Texas Sen. Ted Cruz became the first major Republican candidate to declare himself officially in the 2016 presidential race. In announcing his presidential ambition, Cruz repeated a number of dubious claims we have heard before, and a few we haven’t.
President Obama made some exaggerated claims during a recent speech in Cleveland about the Affordable Care Act and the House Republican proposal for Medicare.
Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry said he “never raised taxes” in his 14 years as governor of the state. That’s not the case. During his tenure, he increased taxes on businesses, cigarettes, fireworks, diesel equipment and insurance.
Secretary of State John Kerry and Sen. Tom Cotton each claimed the other distorted the facts regarding the role of Congress in a possible international deal on Iran’s nuclear program.
Sen. Ted Cruz has repeatedly gotten basic facts about the Internal Revenue Service wrong when delivering one of his favorite applause lines, calling for its abolition.
Hillary Clinton says neither the federal government nor an independent third party has the right to review emails she sent as secretary of state if she deems them personal. That’s inaccurate.
Republicans have tried to temper the latest jobs report by noting that the labor force participation rate has continued to decline. But in at least two instances, the claims have gone too far.
President Obama said he first learned “through news reports” that Hillary Clinton used a private email system when she was his secretary of state. But it turns out he did know she used a private email address, at least for some official business.
Ben Carson claimed that being gay is “absolutely” a choice, and as proof he said “a lot of people” go into prison and change their sexual orientation while incarcerated. There is no evidence to support these claims.
Rick Perry said carbon dioxide emissions in Texas were down because of “incentive-based regulation” during his time as governor. But the evidence shows a decline in manufacturing jobs and federal policies are more likely to be the cause of the reduction.