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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Sorting Out the Facts on ‘Waste and Abuse’ at USAID

Sorting Out the Facts on ‘Waste and Abuse’ at USAID

As President Donald Trump’s administration targets the U.S. Agency for International Development for closure or major downsizing, the White House and social media posts have highlighted four projects as examples of the agency’s “waste and abuse.” But only one was funded by USAID.

Trump Wrong About U.S. Rank in Education Spending and Outcomes

Trump Wrong About U.S. Rank in Education Spending and Outcomes

As justification for dismantling the federal Department of Education, President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that U.S. schools are “ranked 40 out of 40” in educational outcomes compared with other countries, while the U.S. “ranked No. 1 in cost per pupil.” Neither claim is accurate.

TikTok and U.S. National Security

TikTok and U.S. National Security

In his first term, President Donald Trump tried to force TikTok’s parent company to sell its popular app or cease operating in the U.S. But in his return to the Oval Office, Trump delayed enforcement of a law that would have forced TikTok to shut down. We’ll summarize the facts about TikTok and the national security concerns about it in the U.S.

Illegal Immigration and Fentanyl at the U.S. Northern and Southwest Borders

Illegal Immigration and Fentanyl at the U.S. Northern and Southwest Borders

In recent remarks to the press, President Donald Trump restated his intention to impose 25% tariffs on U.S. imports from Mexico and Canada as early as Feb. 1. His reasoning: “vast” illegal immigration and “massive” amounts of fentanyl coming to the U.S. from those countries. But Trump drew a false equivalence between the two countries. In fact, the magnitude of the difference is enormous.

Viral Claim Falsely Suggests Trump Ended Violence in Gaza

Viral Claim Falsely Suggests Trump Ended Violence in Gaza

Attacks by Israeli forces and Hamas continue to kill or displace people in the Gaza Strip. But social media posts misleadingly claim Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election led Hamas to call for an end to the war in Gaza. Hamas has called for a ceasefire several times before the election. And the violence has continued since Election Day.

Trump’s Agenda: Tariffs

Trump’s Agenda: Tariffs

While campaigning for a second term in office, President-elect Donald Trump declared “tariff” to be his “favorite word” and “the most beautiful word in the dictionary.” We’ll explain how tariffs work, what Trump has proposed and what experts say about it, and what happened during Trump’s first term.

Posts Sharing Mpox Misinformation Recycle Claims from Prior Viral Outbreaks

Posts Sharing Mpox Misinformation Recycle Claims from Prior Viral Outbreaks

Responding to rising mpox cases in Africa, the World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern on Aug. 14. Social media posts subsequently repeated a plethora of false or baseless claims, including that COVID-19 vaccines cause the viral disease or that the current outbreak is part of a global conspiracy.

Trump’s False Claim That Harris Met with Putin

Trump’s False Claim That Harris Met with Putin

In February 2022, Vice President Kamala Harris attended an annual security conference in Germany to talk with European leaders about Russian aggression toward Ukraine and other world topics. She didn’t go to Russia, and there is no evidence she met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, contrary to an unsupported claim made by former President Donald Trump.

Trump TV Ad Repeats False ‘Border Czar,’ Illegal Immigration Claims

Trump TV Ad Repeats False ‘Border Czar,’ Illegal Immigration Claims

Former President Donald Trump’s campaign has launched a new general election ad that falsely labels Vice President Kamala Harris the “border czar” and falsely suggests that 10 million people illegally crossed the southern border on her watch and are still “here.”