Facebook Twitter Tumblr Close Skip to main content
A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

FactChecking Santorum

Next up in our occasional look at past misstatements by presidential candidates: Rick Santorum. The former Pennsylvania senator announced his candidacy today. We have checked just a few claims from Santorum, who served in the Senate from 1995 to 2007.

He wrongly claimed in March that "one in three pregnancies end in abortion" in the United States when saying that abortion was to blame for funding problems for Social Security and Medicare. Santorum said on a radio talk show: "The reason Social Security is in big trouble is we don’t have enough workers to support the retirees.

Planned Parenthood

Q: How much of Planned Parenthood’s services are dedicated to abortions? Does the federal government fund those procedures?
A: Abortions represent 3 percent of total services provided by Planned Parenthood, and roughly 10 percent of its clients received an abortion. The group does receive federal funding, but the money cannot be used for abortions by law.

Santorum Wrong on Abortion, Birth Facts

Rick Santorum incorrectly stated that “one in three pregnancies end in abortion” in the United States. It’s actually fewer than one in four.
Santorum appeared on a New Hampshire radio talk show, blaming abortions for “causing Social Security and Medicare to be underfunded.” But he not only misstated the abortion statistic, he also got it wrong when he said that “our birthrate is now below replacement rate for the first time in our history.” The total fertility rate,

Health Care Spin — Again

As the election draws near, some conservative groups are making ever-wilder claims about the new health care law: An elderly man in a Crossroads GPS ad makes the death-panel-esque claim that the law “threatens our lives.” The 60 Plus Association …

Rep. Grayson Lowers the Bar

We thought Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson of Florida reached a low point when he falsely accused his opponent of being a draft dodger during the Vietnam War, and of not loving his country. But now Grayson has lowered the bar . . .

Reid, Angle Trade Familiar Charges

In Nevada’s Senate race, Republican Sharron Angle and Democrat Harry Reid began airing new commercials Aug. 26. Angle’s attack ad pictures Reid in a "love triangle" with President Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and repeats some familiar but misleading claims.
Like Angle’s, Reid’s ad covers familiar ground. All of its claims are rooted in true statements or proposals. But Reid goes too far in one case. Angle did not say that "Medicare and Social Security violate the Ten Commandments."

Misleading Attack on Binnie in N.H. Senate Race

An attack ad goes too far when accusing GOP Senate candidate Bill Binnie in New Hampshire of supporting abortion rights "to avoid the expense of disabled children," and claiming Binnie is "excited about imposing gay marriage" on the state. These and other charges in the ad are rooted in true statements, but taken out of context.

Pro-choice to Avoid ‘Expense of Disabled Children’?
The ad is sponsored by the National Organization for Marriage, in cooperation with Cornerstone Action,

Taxpayer-funded Abortions in High Risk Pools

Q: Will all legal abortions be covered by federally subsidized health insurance policies in state "high-risk pools"?
A: No. The Department of Health and Human Services says the only abortions covered will be those in cases of rape, incest or when the mother’s life is endangered.

A False Attack on a Palin-backed “Mama Grizzly”

One of Sarah Palin’s annointed "Mama Grizzlies" is under attack in Georgia — for not being conservative enough to suit Republican primary voters. But we find the attack is misleading and makes false claims.
In the race to be governor of Georgia, the Palin-backed candidate is Secretary of State Karen Handel. One of her main opponents in the July 20 GOP primary is Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine. His ad claims that as a Fulton County commissioner Handel presided over spending that "skyrocketed,"

Jerry Brown, Abortion Providers and Afghanistan Withdrawal

In Episode 19 of FactCheck Radio, we look at a false ad from California GOP gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman about her Democratic opponent Jerry Brown’s supposed "legacy of failure." We also examine whether Bill McCollum has really supported abortion providers, as his opponent charges in the Republican primary for the Florida governor’s contest. And we go back to what Obama really did say about the plans for U.S. troops in Afghanistan in July 2011.

For more on the stories discussed in this episode,