California’s Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom delivered a powerful speech to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia on July 27, 2016, arguing for Hillary Clinton as the best candidate for president to uphold fundamental American values: liberty, diversity, opportunity, while Donald Trump offers a “hostile takeover of the American Dream.” Here is hjighlighted transcript:
I’m proud to be a Democrat from the great state of California! Proud because today’s California is strong and getting stronger. A jet-propelled engine of job creation, the home court for creativity around the world. We’ve done it not just through innovation but by inclusion. Pro-immigrant, pro-environment, pro-women, pro-worker. Proudly pro-gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender.
We aren’t the Golden State despite our values, but because of them. We don’t tolerate diversity, we celebrate it. Those values — liberty, diversity, opportunity — are fundamentally American values. Those values are under attack, not just by enemies abroad, but by a GOP that moved its fearmongering fringe to center stage.
What Trump presented last week wasn’t political discourse, it wasn’t even political incorrectness. What Trump presented last week was defeatist and retreatist. Never has a speech been so long, with so little substance, science, humanity, humor, or hope. His hostile takeover of the American Dream is built on two fundamental lies: That America is a dark and desperate place, and that he has any kind of a plan to make it better. Trump strangled the sunny optimism of Ronald Reagan and replaced “tear down that wall” with the cynical bigotry of “build that wall.” Contempt for the Constitution, inhumane mass deportation, malice toward different views and different hues. Those are disqualifications from any office, let alone the highest office in the land.
While it’s refreshing to finally see an openly gay man speak at a Republican convention, it doesn’t remove the stain of selecting Mike Pence, America’s most anti-LGBTQ governor. Pence supported overt discrimination and even advocated diverting taxpayer dollars to so-called “conversion therapy.” That’s not “praying away the gay;” it’s emotional torture against our most innocent citizens, our children. Telling them that to live, they must lie. About who they are, and who they love. That’s fundamentally un-American. The age-old choice has never been more clear: We can live our fears or live our dreams.
Hillary Clinton has dedicated her life to putting the American Dream within reach. She believes in diversity over division. The hard work of pluralism over the “illusion of differences.”
And as a father of four, I want to say something to all the children who are watching and listening at home. When you hear people say that you and your family don’t matter because of who you are, or where you came from, or what you look like, or who you love, I want you to know one thing: The people in this room, and all across the country, believe that you matter.
Hillary Clinton believes you matter. We believe that you belong here. We need you here. We believe that you can be whoever you are, and become whatever you want to be. And we’re going to fight for you, not just over the next 100 days, but over the next 100 years. Because, no matter what people tell you, that’s what America is about, and that’s what makes America great.
In remarks to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia on July 27, 2016, Rear Admiral John Hutson (Ret.) gave reasons why Donald Trump is unfit to be Commander in Chief. Here is a transcript:
Good evening. My name is John Hutson, and unlike Donald Trump, there are two things I know an awful lot about: law and order. For 11 years, I was a law school dean. And for 30 years, I served proudly in the United States Navy, including as Judge Advocate General.
Donald Trump calls himself the “law-and-order candidate,” but he’ll violate international law. In his words, he endorses torture “at a minimum.” He’ll order our troops to commit war crimes like killing civilians. And he actually said, “You have to take out their families.” And what did he say when he was told that’s illegal? He said our troops “won’t refuse, believe me.” This morning, he personally invited Russia to hack us! That’s not law and order. That’s criminal intent!
Donald Trump would abandon our allies and let more countries get nuclear weapons. He lies about donating to our veterans and called the military I served in a “disaster.” It’s embarrassing enough that he’s the face of one of our political parties. The real disaster is what would happen if we let Donald Trump become the face of the country we love.
More than 120 Republican national-security leaders recently warned that Donald Trump would, in their words, “make America less safe.” He even mocks our POWs, like John McCain. I served in the same Navy as John McCain. I used to vote in the same party as John McCain. Donald, you’re not fit to polish John McCain’s boots!
But America, we have a better choice. Hillary Clinton is the only candidate who knows how to work with our allies and who has a specific plan to defeat ISIS. She is smart and steady. She has the experience, temperament, and spine to be a superb Commander-in-Chief. She knows what makes us the envy of the world. It’s not our abundant natural resources, our resilient economy, or even that we have the strongest military on earth. Our strength comes from who we are, our humanity. If we lose our humanity, we lose the battle and the war.
ISIS and other radical Islamic groups have no humanity. That is their weakness. Our enemy can’t defeat us militarily. Victory won’t be found on the battlefield. For them, victory is to make us more like them: people who torture, who destabilize the international order, who target innocents because they don’t look like them or don’t pray like them. Donald Trump is a walking, talking recruiting poster for terrorists. That’s not hyperbole. ISIS literally used Trump in a commercial.
You know, you can tell a lot about a person by whom they admire. Eleanor Roosevelt, Nelson Mandela, Dorothy Rodham – these are Hillary Clinton’s heroes. Donald Trump admires Donald Trump and Saddam Hussein and Kim Jong-un. And of Vladimir Putin, he said, and I quote, “in terms of leadership he’s getting an ‘A.'”
I taught national security law. Praising dictators is an automatic “F” in my class. In the 2008 election, as the dean of the University of New Hampshire School of Law School, I invited each presidential candidate to talk about terrorism with me and other retired admirals and generals. Of all the candidates we met with, Hillary Clinton was by far the best prepared and most knowledgeable. She listened carefully and tested our arguments. We had more than 500 years of collective experience, and we learned from her. This was before she served as our Secretary of State. Before she brokered a cease-fire in Gaza, rallied the world to sanction Iran, advised President Obama to take out bin Laden, and restored our reputation in the world.
Anyone who’s served with the young men and women of our armed forces knows how serious it is to send them into harm’s way. When you’re a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine, you don’t get to choose your commanders. But when you’re a citizen – you have the responsibility to choose the Commander-in-Chief who will keep us safe, strong, and secure. Choose Hillary.
In a speech in Charlotte, Donald Trump excuses the incendiary language he has used throughout his campaign by saying, “I’ve never been politically correct. It takes far too much time…truthfully, it takes far too much time and can make it more difficult to achieve total victory. Sometimes, in the heat of debate and speaking on a multitude of issues, you don’t choose the right words or you say the wrong thing. I have done that…and believe it or not, I regret it. And I do regret it, particularly where it may have caused personal pain.” And goes on to say, “Too much is at stake for us to be consumed with these issues. But one thing I can promise you this: I will always tell you the truth.”
Donald Trump’s heralded first TV ad buy ($4.8 million) which the campaign claimed “further cements a very strong week for Mr. Trump and the campaign” uses only 76 words, but the Hillary Clinton campaign has found more than 6000 words to completely discredit every one.
Here is transcript, as provided by Trump campaign:
VO: In Hillary Clinton’s America:
The system stays rigged against Americans.
Syrian refugees flood in.
Illegal immigrants convicted of committing crimes get to stay.
Collecting Social Security benefits, skipping the line.
Our border open.
It’s more of the same, but worse.
Donald Trump’s America is secure.
Terrorists and dangerous criminals: kept out.
The border: secured.
Our families: safe.
Change that makes America safe again.
Donald Trump for President.
I’m Donald Trump, and I approve this message.
Hillary for America Statement on Trump’s Misleading Ad
Today, in response to Donald Trump’s new divisive and misleading campaign ad, HFA Deputy Communications Director Christina Reynolds offered the following statement:
“From his divisive rhetoric to his erratic efforts to alienate our allies to his dangerous plans, Donald Trump has made our country less safe already. He is temperamentally unfit and unqualified to be commander in chief. No misleading ad can change the fact that Hillary Clinton is the only candidate with the experience and judgment to lead the country and keep our families safe.”
Transcript
Record
V/O: In Hillary Clinton’s America, the system stays rigged against Americans.
