Q: Did President Barack Obama immediately fire all Bush-appointed ambassadors “the day he was elected office”?
A: No. As is the custom, Obama immediately replaced most — not all — of Bush’s politically appointed ambassadors. Obama did not remove any of the career appointees to ambassadorships.
President Donald Trump rattled off several false claims in his Nov. 12 speech to the Economic Club of New York, in which he contrasted the supposedly “bleak” outlook at the end of his predecessor’s term with an exaggerated portrayal of the economy’s strong performance during his own tenure.
Various memes circulating online falsely claim that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Islamic State leader who recently died after a U.S. raid, had been released from U.S. military custody under President Barack Obama. He was actually released in 2004, under President George W. Bush.
For more than an hour, President Donald Trump presided over a cabinet meeting, reeling off numerous false or misleading claims.
Social media posts falsely claim that former President Barack Obama signed a bill that made it permissible for “the media” to get “away with lying.” The bill had no bearing on private media outlets or what they can report.
A viral social media post falsely claims that former President Barack Obama “separated” many more children at the border than President Donald Trump.
A headline circulating on partisan websites distorts former President Barack Obama’s tweet advocating stricter gun laws in the wake of the most recent mass shootings.
A social media post misleadingly claims that Republicans “voted to allow people with pre-existing mental illness to buy firearms.” The measure blocked the Social Security Administration from reporting to the U.S. background check system some disability beneficiaries who are unable to manage their finances. Federal law still prohibits people with certain conditions from buying guns.
A meme on Facebook falsely claims that Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings “wrote a bill to keep all of Obama’s record sealed.” That distorts bipartisan legislation dealing with the federal records of all presidents that Cummings introduced, which became law in 2014.
Social media posts claim some well-known Democrats are “fraudulent and corrupt” for not using “their real names.” But in some cases, the posts refer to them by an incorrect name, a nickname, a middle name or a maiden name.