On NBC’s "Meet the Press," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid exaggerated the latest job gains in the manufacturing sector and grossly minimized tea party victories in the 2010 midterm elections.
In the interview — which NBC taped a day before the Jan. 8 shooting of Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and others in Tucson, Ariz. — Reid spoke about the latest employment numbers. The economy added 113,000 private sector jobs in the month of December, dropping the unemployment rate to 9.4 percent from 9.8 percent.
A ‘Job-Killing’ Law?
When it comes to truth in labeling, House Republicans are getting off to a poor start with their constantly repeated references to the new health care law as “job-killing.” We find: Independent, nonpartisan experts project …
The 2012 GOP Field
In episode 43 of our podcast, we take a look at what some of the potential Republican presidential candidates have been saying.
For more on the claims discussed in this podcast, see:
Let the Distortions Begin Dec. 23
Congress Not Exempt from Student Loans
Q: Is it true that members of Congress, their staffers and their family members do not have to pay back their student loans?
A: Not true. Some congressional employees are eligible to have up to $60,000 of student loans repaid after several years — just like other federal workers. But that’s not the case for members of Congress or their families.
FactCheck Mailbag, Week of Dec. 28-Jan. 3
During our break for the holidays, readers sent us comments about TSA screenings, the estate tax and bringing FactCheck to cable television.
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.
A New Home for FactCheck.org
With the New Year we are getting new GPS coordinates.
FactCheck.org is moving to the Annenberg Public Policy Center’s new headquarters building on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania. Our web address, of course, remains unchanged.
Our new physical address:
FactCheck.org
c/o Annenberg Public Policy Center
202 S. 36th St.
Philadelphia, PA 19104-3806
Our telephone numbers:
Annenberg Public Policy Center: (215) 898-9400
FactCheck.org News Desk: (215) 573-7070
Annenberg’s Washington, D.C., office — which has been our home since we began operations in 2003 —
Let the Distortions Begin
It has been seven whole weeks now since the midterms, and – like you, perhaps – we’ve enjoyed watching football and “Glee” uninterrupted by campaign ads. But that doesn’t mean there’s no campaigning going on. Potential Republican presidential aspirants …
Holiday Announcement
Both the Washington and Philadelphia offices of FactCheck.org will be closed from Dec. 24 through Monday, Jan. 3, in observance of Christmas and New Year’s.
When we resume, we will be taking a different approach to our coverage of weekend public affairs shows. We will continue to monitor them and to research any dubious factual claims by public officials and political candidates. And we will post separate items on any that we discover to be false or misleading.
Chain E-mails of 2010
In episode 42 of our podcast, we look back at the top chain e-mails of 2010. And yes, they were false.
For more on this episode, see:
The Viral Spiral of 2010 Dec. 21
FactCheck Mailbag, Week of Dec. 14-Dec. 21
This week, readers sent us comments about chain e-mails and TSA, and wishes for happy holidays.
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.