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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

A False Attack on Toomey

A False Attack on Toomey

A Democratic ad falsely accused Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Pat Toomey’s bank of using a “controversial” loan tactic that forced 21 people out of their homes. In fact, only two of them lost houses, and there is no evidence that either home was a primary residence.

Wisconsin Senior Scare

Wisconsin Senior Scare

A Wisconsin Democrat’s ad falsely accuses his opponent of proposing to cut Social Security benefits for two-thirds of seniors. Actually, benefits would go up for the poorest one-third of current beneficiaries, and would be unchanged for most others.

Bogus Drunk Driving Attack in Nevada

Bogus Drunk Driving Attack in Nevada

A misleading Republican attack ad accuses Nevada’s Democratic candidate for Senate of putting “deadly drunk drivers back on the roads.” She didn’t.

Cherry-Picking Toomey’s Votes

Cherry-Picking Toomey’s Votes

A liberal political action committee uses the old trick of cherry-picking votes, making it seem as if Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania chose to give tax breaks to “the super-rich and corporations” instead of funding education.

John McCain’s Life Expectancy

John McCain’s Life Expectancy

Sen. John McCain’s primary opponent implied that if reelected, McCain may not live long enough to fulfill another six-year term. Actually, the odds are in his favor.

Boustany’s Flawed ISIS, Oil Claims

Boustany’s Flawed ISIS, Oil Claims

In a TV ad, Republican Rep. Charles Boustany falsely states that “Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton refuse to declare war on ISIS,” and wrongly suggests that Obama and Clinton “banned oil exports.”

False GOP Theme: ‘Unvetted’ Refugees

False GOP Theme: ‘Unvetted’ Refugees

A common Republican falsehood — a claim that Syrian refugees being admitted to the U.S. are “unvetted” — is beginning to infect campaign TV ads. All refugees seeking to enter the U.S. go through a screening process, with special measures for those from Syria.

Opposition Overreach in Virginia

Opposition Overreach in Virginia

Political attack ads all too often try to spin an opponent’s jaywalking tickets into felonies. As an example, consider Virginia Rep. Randy Forbes’ claim that his GOP primary opponent, Scott Taylor, “violated federal election law 19 times.”

Invoking Trump in Down-Ballot Ad

Invoking Trump in Down-Ballot Ad

A labor union distorts Donald Trump’s position on Medicare in a TV ad, claiming Trump says “you have to look at Medicare going away.”

Twisting Toomey’s Tax Record

Twisting Toomey’s Tax Record

An ad from a Democratic super PAC misleadingly claims Republican Sen. Pat Toomey supported a “$1,300 tax hike for working families.” He did not.