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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Biden’s Campaign-Style Distortions

Biden’s Campaign-Style Distortions

As the midterm elections draw near, President Joe Biden has delivered campaign-style speeches that misstated statistics on the COVID-19 pandemic, may leave the wrong impression that police officers were killed during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, and overstated the impact of the Affordable Care Act.

U.S. Inflation Rate at ‘Zero’ — for One Month

U.S. Inflation Rate at ‘Zero’ — for One Month

For the month of July, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Customers was unchanged from June. This has triggered a war of words between Democrats, who crow about “zero percent inflation” for July, and Republicans, who say the Democrats are now trying to “deny there’s inflation.” Both have a point.

Stacey Abrams on Violent Crime, Defunding the Police

Stacey Abrams on Violent Crime, Defunding the Police

Stacey Abrams, who faces Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp in a rematch this fall, correctly accused Kemp’s TV ad makers of “conveniently” editing her comments about defunding the police, but she falsely claimed that the state’s violent crimes went up 55% in 2020. The actual increase was 5%.

Democratic Congressman Exaggerates Number of Gun ‘Massacres’

Democratic Congressman Exaggerates Number of Gun ‘Massacres’

In discussing a bipartisan Senate proposal to address gun violence, Rep. Jamie Raskin exaggerated when he said there have been “more massacres than days in 2022.” Using the source supplied by the congressman’s office, guns were used in 14 “mass murders” so far this year.

Trump Ignored Aides, Repeated False Fraud Claims

Trump Ignored Aides, Repeated False Fraud Claims

At the second hearing of the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, former President Donald Trump’s top aides testified that they told him his claims of election fraud were baseless. What Trump characterized as “fraud” was just part of the “normal process,” as former Attorney General William Barr said in one instance.

Republican TV Ad Makes False Claim About ‘Dead’ Voters

Republican TV Ad Makes False Claim About ‘Dead’ Voters

An illegal ballot cast on behalf of a deceased voter is rare, and we could find no examples of it occurring in Michigan in 2020 or 2016. Yet, a Republican gubernatorial candidate in Michigan falsely claims in a TV ad that “dead people always vote Democrat,” and misleadingly suggests it is a widespread problem in his state.

Q&A on Biden’s Gun Proposals

Q&A on Biden’s Gun Proposals

In a prime-time speech to the nation, President Joe Biden spoke about gun violence and his proposals to reduce it. Here, we answer common questions about some of the statistics the president cited and actions he proposed.