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Viral Spiral
FactCheck Mailbag
FactCheck Mailbag, Week of March 19-25.
See letters from previous weeks“ Criticizing the Democrats for citing the only available study on gun purchases for its age seems wide of the target. ” -
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2012 Players Guide
Proposed Weapons Ban Exempts Government Officials?
TheTeaParty.net falsely claims in an email that Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s proposed assault weapons ban would exempt “all government officials” from the ban. While the bill would exempt military and law enforcement officials, it would not exempt legislators or administrative staff. The email further misrepresents the proposed bill, claiming that “she …
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Posted in The FactCheck Wire
Tagged assault weapons ban, Carolyn McCarthy, Dianne Feinstein, Guns
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Did the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban Work?
Both sides in the gun debate are misusing academic reports on the impact of the 1994 assault weapons ban, cherry-picking portions out of context to suit their arguments. Wayne LaPierre, chief executive officer of the National Rifle Association, told a Senate committee that the “ban had no impact on lowering …
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Posted in The FactCheck Wire
Tagged assault weapons, Dianne Feinstein, gun control, National Rifle Association, Wayne LaPierre
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Is Senate Immigration Plan ‘Amnesty’?
Opponents of a bipartisan Senate immigration plan say it includes “amnesty” for illegal immigrants, but that label is not strictly accurate. Although the Senate plan includes a “path to citizenship,” it also requires illegal immigrants to pay a fine, pay back taxes, learn English and then get in line for …
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Biden Wrong on Police Deaths
In an online interview promoted by the White House, Vice President Joe Biden made the false claim that “there were fewer police being murdered … when the assault weapons ban, in fact, was in existence.” But the FBI statistics on killings of law enforcement officers show no such trend. In …
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Conservative Group Distorts Hagel’s Record
American Future Fund distorts Chuck Hagel’s record in its latest TV ad opposing his Senate confirmation for defense secretary: AFF says Hagel “sits on the board of a private equity firm with investments in Iran.” Hagel sits on an advisory board of Deutsche Bank, which the New York Times says …
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NRA Misfires on Federal Gun Registry
The head of the National Rifle Association misfires when he claims the president’s proposal to require background checks for all gun sales will result in a “massive federal registry” of firearms. Current law bars federal agencies from retaining records on those who pass background checks, and nothing in the president’s …
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FactChecking GOP Response to Obama Gun Plan
Republican response to President Barack Obama’s plan to reduce gun violence has been peppered with misleading claims. Rep. Steve Stockman of Texas claimed, “Gun bans and anti-gun laws have always led to one thing — more gun violence.” But the majority of academic research on the effect of the federal …
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Posted in The FactCheck Wire
Tagged gun control, Guns, President Obama, Rep. Steve Stockman, Rick Perry, Sen. James Inhofe
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Do Assault Weapons Sales Pay NRA Salaries?
A Connecticut Democrat didn’t get his facts straight when he claimed NRA executives “pay their salaries” by taking “a cut” of assault weapons sales. In arguing that the NRA “represents gun manufacturers” and not “gun owners anymore,” Sen. Christopher Murphy discounted NRA membership dues as “less than half” of NRA …
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