Our post-election plans: Regroup, redesign, refocus. We’ll improve our coverage for 2005 and beyond.
FactCheck Posts
The Whoppers of 2004
Bush and Kerry repeat discredited claims in their final flurry of ads. Here’s our pre-election summary of the misinformation we found during the Bush-Kerry presidential campaign.
NRA Ad Falsely Accuses Kerry
It says he’s sponsoring a proposal to ban “every pump shotgun” and voted “to ban deer-hunting ammunition.” Don’t believe either claim.
Kerry and Bush Mislead Voters With Promises of Energy Independence
Summary
Both John Kerry and President Bush have promised voters that they will make America “energy independent.” But experts say both sides fall far short of what is necessary for energy independence in the next few decades.
Kerry focuses on conservation efforts, but most agree his plan is little more than an outline. Bush supports expanded drilling in Alaska to increase domestic oil supply, but the US has only about 3 percent of the world’s oil reserves.
Media Fund Twists the Truth More Than Michael Moore
Radio ad claims most air traffic was grounded when bin Laden’s family was allowed to leave. Not true. In fact, the FBI questioned 22 of them and found no links to terrorism.
Would Kerry Throw Us To The Wolves?
A misleading Bush ad criticizes Kerry for proposing to cut intelligence spending — a decade ago, by 4%, when some Republicans also proposed cuts.
An Avalanche of Misinformation
With election day approaching the tempo of ads is increasing, but not the level of factual accuracy. Both sides are making false or misleading claims in their ads.
$8 Million Worth Of Distortions
Two Bush ads full of misleading and false statements ran more than 9,000 times in 45 cities last week.
How Liberal is John Kerry?
A new RNC ad claims Kerry is “the most liberal man in the Senate.” Actually, his lifetime rating is 11th or lower, depending.
Kerry Falsely Claims Bush Plans To Cut Social Security Benefits
A Kerry ad claims “Bush has a plan to cut Social Security benefits by 30 to 45 percent.” That’s false. Bush has proposed no such plan, and the proposal Kerry refers to would only slow down the growth of benefits, and only for future retirees.