POLITIFACT FOUND TRUMP’S CLAIM THAT THE ELECTION WAS “RIGGED” TO BE “PANTS ON FIRE”
Politifact: Voter Fraud Is Extremely Rare, And Experts Say Attempts To “Buy” An Election Cannot Be Replicated On A National Scale. “Trump has repeatedly claimed that the U.S. election system is rigged. He has cited examples of voter fraud, which is extremely rare, often unintentional and not on a scale large enough to affect a national election. While there are isolated examples of bought local elections, experts say it cannot be replicated on a national scale. While it is possible to tamper with electronic voting machines, there is no evidence deliberate malfeasance has altered any election. We rate Trump’s claim Pants on Fire.” [Politifact, 8/15/16]
Politifact: “You’re More Likely To Get Struck By Lightning Than To Find Voter Fraud.” “News 21 found just 150 alleged cases of double voting, 56 cases of noncitizens voting, and 10 cases of voter impersonation across all elections from 2000 to 2011. Many of these never led to charges, while others were acquitted or dismissed. Justin Levitt, a professor at Loyola Law School and an expert on voter fraud, found an even smaller number: 31 credible incidents out of more than 1 billion votes cast from 2000 to 2014. Put it in another way: You’re more likely to get struck by lightning than to find voter fraud. When voter fraud does occur, it’s not always intentional. Multiple studies have traced known cases not to willful deception but to clerical errors or confusion.” [Politifact, 8/15/16]
TRUMP HAS BEEN EXCORIATED BY LEGAL EXPERTS AND EDITORIAL BOARDS FOR HIS FALSE SUGGESTIONS THAT THE ELECTION WILL BE “RIGGED”
HEADLINE: “Trump’s Accusation Of Voter Fraud In PA Is Offensive” [Editorial, Philadelphia Inquirer, 8/19/16]
HEADLINE: “Trump ‘Rigging’ Claim Is Reckless” [Editorial, Columbus Dispatch, 8/7/16]
HEADLINE: “The Election Isn’t Rigged Against Trump; It’s Rigged In His Favor”[Editorial, Newark Star-Ledger, 8/8/16]
HEADLINE: “If You’re Worried About Rigged Elections, Look At Trump’s Tactics First” [Richard Hasen, Los Angeles Times, 8/16/16]
Election Law Expert Richard Hasen: “If Anyone Is Trying To Rig The Vote, It’s Trump.” “Maybe Trump is bluffing too, but his words are dangerous and his actions are irresponsible. By claiming the vote is rigged, he undermines the public’s confidence in the election results. And by exhorting his supporters to show up at the polls to look for rigging in “certain sections” of battleground states, he is encouraging behavior that could prevent eligible voters from casting their ballots. If anyone is trying to rig the vote, it’s Trump.” [Richard Hasen, Los Angeles Times, 8/16/16]
Election Law Expert Richard Hasen: “But If There’s A Threat To The Integrity Of The Election, It’s Coming From Trump Himself.” [Richard Hasen, Los Angeles Times, 8/16/16]
TRUMP HAS REPEATEDLY CLAIMED A RIGGED SYSTEM WHERE NONE EXISTED
Politifact: Trump Complained About Caucus Rules Put In Place When The Race Had 17 Candidates, And “There Is No Evidence The Rules Were Designed To Favor A Specific Candidate, Nor That The Context Was Fixed Or “Rigged.”” “After Ted Cruz swept all 34 delegates at the Colorado Republican convention, Trump branded the state GOP’s caucus system “rigged” and “crooked.” […] The delegate selection process is dominated by party activists and insiders, and this year’s caucuses were hampered — at best — by confusion and technical glitches. But Trump is complaining about rules that were put in place in August, when the Republican presidential race was clogged with 17 candidates. There is no evidence the rules were designed to favor a specific candidate, nor that the context was fixed or “rigged.” Trump chose to skip the convention and focus on New York instead. We rated his claim False.” [Politifact, 4/20/16]
Politifact: Trump Said Clinton Was Trying To “Rig The Debates,” But “Neither Clinton Nor Her Party Were Involved In Setting Up The Dates For The General-Election Debates.” “Trump said that Clinton and her party “are trying to rig the debates” so that NFL games drain away viewers. However, neither Clinton nor her party were involved in setting up the dates for the general-election debates, as they were during the primary debates. Instead, that task falls to a bipartisan commission that has no connection to either the campaigns or the parties. In fact, the debate dates were chosen seven months before the NFL schedule was even released, making scheduling conflicts almost unavoidable — not the work of one campaign or party. We rate Trump’s statement Pants on Fire.” [Politifact, 8/1/16]
V/O: Syrian refugees flood in
TRUMP’S CLAIM THERE WAS NO SYSTEM TO VET REFUGEES FROM SYRIA WAS FALSE
PolitiFact: Donald Trump’s Claim There Was “No System” To Vet Middle Eastern Refugees Was False. “Trump said there is ‘no system to vet’ refugees from the Middle East. While there are concerns about information gaps, a system does exist and has existed since 1980. It involves multiple federal intelligence and security agencies as well as the United Nations. Refugee vetting typically takes one to two years and includes numerous rounds of security checks. We rate Trump’s claim False.” [PolitiFact, 6/13/16]
CNN Fact Check: “There Is A Vetting System In Place” To Screen Refugees.“However, Trump continued saying that there is no way to screen those immigrants. There is a vetting system in place, which begins with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, according to the White House. This group collects identification documents, performs an initial assessment, and interviews applicants to confirm refugee status and the need for resettlement. They then refer strong candidates for resettlement to the United States.” [CNN Fact Check, 6/22/16]
FactCheck.org Rated Donald Trump’s Claim That “There’s No Way To Screen Syrian Refugees” As False. “While criticizing Hillary Clinton’s support for admitting more Syrian refugees to the U.S., Trump said that “there’s no way to screen” those refugees to determine “who they are or where they come from.” That’s false. All refugees admitted to the U.S. go through an extensive vetting process that involves multiple federal agencies and can take up to 24 months to complete. The current process for admitting a refugee to the U.S. is very lengthy. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, or sometimes a U.S. embassy, refers a qualified refugee for resettlement in the U.S. After that, there’s an initial multistep security clearance, including the collection of the refugee’s personal data and background information. That is followed by an in-person interview abroad with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which has to approve the application. The security clearance involves checking the refugee’s name and fingerprints against several government databases. That’s followed by a medical screening and a pairing with one of the voluntary agencies in the U.S. that sponsors refugees. And, finally, there’s another security clearance to check for any new information. That completes the process.” [Factcheck.org, 7/22/16]
Vox Rated Donald Trump’s Claim That “There’s No Way To Screen These Refugees” As False. “Trump says: ‘There’s no way to screen these refugees in order to find out who they are or where they come from.’ In fact: It takes approximately two years to approve a refugee to settle in the US. Most of that time is spent screening the refugee. The process for screening Syrian refugees is so stringent (for example, a refugee who’d once given “a sandwich or a cigarette” to a Syrian rebel soldier would have been banned until last year) that the government rarely let in any before fall 2015. And it’s still not on pace to meet its goal of admitting 10,000 refugees this year because it’s being so careful with the screening process. Ruling: False” [Vox, 7/22/16]
AP Fact Checker: “Trump Persists In Making The Bogus Claim That The U.S. Doesn’t Screen Refugees.” “TRUMP: ‘My opponent has called for a radical 550 percent increase in Syrian (refugees). … She proposes this despite the fact that there’s no way to screen these refugees in order to find out who they are or where they come from. I only want to admit individuals into our country who will support our values and love our people.’ THE FACTS: Trump persists in making the bogus claim that the U.S. doesn’t screen refugees. The administration both screens them and knows where they are from. The Department of Homeland Security leads the process, which involves rigorous background checks. Processing of a refugee can take 18 months to two years, and usually longer for those coming from Syria. Refugees are also subject to in-person interviews and fingerprint and other biometric screening.” [AP Fact Check, 7/22/16]
Washington Post Fact Checker: Trump Falsely Claimed “There’s ‘No Way To Screen’ Refugees.” Donald Trump Claim: “My opponent, in Syria — think of this, think of this, this is not believable but this is what’s happening. A 550 percentage increase in Syrian refugees on top of the existing massive refugee flows coming into our country already under the leadership of President Obama. She proposes this despite the fact that there’s no way to screen these refugees in order to find out who they are or where they come from.” “Trump gets it right on the “550” percentage, but falsely claims there’s “no way to screen” refugees. […] The process of vetting refugees starts with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and then continues with checks by U.S. intelligence and security agencies. It takes one to two years, or longer in some cases.” [Washington Post Fact Checker, 7/22/16]
CNN Fact Check Rated Trump’s Claim That There “‘No Way To Screen These Refugees” As “False.” “Where he goes awry is in the second half, when Trump says there’s ‘no way to screen these refugees.’ Several government and law enforcement agencies are engaged in the process of screening refugees. Refugees that come to the U.S. undergo several screenings, such as biographic checks, in-person interviews, fingerprinting and medical screenings — all of which involve multiple federal intelligence and security agencies. Syrian refugees in particular go through additional screening, called the Syria Enhanced Review process, which uses information collected from the UN refugee agency to determine whether an applicant needs to go through a fraud or national security unit. […] The effectiveness of these procedures may be a matter of debate, but to say that there is “no way to screen” refugees is false.” [CNN, 7/22/16]
