This week, readers sent us congratulations on our 2011 Webby Award and a comment on politicians’ distortion of facts.
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.
Ryan’s Budget Spin
Rep. Paul Ryan spreads some false and misleading information in a series of “Setting The Record Straight” web posts, in which he criticizes the president’s proposed budget and promotes …
May 6: Pigford, Webbys, Medicare
Sen. Barrasso’s Medicare Mistake
Sen. John Barrasso mistakenly claimed that "57 percent of doctors don’t want new Medicare patients," which isn’t true. His own spokeswoman admits he got it wrong.
National surveys have put the number who don’t take new Medicare patients as low as 14 percent, and a big American Medical Association survey last year showed only 17 percent of all physicians said they were "restricting" Medicare patients (either taking none, or just some).
The Wyoming senator — who is also a physician —
FactCheck Mailbag, Week of April 26-May 2
This week, readers sent us comments about the Rev. Franklin Graham and President Barack Obama’s budget speech.
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.
We Won a Webby
We are proud to announce that FactCheck.org has won the 2011 Webby Award in the Politics category.
Rubio Inconsistent on Medicare
Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida offered a wildly inconsistent view of what constitutes a "cut" from Medicare. Rubio claimed that Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget plan "doesn’t cut Medicare" but that the federal health care law does.
Actually, Ryan’s plan leaves in place many of the Medicare "cuts" in the health care law. And over the long-term, Ryan’s plan would "cut" or "save" (we’ll leave the word choice to our readers) even more by requiring future beneficiaries to pay a higher percentage of health care costs.
Trump 100 Percent Wrong on Egyptian ‘Vote’
Donald Trump falsely claimed that 99 percent of Egyptians voted to end the peace treaty with Israel. There was no such vote, although a recent poll found that 54 percent do support ending the treaty.
Obama and the ‘Pigford’ Cases
Q: Did then-Sen. Barack Obama get a law "passed in dead silence" that allowed black farmers to file "unlawful" discrimination claims against the USDA totaling $1.25 billion?
A: No. Obama supported the 2008 bill, but did not sponsor it or vote on it. It was not "passed in dead silence"; there were six floor votes. All claims are pending judicial review and approval.
April 29: Armageddon, Obama’s Birth, Health Care