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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Bachmann’s Immigration Exaggerations

Bachmann’s Immigration Exaggerations

Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann wrongly suggested that Obama is granting citizenship and voting privileges to immigrants who are in the country illegally. His executive actions do neither of those.

FactChecking the Louisiana Senate Race

FactChecking the Louisiana Senate Race

It ain’t over till it’s over. Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu and her Republican challenger, Rep. Bill Cassidy, are now headed to a Dec. 6 runoff in Louisiana.

Rick Perry Misuses ‘Criminal Alien’ Data

Rick Perry Misuses ‘Criminal Alien’ Data

In discussing his decision to send the National Guard to the Mexico border, Texas Gov. Rick Perry repeatedly has misused data on “criminal aliens” arrested in Texas.

Surge of ‘Unaccompanied Children’

Surge of ‘Unaccompanied Children’

Q: Did the Obama administration advertise in January to transport 65,000 foreign children apprehended at the border? Did it expect a surge of illegal immigration?
A: Yes. There’s been a sharp increase in unaccompanied children from Central America since FY 2012, and the U.S. projected a bigger increase this year.

Tax Credits for Illegal Immigrants

Q: Does the IRS pay billions in tax refunds to workers who are in the U.S. illegally?
A: Yes. The Treasury Department’s Inspector General determined that $4.2 billion was paid in 2010, up from less than $1 billion in 2005. Leading Democrats are resisting a bill that would stop future payments.

Pre-Thanksgiving Leftovers

Pre-Thanksgiving Leftovers

The latest GOP debate was thin on memorable moments or major factual bloopers, but we do have some leftover claims to dispute before we shut down for the Thanksgiving holiday. We wouldn’t want anybody’s turkey dinner to be spoiled by worries that terrorists have come over the border with Mexico, for example. We also found misstatements about an oil pipeline, presidential contacts with Iran and cuts to the defense budget.
The two-hour debate was held in Washington,

Romney Didn’t OK New Benefits for Illegal Immigrants

Romney Didn’t OK New Benefits for Illegal Immigrants

Texas Gov. Rick Perry is claiming that Mitt Romney “OKd health care for illegal immigrants” by signing Massachusetts’ 2006 health care overhaul law. But the law didn’t give illegal immigrants anything new. It merely continued and renamed a state program that had long allowed low-income, uninsured residents, including those in the country illegally, to get care at community health centers and (as in all other states) hospital emergency rooms.
Perry’s campaign seized on an Oct. 23 Los Angeles Times story that said the law Romney signed “includes a program known as the Health Safety Net,

Bachmann’s Wrong on Texas Tuition

Bachmann’s Wrong on Texas Tuition

Michele Bachmann is wrong to say allowing illegal immigrants in Texas to pay in-state tuition is “an abuse of an executive power.” Gov. Rick Perry did not impose the policy by executive fiat. The Legislature overwhelmingly passed the bill in 2001, and Perry signed it.
Minnesota Rep. Bachmann — who has criticized Perry’s executive order on HPV vaccines as an inappropriate use of power — made her statement in a Web video posted Sept. 29.
Bachmann,

Health Care Spin — Again

As the election draws near, some conservative groups are making ever-wilder claims about the new health care law: An elderly man in a Crossroads GPS ad makes the death-panel-esque claim that the law “threatens our lives.” The 60 Plus Association …

Hayworth Distorts McCain’s Immigration Record — Again

In his second TV ad, Republican challenger J.D. Hayworth continues to distort Arizona Sen. John McCain’s record on immigration policy.

McCain ‘Made It Worse’?
The ad, which started to air July 29, opens with an announcer saying: "The illegal alien invasion, and John McCain made it worse." In rapid fire, the ad lists a few of the ways McCain supposedly made things worse, beginning with: "McCain wrote the amnesty bill." The words "Wrote the amnesty bill"