Clinton of "pandering" to voters, then ticks through the elements of his plan —
Gas Price Fixes That Won’t
Hillary Clinton and John McCain are offering overburdened motorists a federal “gasoline tax holiday.” But economists say that the proposal is unlikely to actually lower the price of gasoline. McCain’s plan would essentially give federal funds to oil refineries, while the net effect of Clinton’s plan probably wouldn’t be much at all, although it would create a lot of new administrative work.