NPR Fact Check: The Claim That There’s “No Way” To Screen Syrian Refugees Has Been Rated False. “‘She proposes this despite the fact that there’s no way to screen these refugees in order to find out who they are or where they come from.’ PolitiFact ranked the claim about the lack of a vetting system false.” [NPR, 7/21/16]
THE U.S. HAS AN EXTENSIVE SCREENING PROCESS FOR REFUGEES
CNN Fact Check: Refugees Are Screened Through Process That Includes The National Counterterrorism Center, FBI, DHS, And The State Department Before Entering The United States, Then They Must Apply For Green Card. “The Resettlement Support Center compiles a file on each refugee and then the security checks begin. The National Counterterrorism Center, FBI, Department of Homeland Security and the State Department are all involved in these security checks. Before arrival in the United States, refugees are interviewed, fingerprinted and given medical screenings, among other security checks. Finally, they arrive in the United States, go through U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center and then must apply for a green card within a year of arrival, which triggers another set of security procedures.” [CNN Fact Check, 6/22/16]
Jeff Stein: Contrary To Trump’s False Claim That U.S.-Bound Refugees Were Not Screened, U.S. Citizenship And Immigration Services Conducted An “Extensive” And “Onerous” Screening Process. “Trump: ‘There’s no screening for refugees coming to the US We’re not screening people. So why don’t we have an effective screening system? We don’t. We’re being laughed at all over the world. The burden is on Hillary Clinton to tell us why we should admit anyone into our country who supports violence of any kind against gay and lesbian Americans.’ The truth: Trump is wrong: There is an extensive, onerous screening process for refugees who come to America. You can see so yourself here.” Vox’s Jeff Stein linked to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Refugee Processing and Security Screening website. [Jeff Stein, Vox, 6/13/16]
NBC News: Hillary Clinton Supported Accepting Syrian Refugees But There Were “Significant Screening Measures” In Place. “Trump claim: ‘In fact, Hillary Clinton supports a radical 550% increase in Syrian refugees coming into the United States, and that’s an increase over President Obama’s already very high number. Under her plan, we would admit hundreds of thousands of refugees from the most dangerous countries on Earth – with no way to screen who they are or what they believe.’ The facts: Clinton does support a 550% increase over the existing number of Syrian refugees she’d allow — that much is true — but there are significant screening measures. Refugees are subject to the highest level of security checks of any visitors to the U.S., and the process historically takes up to 16-24 months. It involves the United Nations, National Counterterrorism Center, FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and State Department. ‘It would be a cruel irony indeed if ISIS can force families from their homes and then also prevent them from finding new ones,’ she said in a December speech. ‘So after rigorous screening, we should welcome families fleeing Syria.’” [NBC News, 6/22/16]
PolitiFact: U.S. Screening Process For Refugees Has Been In Place For Over 30 Years. “Blaming the Orlando massacre on the country’s ‘failed immigration system,’ Donald Trump equated refugee admission to a ‘better, bigger, more horrible version of the legendary Trojan horse.’ […] This is an exaggeration, and one we’ve heard before. While Trump has a point that the system isn’t foolproof, there is a system. It has been in place for over three decades and was retooled after 9/11…The vetting begins with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee, which determines who counts as a refugee, who should be resettled (about 1 percent) and which countries would take them. This alone can take four to 10 months. If the UNHCR refers refugees to the United States, they then face scrutiny from federal intelligence and security agencies.” [PolitiFact, 6/13/16]
Vanity Fair: Hillary Clinton Plan Had “Extremely Strict Security Measures In Place To Vet Refugees Looking To Resettle In The US.” “Trump leaned heavily into post-Orlando anxiety when he slammed Clinton’s plan to increase the number of Syrian refugees by 550 percent. ‘Under her plan, we would admit hundreds of thousands of refugees from the most dangerous countries on Earth—with no way to screen who they are or what they believe,’ he said. While he’s correct about the percentage increase, at least, NBC points out that there would, in fact, be extremely strict security measures in place to vet refugees looking to re-settle in the U.S. The process takes anywhere between 16 to 24 months, involves no less than five governmental agencies cross-checking several databases, and can be halted or reset for numerous reasons. In short, this is definitely a way to screen refugees, as opposed to ‘no way.’” [Vanity Fair, 6/22/16]
ABC News: The Claim That “There Is No Way To Screen Syrian Refugees” Is “False,” As The U.S. “Employs A Thorough, Multi-Stage Vetting Process.” “Claim: There is no way to screen Syrian refugees. Rating: False. While intelligence gaps abroad means there’s a degree of risk in resettling refugees from Syria and elsewhere, the U.S. employs a thorough, multi-stage vetting process. […] As flagged in an earlier fact check, the typical vetting process for resettling refugees in the U.S. comprises a series of hurdles, the first of which is to meet the legal definition of a ‘refugee’ (roughly 1 percent of applicants is deemed eligible), which can take up to 10 months.” [ABC News,7/22/16]
V/O: Illegal immigrants convicted of committing crimes get to stay
CLINTON WOULD MAKE IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT “HUMANE, TARGETED, AND EFFECTIVE” AND DEPORT THOSE “INDIVIDUALS WHO POSE A VIOLENT THREAT TO PUBLIC SAFETY”
As President, Clinton Would Make Immigration Enforcement “Humane, Targeted, And Effective” And Deport Those “Individuals Who Pose A Violent Threat To Public Safety.” “As President, Hillary will: Enforce immigration laws humanely. Immigration enforcement must be humane, targeted, and effective. Hillary will focus resources on detaining and deporting those individuals who pose a violent threat to public safety, and ensure refugees who seek asylum in the U.S. have a fair chance to tell their stories.” [Hillary for America, accessed 8/15/16]
TRUMP’S CLAIMS ON IMMIGRANTS COMMITTING CRIMES HAVE BEEN FOUND TO BE FALSE
ABC News: There Was “No Law Enforcement Data To Support” Trump’s Claim That Hundreds Of Recent Immigrants And Their Children Were Convicted Of Terrorism. “Although he was right about Clinton’s desire to bring in more Syrian refugees, Trump quickly strayed from the truth by arguing that many of them are convicted terrorists. ‘Already hundreds of recent immigrants and their children have been convicted of terrorist activity inside the United States. The father of the Orlando shooter was a Taliban supporter from Afghanistan, one of the most repressive anti-gay and anti-woman regimes on earth,’ Trump said today. There is no law enforcement data to support the claim that “hundreds of recent immigrants have been convicted of terrorist” activities.” [ABC News, 6/22/16]
Washington Post Fact Checker: “We’re Not Sure Exactly Where Trump Is Getting This Information” That Hundreds Of Migrants And Their Children Had Been Convicted Of Terrorist Activity, “But He Is Still Not Accurate.” “‘Already hundreds of recent immigrants and their children have been convicted of terrorist activity inside the United States.’ This is a revised Trump talking point on migrants convicted of terrorist activity, to include migrants ‘and their children.’ (We previously awarded him Four Pinocchios for claiming that ‘scores’ of ‘recent migrants’ were charged with terrorism.) We’re not sure exactly where Trump is getting this information, but he is still not accurate.” [Fact Checker, Washington Post, 6/23/16]
V/O: Collecting Social Security benefits, skipping the line
UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS CONTRIBUTE TO SOCIAL SECURITY
Undocumented Immigrants Have Contributed $12 Billion To Social Security. “Thus, our projections suggest that the presence of unauthorized workers in the United States has, on average, a positive effect on the financial status of the Social Security program. For the year 2010,1 we estimate that the excess of tax revenue paid to the Trust Funds over benefits paid from these funds based on earnings of unauthorized workers is about $12 billion.” [Social Security Administration, April 2013]
Politifact: “It’s Important To Note That Illegal Immigrants Pay An Estimated $12 Billion In Payroll Taxes To Social Security And Don’t Receive Benefits.” “Trump said, “The annual cost of free tax credits alone paid to illegal immigrants quadrupled to $4.2 billion in 2011.” Based on an audit by the Treasury Inspector General, the claim leaves out some context. Trump conflates “illegal immigrants” with “unauthorized workers,” a group composed largely of undocumented immigrants but also legal immigrants and others. The $4.2 billion refers to the amount given in tax credit refunds for children, the large majority of whom are U.S. citizens. And the actual year is 2009, not 2011 (that was the year the report was published). Also, it’s important to note that illegal immigrants pay an estimated $12 billion in payroll taxes to Social Security and don’t receive benefits. So Trump is leaving out a significant part of the picture when it comes to taxes and undocumented workers.” [Politifact, 8/18/15]
CLINTON SUPPORTS A PATHWAY TO CITIZENSHIP
As President, Clinton Would Introduce Comprehensive Immigration Reform With A Pathway To Full And Equal Citizenship. “Introduce comprehensive immigration reform. Hillary will introduce comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to full and equal citizenship within her first 100 days in office. It will treat every person with dignity, fix the family visa backlog, uphold the rule of law, protect our borders and national security, and bring millions of hardworking people into the formal economy.” [Hillary for America, accessed 8/19/16]
Clinton On Immigration: “I Believe They Do Have to Meet Certain Standards…To Be On A Path To Citizenship.” “I think we have to look at all of these issues.
Comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship would deal with a lot of these concerns, not just the 11 million people here: how we would regularize them, what kind of steps they’d have to go through. Because I believe they do have to meet certain standards if they’re going to be on a path to citizenship.” [Vox,6/22/16]
TRUMP AD CITES CENTER FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES
TRUMP HAS BEEN ADVISED BY THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES
Donald Trump Met With Mark Krikorian And His Campaign Referred To Him As One Of The Top Foreign Policy And National Security Experts In The Country.“‘Today, Mr. Trump convened a meeting of some of the top foreign policy and national security experts in the country to discuss how to win the war against Radical Islamic Terrorism. The participants talked about improving immigration screening and standards to keep out radicals, working with moderate Muslims to foster reforms, and partnering with friendly regimes in the Middle East to stamp out ISIS. This is a stark contrast to Hillary Clinton who wants to bring in 620,000 refugees with no way to screen them, who refuses to say radical Islam, and who bears direct responsibility for the rise of ISIS with her disastrous interventions overseas.’ – Stephen Miller, National Policy DirectorPlease view the list of particpants of the Roundtable on Defeating Radical Islamic Terrorism below: […] 13) Mark Krikorian” [Donald Trump Press Release, 8/17/16]
MARK KRIKORIAN HAS SERVED AS THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES SINCE 1995
Mark Krikorian Has Served As The Executive Director Of The Center For Immigration Studies Since 1995. “Mark Krikorian, a nationally recognized expert on immigration issues, has served as Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) since 1995. The Center, an independent, non-partisan research organization in Washington, D.C., examines and critiques the impact of immigration on the United States. Animated by a pro-immigrant, low-immigration vision which seeks fewer immigrants but a warmer welcome for those admitted, the Center was established in 1985 to respond to the need for reliable, fact-based research in the immigration area.” [Center for Immigration Studies, accessed 8/17/16]
THE CENTER FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES “HAS BEEN EXPLICITLY TIED TO WHITE NATIONALISM”
HEADLINE: “Anti-Immigrant Center For Immigration Studies Continues To Associate With White Nationalists” [Southern Poverty Law Center, 10/9/15]
Southern Poverty Law Center: “Since Its Founding In 1985, CIS Has Been Explicitly Tied To White Nationalism.” “Since its founding in 1985, CIS has been explicitly tied to white nationalism. Its founder, white nationalist John Tanton was responsible for establishing the organized anti-immigrant movement, and, over the past 20 years, the group has been unable to cut these racist ties. [Southern Poverty Law Center, 10/9/15]
V/O: Our border open
MANY INDEPENDENT FACT CHECKS HAVE FOUND CLINTON’S PLAN WOULD NOT CREATE OPEN BORDERS
AP Fact Check: “It’s Not True That Clinton’s Plan Would Create Open Borders.”“TRUMP: “She has pledged to grant mass amnesty and in her first 100 days, end virtually all immigration enforcement, and thus create totally open borders in the United States.” THE FACTS: It’s not true that Clinton’s plan would create open borders. Her plan does call for a pathway to citizenship that would allow people currently in the country illegally to stay, but only after going through a series of steps to become a citizen. On enforcement, Clinton has called for focusing on “detaining and deporting those individuals who pose a violent threat to public safety,” but not ending enforcement outright.” [Associated Press, 6/23/16]
Politifact: Trump’s Claim That Clinton Supported Totally Open Borders Was “False” And “A Huge Distortion Of Clinton’s Proposals.” “Trump said Clinton’s immigration platform would “create totally open borders.” This is a huge distortion of Clinton’s proposals. Clinton has praised work already done to secure the border, and she said she supported a 2013 bill that would have invested billions more in border security while creating a path to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants. Her plan calls for protecting the border and targeting deportation to criminals and security threats. Her plan would make it easier for many undocumented immigrants to avoid deportation, but that’s not the same as ending all enforcement. We rate this claim False.” [Politifact, 6/23/16]
Factcheck.Org: Clinton’s Immigration Policies Were “Far Short Of Advocating For Open Borders.” “At a campaign stop in November, Clinton was even more explicit. “We need to secure our borders, I’m for it, I voted for it, I believe in it, and we also need to deal with the families, the workers who are here, who have made contributions, and their children,” Clinton said in New Hampshire in November. “We can do more to secure our border and we should do more to deal with the 11 or 12 million people who are here, get them out of the shadows.” That’s far short of advocating for open borders.” [FactCheck.org, 7/19/16]
Politifact: “Rudy Giuliani Wrongly Says Hillary Clinton Is For Open Borders”[Politifact, 7/18/16]
Washington Post Fact Check: Giuliani Repeating Trump’s Claim That Clinton Supported Open Borders “Doesn’t Make It Any More Correct.” “Trump has made the same claim about Clinton recently, but Giuliani repeating it doesn’t make it any more correct. Giuliani exaggerates Clinton’s stance on border security and immigration enforcement. Clinton has said she would expand Obama’s executive actions on immigration, and has advocated comprehensive immigration reform including a pathway to citizenship. But she also has supported enhanced border security. And her immigration proposal includes “humane, targeted and effective” enforcement and focusing immigration resources on detaining and deporting those “who pose a threat to public safety.”” [Washington Post, 7/19/16]
V/O: It’s more of the same, but worse
CLINTON HAS SAID SHE WOULD DEFEND OBAMA’S EXECUTIVE ACTIONS TO KEEP FAMILIES TOGETHER
As President, Clinton Will Defend DACA And DAPA And “Do Everything Possible Under The Law To Protect Families.” “As president, Hillary will… Defend President Obama’s executive actions—known as DACA and DAPA—against partisan attacks. The Supreme Court’s deadlocked decision on DAPA was a heartbreaking reminder of how high the stakes are in this election. Hillary believes DAPA is squarely within the president’s authority and won’t stop fighting until we see it through. … Do everything possible under the law to protect families. If Congress keeps failing to act on comprehensive immigration reform, Hillary will enact a simple system for those with sympathetic cases—such as parents of DREAMers, those with a history of service and contribution to their communities, or those who experience extreme labor violations—to make their case and be eligible for deferred action.” [Hillary for America, accessed 8/15/16]
V/O: Donald Trump’s America is secure.
