Two potential Republican candidates for president distorted the facts about climate change and casually dismissed well-established threats and potential solutions.
Distorting Climate Change Threats, Solutions
FactChecking Science-based Claims
Today we introduce a new feature and welcome a new staff writer to FactCheck.org.
Rand Paul Exaggerates Tax Credit Fraud
Sen. Paul falsely claimed that a tax credit program for low-income workers has a “fraud rate” of 25 percent and costs taxpayers “$20 billion to $30 billion.” Paul cited a report by the Government Accountability Office, but that’s not what the report said.
Romney’s Poverty Points
Mitt Romney said that under President Obama “there are more people in poverty in America than ever before.” That’s true, but the poverty rate — which accounts for population changes — was higher under several former presidents than it is currently.
FactChecking the GOP Responses
There were multiple official and unofficial Republican responses to President Obama’s State of the Union address, but only a few instances of the president’s critics stretching the facts.
A Tale of Two Jobs Numbers
Rick Perry, in his last official speech as Texas governor, mixed and matched jobs data to embellish the state’s job gains.
Scott Walker’s Education Boast
Gov. Scott Walker says his state’s “ACT scores are up and Wisconsin now ranks second in the country.” But scores are not up, and the state’s national ranking is misleading.
Unspinning Christie’s State of the State
In his State of the State address, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie exaggerated some figures and boasted about progress that doesn’t look so impressive when compared with national trends.
Competing Keystone Claims
Two senators on opposite sides of the Keystone XL pipeline debate are selectively spinning the facts to make their case.
Detaining and Interrogating Terror Suspects
Sen. Lindsey Graham went too far with his claim that the Obama administration has a policy of “not interrogating or detaining terrorist suspects anymore.”