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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Social Media Post Misrepresents Connecticut Ballot Question on Early Voting

Social Media Post Misrepresents Connecticut Ballot Question on Early Voting

A ballot question in Connecticut asks voters if they want to enact early voting. But a social media post falsely claims the proposal would also “remove the requirement of a certified seal from certain ballots.” The measure refers to removing a seal on a list of election results and has nothing to do with ballots.

Solitaire Image is Old, Out of Context

Solitaire Image is Old, Out of Context

An image of elected officials playing a computer card game has gone viral on social media. But the photo is from 2009, and it shows state lawmakers in Connecticut, not members of Congress.

Trump’s Baffling Tweet on Gorsuch

Trump’s Baffling Tweet on Gorsuch

President Donald Trump falsely claimed a Democratic senator “misrepresents” a conversation that the senator had with Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Judge Neil Gorsuch. In fact, Gorsuch’s spokesman confirmed the senator’s account.

DSCC Not Fighting Fair

In Connecticut’s Senate race, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is sponsoring a misleading ad that attacks Republican candidate Linda McMahon.
It says McMahon, the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, "laid off workers, yet took millions in bonuses," and "spent thousands on lobbyists to get millions in tax breaks for herself." McMahon did earn "millions in bonuses." She got a total of $2.4 million spread over several years. But in only one of those years were any workers laid off.

A Mis-tweet from McMahon

Linda McMahon’s U.S. Senate campaign recently used the social networking site Twitter to misrepresent former Rep. Robert Simmons’ position on tax credits for businesses and the dividend tax. McMahon and Simmons are battling in Connecticut to become the GOP nominee for Chris Dodd’s Senate seat.
Shawn McCoy, deputy communications director for the McMahon campaign, tweeted the following on May 11:

@RobSimmons supports hiking the dividends tax and opposes biz tax credits. No wonder CT lost 15,000 jobs while he was biz advocate

But Simmons does support giving tax credits to businesses and extending the Bush tax cuts including the dividend tax,

You’ve Got False Mail

If you live in Connecticut and are a registered Republican, you may have received a mailer or two from former World Wrestling Entertainment CEO Linda McMahon attacking her opponent in the state’s GOP Senate primary, former U.S. Rep. Robert Simmons. But some of the mailers’ claims are false.
In one mailer, McMahon claims Simmons cosponsored cap-and-trade legislation that will “cost the average American family more than $1,700 a year.”

First, Simmons did not, as the mailer implies,