NATIONAL SECURITY EXPERTS SAY TRUMP WOULD MAKE AMERICA LESS SAFE, AND HAS ALREADY
Former CIA Director Hayden Agreed Trump Had Become A “Recruiting Sergeant” For ISIS And Al Qaeda And His Comments “Have Already Made Americans Less Safe.” “Former CIA chief Michael Hayden said in a new interview that he agrees that Donald Trump has become a ‘recruiting sergeant’ for terrorists groups such as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and al Qaeda. ‘When Mr. Trump says some of the things that he has said — ‘they all hate us,’ ‘we shouldn’t let any of those people in our country’ — what he does is underscore and underpin the fundamentals of [the ISIS] narrative of undying enmity,’ Hayden told Al Jazeera English’s ‘Upfront.’ Trump’s statements ‘have already made Americans less safe,’ Hayden said in the interview, which will air April 1.” [The Hill, 3/29/16]
Graham: “Donald Trump’s Foreign Policy Is Isolationism. It Will Lead To Another 9/11.” GRAHAM: “But there’s a civil war going on in the Republican Party, obviously. John and I are very close friends, but he’s embracing Donald Trump, and I am not. Why? Because I believe Donald Trump’s foreign policy is isolationism. It will lead to another 9/11.” [CBS, Face The Nation, 5/1/16]
Bob Gates On Trump: “I Have No Idea What His Policy Would Be In Terms Of Dealing With ISIS. I Worry A Little Bit About His Admiration For Vladimir Putin.”JOHN DICKERSON: We began by asking him for his thoughts on Donald Trump. FMR. SEC. BOB GATES: Well, I have some real issues with things he’s said about national security policy. And some concerns. I think there are some contradictions. You can’t have a trade war with China and then turn around and ask them to help you on North Korea. I have no idea what his policy would be in terms of dealing with ISIS. I worry a little bit about his admiration for Vladimir Putin. […] I guess one of the things that makes it challenging for me is that he seems to think that he has all the answers. And that he doesn’t need any advice from staff or anybody else. And that he knows more about these things than anybody else. And doesn’t really feel the need to surround himself with informed advisors. You know, I worked for some very different presidents of those eight. People would say, ‘How could you work for both Barack Obama and George W. Bush.’ I remind them, ‘Well, I worked for Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan.’ The difference is, each one of those presidents, as strong minded as each of them was, understood he did not have all the answers and surrounded himself with experienced, thoughtful people who would give good advice and they were willing to listen. [CBS, Face The Nation, 5/15/16]
HEADLINE: “50 G.O.P. Officials Warn Donald Trump Would Put Nation’s Security ‘At Risk’” [New York Times, 8/8/16]
Fifty Senior Republican National Security Officials Signed A Letter Declaring Trump “Would Be The Most Reckless President In American History.” “Fifty of the nation’s most senior Republican national security officials, many of them former top aides or cabinet members for President George W. Bush, have signed a letter declaring that Donald J. Trump ‘lacks the character, values and experience’ to be president and ‘would put at risk our country’s national security and well-being.’ Mr. Trump, the officials warn, ‘would be the most reckless president in American history.’” [New York Times, 8/8/16]
The Experts Wrote That Trump “Lacks The Temperament To Be President” And Has “Dangerous Qualities” For Someone Who Would Command The Nuclear Arsenal. “In the new letter, the group warns Trump ‘lacks the temperament to be President.’ ‘He is unable or unwilling to separate truth from falsehood. He does not encourage conflicting views. He lacks self-control and acts impetuously. He cannot tolerate personal criticism. He has alarmed our closest allies with his erratic behavior,’ the letter claims. ‘All of these are dangerous qualities in an individual who aspires to be President and Commander-in-Chief, with command of the U.S. nuclear arsenal.’” [CNN, 8/8/16]
121 Republican National Security Experts Wrote An Open Letter Saying They Would Not Support Trump For President. “We the undersigned, members of the Republican national security community, represent a broad spectrum of opinion on America’s role in the world and what is necessary to keep us safe and prosperous. We have disagreed with one another on many issues, including the Iraq war and intervention in Syria. But we are united in our opposition to a Donald Trump presidency. Recognizing as we do, the conditions in American politics that have contributed to his popularity, we nonetheless are obligated to state our core objections clearly: His vision of American influence and power in the world is wildly inconsistent and unmoored in principle. He swings from isolationism to military adventurism within the space of one sentence. His advocacy for aggressively waging trade wars is a recipe for economic disaster in a globally connected world. […] He is fundamentally dishonest. Evidence of this includes his attempts to deny positions he has unquestionably taken in the past, including on the 2003 Iraq war and the 2011 Libyan conflict. We accept that views evolve over time, but this is simply misrepresentation. […] Mr. Trump’s own statements lead us to conclude that as president, he would use the authority of his office to act in ways that make America less safe, and which would diminish our standing in the world. Furthermore, his expansive view of how presidential power should be wielded against his detractors poses a distinct threat to civil liberty in the United States. Therefore, as committed and loyal Republicans, we are unable to support a Party ticket with Mr. Trump at its head. We commit ourselves to working energetically to prevent the election of someone so utterly unfitted to the office.” [War On The Rocks, 3/2/16]
UNDER TRUMP’S PLANS, THE ECONOMY WOULD LOSE NEARLY 3.5 MILLION JOBS AND FALL INTO A “LENGTHY RECESSION”
Moody’s Analytics: Under Trump’s Policies, The Economy Would Lose Nearly 3.5 Million Jobs And Fall Into A “Lengthy Recession.” “This paper assesses the macroeconomic consequences of presidential candidate Donald Trump’s proposed economic policies. These include his policies on taxes and government spending, immigration, and international trade. […] The U.S. economy will weaken significantly if Mr. Trump’s economic policies are fully implemented as he has proposed. The economy will suffer a recession that begins in early 2018 and extends into 2020 (see Table 1). During this downturn, real GDP will decline peak to trough by close to 2.4%. This would be an unusually lengthy recession—even longer than the Great Recession—although the severity of the decline in economic activity would be more consistent with a typical recession suffered since World War II. Employment will continue to decline and unemployment will rise into the next presidential term, with the unemployment rate peaking at 7.4% in summer 2021. […] By the end of his presidency, there are close to 3.5 million fewer jobs and the unemployment rate rises to as high as 7%, compared with below 5% today. During Mr. Trump’s presidency, the average American household’s after-inflation income will stagnate, and stock prices and real house values will decline.” [Moody’s Analytics, 6/17/16]
V/O: Terrorists and dangerous criminals kept out, the border secure, our families safe.
TRUMP’S BORDER WALL PROPOSAL WAS RIDICULED AS IMPRACTICAL, UNNECESSARY, AND INEFFECTIVE
Rick Perry Agreed Trump’s Proposed Border Wall Could Not Be Built: “It’s A Technological Wall, It’s A Digital Wall… There Are Some That Hear This Is Going To Be 1,200 Miles From Brownsville To El Paso, 30-Foot High, And Listen, I Know You Can’t Do That.” “Donald Trump’s proposal to build a wall along the expanse of the United States’ border with Mexico is not going to happen, as far as former Texas Gov. Rick Perry is concerned. At least not in the physical sense. ‘I’m for Donald Trump, and he says we’re going to build a wall, the Mexicans are gonna pay for it,’ Perry told Snapchat’s Peter Hamby on ‘Good Luck America.’ Hamby remarked, ‘It’s not going to happen.’ ‘Well, it’s not,’ Perry said, explaining, ‘It’s a wall, but it’s a technological wall, it’s a digital wall.’ Perry, who is supporting Trump, commented, ‘There are some that hear this is going to be 1,200 miles from Brownsville to El Paso, 30-foot high, and listen, I know you can’t do that.’” [Politico, 7/11/16]
Politico: “Almost No One In The Rio Grande Valley—Including The Border Patrol Itself—Thinks ‘The Wall’ Is A Good Idea. The Wall, From Their Viewpoint, Is An Expensive, Pointless Boondoggle.” “Given the union’s strong support for Trump, you might be surprised to discover that many Border Patrol agents have one small policy difference with the candidate: Almost no one in the Rio Grande Valley—including the Border Patrol itself—thinks ‘The Wall’ is a good idea. The Wall, from their viewpoint, is an expensive, pointless boondoggle, and wouldn’t solve the main problems with border security.” [Politico Magazine, 7/18/16]
Security Experts Were More Concerned With The United States’ Northern Border From A Terrorism Perspective Than The Southern Border That Would Be Addressed By Trump’s Border Wall. “Trump’s Wall also belies another complicated reality: Security experts and CBP officials say that from a terrorism perspective, they’re more concerned about the northern border, which is much more loosely patrolled and has virtually no fencing, even as Canada struggles with its own homegrown radicalization problems. While there’s plenty of human and narcotics smuggling across the U.S.-Mexico border, and nearly 90 percent of the Border Patrol is focused on the southern border, no terrorist has ever used it to enter the United States illegally. For all the heated political rhetoric about ISIL sneaking over from Mexico, all domestic terror attacks have been carried out by people who flew into the United States on commercial airliners or by terrorists who were legally in the country—and would-be terrorists have been stopped sneaking across only one of the U.S. land borders: the northern one.” [Politico Magazine, 7/18/16]
V/O: Change that makes America safe again. Donald Trump for president.
DONALD TRUMP: I’m Donald Trump, and I approve this message.
(Remarks as prepared for delivery by Khizr M. Khan at the Democratic National Convention, Thursday, July 28, 2016)
Tonight, we are honored to stand here as the parents of Capt. Humayun Khan, and as patriotic American Muslims with undivided loyalty to our country.
Like many immigrants, we came to this country empty-handed. We believed in American democracy — that with hard work and the goodness of this country, we could share in and contribute to its blessings.
We were blessed to raise our three sons in a nation where they were free to be themselves and follow their dreams.
Our son, Humayun, had dreams of being a military lawyer. But he put those dreams aside the day he sacrificed his life to save his fellow soldiers.
