No shortage of tall tales in the midterm elections, from both parties.
2014 Campaign Whoppers
Person: Mitch McConnell
Grimes Ad Misses the Mark on McConnell
Thought you’d seen it all this political season? An ad from Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes criticizes Sen. Mitch McConnell for his vote on a bill that President Obama praised, and even thanked McConnell by name for supporting.
The Uninsured in Kentucky
Sen. Mitch McConnell and Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes disagreed at their Oct. 13 debate on how many Kentuckians had gained health insurance through the state exchange.
No Proof of ‘Lying’
Sen. Mitch McConnell claims in a TV ad to have “shocking” video evidence from Alison Lundergan Grimes’ “own staff” to prove “Grimes is lying” about her support for coal. He doesn’t.
Kentucky Coal Connections
In an interesting twist, Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell is under fire from his Democratic opponent, Alison Lundergan Grimes, for “personally” taking “$600,000 from anti-coal groups.” But that’s a huge stretch.
NRA’s Ominous But Misleading Appeal
A series of NRA ads employ images of an intruder breaking into the home of a mother home alone with her baby to make the case that Democratic candidates have “voted to take away your gun rights.” But the implication of the jarring imagery goes far beyond the facts.
FactChecking the Kentucky Senate Race
Kentucky voters have a stark choice between Republican incumbent Mitch McConnell and Democratic challenger Alison Lundergan Grimes. Their fierce battle has included falsehoods on jobs, coal and health care.
Playing Politics with Violence Against Women
An ad from Alison Lundergan Grimes knocks Sen. Mitch McConnell for voting “two times against the Violence Against Women Act” — evidence, Grimes concludes, that McConnell has forgotten that “over half the voters in Kentucky are women.”
Parsing McConnell’s Job Description
A laid off coal miner in an Alison Lundergan Grimes TV ad poses a question to Sen. Mitch McConnell: “Why’d you say it’s not your job to bring jobs to Kentucky?” McConnell doesn’t dispute saying it, but he claims that he misunderstood a reporter’s question and his words have been misinterpreted.
Medicare Ghost Stories
Ghost stories are fanciful, frightening tales told to children. But political claims about Medicare cuts are stories used to scare senior citizens. Such distortions are currently on display in the high-profile Kentucky Senate race.