This week’s fact-checking video by CNN’s Jake Tapper looks at a fanciful story that President Donald Trump tells about President Barack Obama’s last scheduled meeting with the Philippines president.
Video: Trump’s Fanciful Plane Tale
Person: Barack Obama
Trump’s Bizarre Plane Story
President Donald Trump left a false impression that a plane carrying former President Barack Obama “came close but it didn’t land” in the Philippines due to poor relations between the countries.
Bench Warrant Story Is Supreme Fiction
Q: Has the U.S. Supreme Court issued a warrant for the arrest of one of Barack Obama’s treasury secretaries?
A: No. The person named in a fictional story doesn’t even exist.
Obama’s Record on Toxic Cleanups
Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt criticized former President Barack Obama for leaving “us with more Superfund sites than when he came in.” This is misleading for multiple reasons.
Obama’s Final Numbers
The numbers are nearly all in now. What they show about what really happened during the eight years that Barack Obama was president is sometimes different from what politicians claimed.
Did Air Quality Improve Under Obama?
EPA head Scott Pruitt criticized former President Barack Obama for leaving 40 percent of Americans with air quality that doesn’t meet EPA standards. But a report Pruitt’s office cited as evidence said there had been a “major improvement” in air quality under Obama.
Obama Didn’t Pardon Wendell Callahan
Q: Did former President Barack Obama pardon Wendell Callahan, who was later accused of killing three people after his early release?
A: No. Congress unanimously passed a bill changing drug sentencing laws and Obama signed it. Callahan petitioned for early release under the new law and it was approved by a federal judge.
Obama Center Not Federally Funded
Q: Did President Trump cancel funding to build Barack Obama’s presidential library?
A: No. That story originated on a satirical news site. All presidential libraries have been constructed using private or non-federal funds.
Overstated Funding for Overseas Mosques
Q: Did the Obama administration spend $770 million restoring overseas mosques?
A: That claim is based on a misleading television news report about a 20-year funding project that ended well before Barack Obama became president.
Obama Didn’t Attend G-20 in 2017
Q: Did former President Barack Obama follow President Donald Trump to the G-20 summit in Hamburg, Germany?
A: No. That claim was made on websites that don’t “make any warranties” about the reliability of their information.