Hillary Clinton was right when she called my son “the best of America.”
If it was up to Donald Trump, he never would have been in America.
Donald Trump consistently smears the character of Muslims. He disrespects other minorities, women, judges, even his own party leadership. He vows to build walls and ban us from this country.
Donald Trump, you are asking Americans to trust you with our future. Let me ask you: Have you even read the U.S. Constitution? I will gladly lend you my copy. In this document, look for the words “liberty” and “equal protection of law.”
Have you ever been to Arlington Cemetery? Go look at the graves of the brave patriots who died defending America — you will see all faiths, genders, and ethnicities.
You have sacrificed nothing and no one.
We can’t solve our problems by building walls and sowing division.
We are Stronger Together.
And we will keep getting stronger when Hillary Clinton becomes our next President.
“Here, at our convention, there will be no lies. We will honor the American people with the truth, and nothing else.” – Donald Trump. 7-21-16
“The GOP convention has ended and it’s clear that while the Republican party is divided over their nominee, they are united in their obsession with lying about Hillary Clinton. From deceiving viewers with misleading claims, to making up their own facts, to spreading straight up conspiracy theories, the GOP had no reservations when it came to smearing the former secretary of state,” the Hillary for America campaign responds.
The campaign compiled a list of 172 false and misleading claims told over the course of the convention that were debunked by independent fact checkers.
PolitiFact: “Trump called the United States ‘one of the highest-taxed nations in the world.’ […] [A] reasonable listener could take away from Trump’s remark that he meant taxes overall, particularly given that he set up the line with a joint reference to middle-income Americans and businesses. We rate the claim Mostly False.”
PolitiFact: “Trump said, ‘My opponent wants to essentially abolish the Second Amendment.’ […] We rate Trump’s claim False.”
PolitiFact: “Trump said, ‘In 2009, pre-Hillary, ISIS was not even on the map.’ The terrorist group known as ISIS was, in fact, on the map five years before Clinton became secretary of state. […] We rate this claim Mostly False.”
PolitiFact: “Trump said “Hillary Clinton invented ISIS with her stupid policies. She is responsible for ISIS.” […] This claim is inaccurate. We rate it False.”
CNN: “Trump also said that ‘58% of African-American youth are not employed.’ […] [T]he verdict is false.”
CNN: “Although the actual implementation of the deal with Iran occurred four days after the incident with the U.S. sailors, Trump referenced the signing of the deal which occurred the previous July. We rate his comments as false.”
CNN: “Trump says there’s ‘no way to screen these refugees.’ […] The effectiveness of these procedures may be a matter of debate, but to say that there is ‘no way to screen’ refugees is false.”
CNN: “According to Trump, ‘the Democrats, on the other hand, received 20% fewer votes than they got four years ago.’ […] We rate his claim about the Democratic vote tallies as false.”
CNN: “Trump returned to a common theme of the convention, slamming Clinton for her use of personal email during her tenure as secretary of state. […] Although Clinton did delete more than 30,000 emails, after a forensic examination, the FBI investigation ‘found no evidence’ that the deletions were made to conceal her activity, therefore we rate this claim ”
CNN: “Trump rattled off a litany of events he claimed would make up ‘the legacy of Hillary Clinton.’ […] [W]e rate his claim that the state of the Middle East and Libya are Clinton’s personal legacy as false.”
New York Times: Donald Trump claim: “In our nation’s capital, killings have risen by 50 percent. They are up nearly 60 percent in nearby Baltimore.” “Fact Check: Those statistics are based on an analysis performed by The Washington Post, which found no clear pattern in which cities saw increases in homicides.”
New York Times: Donald Trump claim: “The number of police officers killed in the line of duty has risen by almost 50 percent compared to this point last year.” “Fact Check: In fact, the Officer Down Memorial Page, which tracks officer deaths, reports that 68 police officers have been killed so far this year, almost exactly the same as the 69 who were killed in the same period last year.
New York Times: Donald Trump claim: “Nearly four in 10 African-American children are living in poverty, while 58 percent of African-American youth are not employed.” “Fact Check: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate of African Americans ages 16-19 in June was 31.2 percent.”
New York Times: “Fact Check: The deal does not directly give Iran money, but by easing or terminating sanctions, it would allow Iran to have access to many billions of dollars of its own money that has been frozen in overseas accounts.”
AP: “TRUMP: ‘Decades of progress made in bringing down crime are now being reversed by this administration’s rollback of criminal enforcement.’ […] President Barack Obama has actually achieved some big increases in spending for state and local law enforcement.”
AP: “TRUMP: ‘When a secretary of state illegally stores her emails on a private server…’ […] THE FACTS: Clinton’s use of a private server to store her emails was not illegal under federal law.”
AP: “TRUMP: ‘The number of police officers killed in the line of duty has risen by almost 50 percent compared to this point last year.’ THE FACTS: Not according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.”
AP: “Trump persists in making the bogus claim that the U.S. doesn’t screen refugees.”
AP: “TRUMP: ‘Two million more Latinos are in poverty today than when President Obama took his oath of office less than eight years ago. Another 14 million people have left the workforce entirely. … President Obama has almost doubled our national debt to more than $19 trillion, and growing.’ THE FACTS: Trump is playing with numbers to make the economy look worse than it actually is.”
AP: “TRUMP: ‘America is one of the highest-taxed nations in the world.’ THE FACTS: Trump continues to repeat this inaccuracy.”
AP: “TRUMP: ‘My opponent wants to essentially abolish the Second Amendment.’ THE FACTS: Hillary Clinton has not proposed any revocation of the constitutionally protected right to bear arms.”
AP: “It’s an exaggeration to suggest Clinton, or any secretary of state, is to blame for the widespread instability and violence across the Middle East.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Decades of progress made in bringing down crime are now being reversed by this administration’s rollback of criminal enforcement.’ […] But there’s simply no evidence that a federal ‘rollback of criminal enforcement’ has led to a reversal of those trends. […] Ruling: Baseless.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Homicides last year increased by 17 percent in America’s 50 largest cities. […] But what Trump leaves out is that one of the researchers behind this work, Richard Rosenfeld, has repeatedly said that it’s way too early to say whether this trend is applicable to the rest of the country or whether it truly indicates a reversal to the long-term violent crime drop of the past 25 years.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘The number of police officers killed in the line of duty has risen by almost 50 percent compared to this point last year.’ In fact: This statistic apparently comes from an outdated, poorly worded USA Today headline. But according to the Officer Down Memorial Page, on-duty deaths of police officers are actually down 1 percent in 2016 compared to the same point in 2015. […] Ruling: False.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Nearly 180,000 illegal immigrants with criminal records, ordered deported from our country, are tonight roaming free to threaten peaceful citizens.’ In fact: There are indeed about 180,000 immigrants with criminal records still in the United States who have been ordered deported. But the assumption that all of them are ‘threaten[ing] peaceful citizens’ is deeply questionable.”
