Former President Barack Obama stood up for a free press in his first political speech of the 2018 campaign season, but he engaged in a bit of revisionist history when it came to his administration’s dealings with Fox News.
Former President Barack Obama claimed that Republicans’ “sabotage of the Affordable Care Act has already cost more than 3 million Americans their health insurance.” That’s according to one estimate, but another found no significant change in the rate or the number of uninsured from 2016 to 2017.
In a pair of tweets, President Donald Trump pushed back at former President Barack Obama for taking partial credit for the post-recession economic recovery. But, in doing so, Trump got the facts wrong.
Q: Have the “feds bust[ed] Barack Obama” on felony charges?
A: No. That claim is based on the false assertion that the former president committed treason in his last few months in office.
A report issued by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service indicates that while the average time for confirmation is historically high, federal judges appointed by President Trump were confirmed faster than in President Obama’s first year.
Q: Was Attorney General Jeff Sessions “caught colluding” with Barack Obama on the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election?
A: No. That’s the headline on a story critical of Sessions for recusing himself from the Russia probe. But there is no evidence of such collusion.
Q: Did former President Barack Obama create a “security company” that’s a secret “military” organization?
A: There are no records of Obama starting a “security company” in the city and states cited by a viral claim.
Q: Did former President Barack Obama announce he’s seeking the U.N. secretary general position?
A: No. There was no announcement. Obama’s office has said a story claiming otherwise is false.
Q: Did the Obama administration legalize “bump stocks” for semiautomatic rifles?
A: No federal law explicitly addresses “bump stocks.” The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ruled 10 times between 2008 and 2017 that certain models could not be prohibited under existing gun laws.
Q: Is the White House enraged because Barack Obama, and not President Trump, was invited to the upcoming wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle?
A: The guest list has not been made public, and there’s no evidence that Obama was invited and Trump wasn’t.