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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Bachmann’s Fundraising Whopper

Bachmann’s Fundraising Whopper
May 14, 2012

In several urgent fundraising appeals, Rep. Michele Bachmann falsely claims that biased “liberal judges” redrew her congressional district “in retaliation for repeatedly standing up to President Obama.” The truth is that only two of the five judges were Democratic appointees, and Bachmann’s Minnesota district has become even more Republican than it was before.
It’s true that a bipartisan panel of judges redrew district lines and placed the town where Bachmann lives in an abutting district represented by a Democrat.

Do ‘Most Americans’ Agree with Romney on Gay Marriage?

Do ‘Most Americans’ Agree with Romney on Gay Marriage?
May 14, 2012

The Republican party chairman claims “most Americans” agree with Mitt Romney “that marriage ought to be defined between one man and one woman.” Americans are closely divided on the issue. Various polls show either a slight plurality or majority of Americans support same-sex marriages, although sometimes within the margin of error.
This much is clear: American attitudes have been trending in support of gay marriage for the past few years, as this Gallup poll chart shows:
Reince Priebus,

Group Skews Facts on Obama’s ‘Shameless’ Statements

Group Skews Facts on Obama’s ‘Shameless’ Statements
May 11, 2012

A group claiming to be backed by veterans has gone too far in a viral Web video that portrays the president as a glory hog after Osama bin Laden’s death.
We cannot dispute the video’s larger point: That President Obama is using Bin Laden’s killing to score political points. But the video – produced by a former Bush-Cheney campaign operative and boasting more than 1 million hits on YouTube — misleads by:

Claiming the Washington Post criticized Obama for having the “Shameless Gall” to score political points.

Tax Credits for Illegal Immigrants

May 11, 2012

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.

Romney’s ‘Gross’ Exaggeration on ‘Obamacare’

Romney’s ‘Gross’ Exaggeration on ‘Obamacare’
May 10, 2012

Mitt Romney falsely claims government will “constitute … almost 50 percent” of the U.S. economy when the new federal health care law takes full effect. But Romney gets to 50 percent by erroneously counting all health care spending — private and public — as “effectively under government control once Obamacare is fully implemented,” as his spokesman put it.
That’s nonsense — just as it was two years ago, when Rep. Michele Bachmann made a similar bogus claim.

FactCheck Mailbag, Week of May 1-7

May 9, 2012

This week, readers sent us letters congratulating us on our Webby wins for best politics website.
In the FactCheck Mailbag, we feature some of the e-mail we receive. Readers can send comments to editor@factcheck.org. Letters may be edited for length.

‘The Life of Julia,’ Corrected

‘The Life of Julia,’ Corrected
May 8, 2012

The Obama campaign depends on some false or dubious assumptions in its “Life of Julia” slide show. The infographic depicts a fictional woman whose life from age 3 to 67 is better under the president’s policies than under those of Republican Mitt Romney. But in reality …

Obama Criminalize Free Speech?

May 7, 2012

Q: Did President Obama secretly sign a law that makes it a crime to protest against him or ask him a question he doesn’t like?
A: No. He openly announced the signing of a bill overwhelmingly passed by Congress that slightly revises a 1971 law against trespassing into areas under Secret Service protection.