Vox: “The reason that Trump is telling this story, of course, is to imply that all unauthorized immigrants are lawless. In fact, immigrants are less likely than citizens to commit crimes. But to Trump and his followers, the very fact that someone doesn’t yet have legal status in the US is proof that he’s on some level a criminal.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘58 percent of African-American youth are not employed.’ In fact: CNN’s Tami Luhby looked into this claim and found that the 58 percent figure was extrapolated from the fact that roughly 42 percent of black Americans ages 16 to 24 were employed as of earlier this year. That’s an erroneous way to calculate; many of those people aren’t unemployed but are simply in school or otherwise not looking for work.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘2 million more Latinos are in poverty today than when President Obama took his oath of office less than eight years ago.’ […] But this isn’t a case where using raw numbers is informative. If you use rates, the Hispanic poverty rate was either roughly unchanged or, using the more accurate metric, reduced in Obama’s time in office.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Another 14 million people have left the workforce entirely.’ […] Ruling: False.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Our trade deficit in goods reached — think of this — our trade deficit is $800 billion last year alone.’ In fact: This is just false. The manufacturing trade deficit is large, but it was $681 billion in 2015, not ‘nearly $800 billion.’ It’s also worth noting that many economists do not consider high trade deficits to be inherently bad.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Our roads and bridges are falling apart, our airports are in Third World condition, and 43 million Americans are on food stamps.’ […] However, claiming that American airports are in Third World conditions is, at best, an exaggeration. According to Priceonomics, which analyzed reviews of 17,000 airports worldwide, America’s still rank among the best.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘The Iran deal … gave back to Iran $150 billion and gave us nothing – it will go down in history as one of the worst deals ever made.’ […] [T]he United States does in fact get something out of the deal: In exchange for unfreezing these assets, Iran is complying with the requirements of the nuclear agreement that makes it much harder for the country to build a nuclear weapon. Ruling: False.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘America is far less safe — and the world is far less stable — than when Obama made the decision to put Hillary Clinton in charge of America’s foreign policy. … I am certain it is a decision that President Obama truly regrets.’ […] [T]he fact that Obama is now actively campaigning on behalf of Hillary Clinton strongly suggests he does not particularly regret the way she performed when she was his secretary of state.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘In 2009, pre-Hillary, ISIS was not even on the map.’ In fact: The group named ISIS (the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) did not formally exist under that name until 2013; however, it was formed out of the remnants of al-Qaeda in Iraq, which dates back to 2004.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘In 2009, pre-Hillary … Iraq was seeing really a reduction in violence.’ […] Iraq’s slide back into full-blown chaos began in 2010, when US troops, under an agreement reached by the Bush administration with former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, began withdrawing from the country in significant numbers.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘In 2009, pre-Hillary … Syria was under control.’ […] The uprising of 2011 plunged the country into chaos, mainly because of the actions of Assad himself, who, rather than leave power, chose to launch a full-scale war against his own people.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Iran is on a path to nuclear weapons.’ […] There is no evidence that Iran is currently pursuing a nuclear weapon in contravention of the deal’s terms. Ruling: False.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘And when a secretary of state illegally stores her emails on a private server, deletes 33,000 of them so the authorities can’t see her crime…’ In fact: The claim that Clinton ‘illegally’ stored her emails has no merit, according to FBI Director James Comey. After an investigation that lasted nearly a year, Comey said he found no evidence that Clinton intentionally broke the law.”
Vox: “Second, when Trump claims Clinton deleted 33,000 emails to cover up a crime, he’s leaving out one key fact: According to Clinton, these were personal emails stored on her private server. And she had no obligation to turn personal emails over to the government.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘When the FBI director says that the secretary of state was ‘extremely careless’ and ‘negligent’ in handling our classified secrets, I also know that these terms are minor compared to what she actually did.’ In fact: FBI Director Comey did indeed use those terms, but Trump’s assertion that what Clinton ‘actually did’ was far worse is utterly baseless — an unsupported smear.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘…that same secretary of state rakes in millions and millions of dollars trading access and favors to special interests and foreign powers.’ […] But no evidence of criminal wrongdoing on the part of either Hillary Clinton or the foundation itself has been found to date, and even Peter Schweizer, the author of a book aimed at exposing the Clinton Foundation’s faults, admits as much.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘There’s no way to screen these refugees in order to find out who they are or where they come from.’ […] Ruling: False.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Decades of record immigration have produced lower wages and higher unemployment for our citizens, especially for African-American and Latino workers.’ […] Ruling: False.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Of all my travels in this country, nothing has affected me more … than the time I have spent with the mothers and fathers who have lost their children to violence spilling across our border. These families have no special interests to represent them. There are no demonstrators to protest on their behalf.’ […] Ruling: False.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘By ending catch and release on the border, we will stop the cycle of human smuggling and violence. Illegal border crossings will go down. We will stop it. It won’t be happening very much anymore. Peace will be restored.’ In fact: Illegal border crossings are already extremely low. […] Ruling: Baseless.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘America is one of the highest-taxed nations in the world. Reducing taxes will cause new companies and new jobs to come roaring back into our country.’ In fact: Among rich countries, America is one of the least-taxed nations in the world. […] Ruling: False.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘Excessive regulation is costing our country as much as $2 trillion a year.’ […] [T]his study doesn’t include any benefits of these regulations (such as, for instance, lower pollution and cleaner air). Failing to include benefits gives a misleading picture”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘We are going to lift the restrictions on the production of American energy. This will produce more than $20 trillion in job-creating economic activity over the next four decades.’ […] David Victor, an energy expert at the University of California San Diego, has called Trump’s $20 trillion number ‘a fantasy’ and ‘off by an order of magnitude.’”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘My opponent, on the other hand, wants to put the great miners and steelworkers of our country out of work — that will never happen when I am president.’ […] But miners would also very likely continue to go out of work even under a President Trump, because the coal industry is being crushed right now by cheap natural gas, collapsing demand from China, and other forces that Trump would have no control over.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘We will repeal and replace disastrous Obamacare. You will be able to choose your own doctor again.’ […] One of the assumptions implicit in Trump’s statement is that right now, it’s particularly hard to see a doctor of one’s choice. But the data doesn’t back that up.”
Vox: “Trump says: ‘My opponent wants to essentially abolish the Second Amendment.’ […] Ruling: False.”
org: “Trump said, ‘Iran is on the path to nuclear weapons.’ But Iran was already on a path to nuclear weapons before Clinton became secretary of state in January 2009.”
org: Trump “also blamed Clinton for the resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. But Clinton […] urged President Obama not to be quick to abandon support for Mubarak.”
org: “Trump claimed Clinton ‘plans a massive … tax increase,’ but tax experts say 95 percent of taxpayers would see ‘little or no change’ in their taxes under Clinton’s plan.”
org: “Trump boasted that under his tax plan, ‘middle-income Americans will experience profound relief.’ Experts say Americans at all income levels would see their taxes reduced under Trump’s plan, but the biggest cuts — both in raw dollars and as a percentage of income — would go to the wealthiest Americans.”
org: “Trump said, ‘America is one of the highest-taxed nations in the world.’ The U.S. has one of the highest business tax rates, but for personal taxes, the U.S. ranked in the bottom half among industrialized nations.”
org: “Trump was correct to say that ‘homicides last year increased by 17 percent in America’s 50 largest cities,’ but criminology and statistics experts disagree with his conclusion that a one-year increase in some cities means that ‘decades of progress made in bringing down crime are now being reversed.’”
org: “Trump twisted the facts when he said that Clinton ‘illegally’ stored emails on her private server while secretary of state, and deleted 33,000 of them ‘so the authorities can’t see her crime.’ The FBI on July 5 cleared Clinton of wrongdoing, and found no evidence of a cover-up.”
org: “Trump said that ‘there’s no way to screen’ those refugees to determine ‘who they are or where they come from.’ That’s false. All refugees admitted to the U.S. go through an extensive vetting process that involves multiple federal agencies and can take up to 24 months to complete.”
org: “Trump also used a bit of cherry-picking when he said, ‘Our trade deficit in goods reached nearly — think of this, think of this — our trade deficit is $800 billion … last year alone.’ The important word here is ‘goods.’ The total trade deficit, counting both goods and services, is smaller.”
org: “Overall, the U.S. trade deficit in goods and services was just over $500 billion last year. And another fact Trump didn’t mention — that figure peaked a decade ago.”
org: “Trump said: ‘Remember, it was Bill Clinton who signed NAFTA, one of the worst economic deals ever made by our country.’ Actually, [NAFTA] was negotiated and signed by President George H.W. Bush.”
org: “Trump criticized Clinton for her ‘failed policy of nation-building and regime change’ and he counted Libya among them. Left unsaid was that Trump also supported the military ouster of Moammar Gadhafi at that time.”
org: “Trump used an often-cited but outdated figure when he said, ‘Household incomes are down more than $4,000 since the year 2000 — that’s 16 years ago.’ Actually, incomes have been rising lately.”
org: “[T]he notion of a 16-year decline is misleading. What Trump failed to mention is that in 2014, real median household income had already risen by $1,052 since hitting a recession-driven low in 2012.”
org: “Trump used a popular false talking point about the Affordable Care Act when he said that he’d repeal it and ‘you will be able to choose your own doctor again.’ The law didn’t take away the ability to choose a doctor.”
org: “Trump repeated an overstatement on the costs of regulation[.] […] Trump said that ‘excessive regulation is costing our country as much as $2 trillion a year,’ but that figure comes from a conservative group’s admitted ‘back-of-the-envelope’ calculation and is an estimate of regulatory costs that does not include potential savings.”
org: “Trump was more careful with his wording in his convention speech, saying only that the Iran deal ‘gave back to Iran $150 billion.’ The deal did result in Iran gaining access to tens of billions in frozen assets. However, experts told us the $150 billion figure is inflated.”
ABC News: “Claim: Hillary Clinton wants to abolish the Second Amendment. Rating: False.”
ABC News: “Claim: America is one of the highest-taxed nations in the world. Status: Mostly False. The U.S. is near the bottom of the list of industrialized countries in terms of taxes as a share of GDP.”
ABC News: “Claim: There is no way to screen Syrian refugees. Rating: False.”
ABC News: “Claim: Hillary Clinton deleted emails to hide other crimes. Rating: Highly Questionable. This is a speculative accusation not supported by evidence.”
ABC News: “Claim: The U.S. gave Iran $150 billion for ‘nothing.’ Rating: False.
ABC News: “Claim: Obama signed the Iran deal just after U.S. sailors were captured by Iran and forced to kneel. Rating: False. The deal was finalized six months earlier.”
ABC News: “Claim: Crime has increased under Obama’s presidency. Rating: False.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “I have a message for all of you: the crime and violence that today afflicts our nation will soon, and I mean very soon, come to an end.” “Policing, public safety and the vast majority of the criminal justice apparatus are controlled by state and local authorities, not the federal government.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “But here, at our convention, there will be no lies. We will honor the American people with the truth, and nothing else.” “Fact checkers might beg to differ. PolitiFact, for instance, has found a number of false statementsuttered at this week’s RNC.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “Homicides last year increased by 17 percent in America’s fifty largest cities.” “[T]here’s a broader context for crime figures: While violent crime may be climbing this year, rates are far below their peak in the early 1990s.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “The number of police officers killed in the line of duty has risen by almost 50% compared to this point last year.” “The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund says as of July 21, 2016, total fatalities this year compared with the same time last year reflect an increase of five deaths, or 8 percent.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “The number of new illegal immigrant families who have crossed the border so far this year already exceeds the entire total from 2015.” “[T]otal apprehensions at the border todayare far, far lower than they were in the early 2000s.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “One more child to sacrifice on the order and on the altar of open borders.” “America does not have ‘open borders.’”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “Nearly 4 in 10 African-American children are living in poverty, while 58% of African-American youth are now not employed.” “[T]he unemployment rate for black Americans ages 16 to 19 was 38.1 percent as of June.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “Another 14 million people have left the workforce entirely.” “The labor force has still been growing — Trump’s 14 million figure might imply that it’s not.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: The Iran Deal “gave back to Iran $150 billion and gave us absolutely nothing – it will go down in history as one of the worst deals ever negotiated.” “PolitiFacthas debunked this — that $150 billion is an estimate (and a high one) of the value of Iranian assets tied up by economic sanctions, according to the site.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “In Libya, our consulate – the symbol of American prestige around the globe – was brought down in flames.” “The diplomatic outpost in Benghazi was not a consulate.”
NPR: “I am certain that [putting Hillary Clinton in charge of America’s foreign policy] was a decision that President Obama truly regrets.” “President Obama has enthusiastically endorsed Clinton, so it would seem unlikely that he regrets choosing her to be his secretary of state.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “Hillary Clinton’s message is that things will never change. Never ever.” “Clinton has reams of plans and proposals to change everything from the nation’s immigration system and criminal justice policies to the way people pay for college.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “And when a Secretary of State illegally stores her emails on a private server, deletes 33,000 of them so the authorities can’t see her crime, puts our country at risk, lies about it in every different form and faces no consequence – I know that corruption has reached a level like never ever before in our country.” “There was no official determination that the private server was illegal.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “When the FBI Director says that the Secretary of State was ‘extremely careless’ and ‘negligent,’ in handling our classified secrets, I also know that these terms are minor compared to what she actually did.” FBI Director Comey “said ‘no reasonable prosecutor’ would charge Clinton with a crime for the emails.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “[W]e will fix [Bernie Sanders’] biggest single issue: trade deals that strip our country of its jobs and strip us of our wealth as a country.” “Sanders had a lot of issues that he was deeply passionate about, including trade, but it wouldn’t be at the top of his list.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “Millions of Democrats will join our movement, because we are going to fix the system so it works fairly and justly for all Americans.” “A recent Pew poll found that just 9 percent of Democratic and Democratic-leaning Sanders supporters said they planned to vote for Trump in the general election.”
NPR: “Trump is saying that he and Pence will improve U.S. trade deals, but trade is just one of several areas on which they differ. Pence has been a strong proponent of free trade in the past, having approved of NAFTA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, as the New York Times”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “I will restore law and order to our country. Believe me. Believe me. I will work with, and appoint, the best and brightest prosecutors and law enforcement officials to get the job properly done.” “[T]hose top federal prosecutors handle a small fraction of violent crime cases in the nation.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: President Obama “has made America a more dangerous environment that frankly that I have ever seen of anybody in this room has ever watched or seen.” “The Brennan Center for Justice says overall crime rates from 2014 to 2015 were ‘nearly identical.’”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “My opponent has called for a […] 550 percent increase in Syrian refugees on top of existing massive refugee flows coming into our country already under the leadership of President Obama.” “In 2015, the U.S. admitted (per the State Department) 1,682 Syrian refugees. That is well under President Obama’s goal. It would be hard to argue that is ‘massive.’”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “Excessive regulation is costing our country as much as $2 trillion a year, and we will end it very, very quickly.” “[A]s the Washington Post’s Fact Checkerhas pointed out, in the past this figure has been characterized as a ‘back of the envelope’ count, and that moreover, it doesn’t make sense to talk about costs without trying to count the benefits of regulation.”
NPR: Donald Trump claim: “My opponent asks her supporters to recite a three-word loyalty pledge. It reads: ‘I’m With Her’.” “‘I’m With Her’ started out as a hashtag and sometimes supporters do chant it at events, but the Clinton campaign doesn’t ask supporters to pledge loyalty by reciting it.”
NBC News: “TRUMP CLAIM: We all remember the images of our sailors being forced to their knees by their Iranian captors at gunpoint. This was just prior to the signing of the Iran deal. THE FACTS: It actually came AFTER the signing of the Iran deal.”
NBC News: “TRUMP CLAIM: Homicides last year increased by 17 percent in America’s fifty largest cities. That’s the largest increase in 25 years. THE FACTS: […] [O]verall, violent crime is down significantly since the 1980s and 1990s, according to FBI statistics.”
NBC News: “TRUMP CLAIM: The number of new illegal immigrant families who have crossed the border so far this year already exceeds the entire total from 2015. THE FACTS: That statistic is true, but it’s also a bit of cherry-picking.”
NBC News: “Trump isn’t correct that 58 percent of African American youth are unemployed.”
NBC News: “Trump is misleading on his claim about Latinos living in poverty.”
NBC News: “TRUMP CLAIM: Where was sanctuary for all the other … Americans who have been so brutally murdered [by undocumented immigrants], and who have suffered so, so horribly? THE FACTS: Researchers have found that first-generation immigrants (legal or not) commit less crime than native-born Americans or second-generation immigrants.”
NBC News: “TRUMP CLAIM: [Hillary Clinton] supported NAFTA, and she supported China’s entrance into the World Trade Organization — another one of her husband’s colossal mistakes and disasters … She supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership. THE FACTS: Trump’s vice-presidential running mate Mike Pence also has praised NAFTA and TPP.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Trump cherry-picks data to paint an alarming picture of homicide trends, when in reality, they have been declining for decades.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “The number of police officers killed in the line of duty has risen by almost 50 percent compared to this point last year.” “This is wrong.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “It’s not clear what Trump is referring to” in saying that “decades of progress made in bringing down crime are now being reversed by this Administration’s rollback of criminal enforcement.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “The number of new illegal immigrant families who have crossed the border so far this year already exceeds the entire total from 2015.” “This is another cherry-picked number.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “Decades of record immigration have produced lower wages and higher unemployment for our citizens, especially for African-American and Latino workers.” “This claim is quite convoluted.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “The official unemployment rate for black youth is about half of what Trump says it is.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Trump is being misleading” in saying that “2 million more Latinos are in poverty today than when the President took his oath of office.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “Another 14 million people have left the workforce entirely.” “Yet another misleading figure.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “Household incomes are down more than $4,000 since the year 2000.” “So it is essentially flat, not down $4,000.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “[Trump] fails to mention that this is actually the lowest number of people receiving food stamps since it reached its peak in 2013.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “America is one of the highest-taxed nations in the world.” “[T]he United States isn’t anywhere near the top among industrialized nations.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “Excessive regulation is costing our country as much as $2 trillion a year.” “Trump presents an unbalanced figure”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Trump frequently misstates the facts about the Iran deal, making it sound like the United States simply shipped $150 billion of taxpayer’s funds to Iran.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Trump falsely calls the Benghazi facility a ‘consulate’ and a ‘symbol of American prestige’ but it was merely an unofficial and temporary facility that had not even been declared to the host government.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “In 2009, pre-Hillary, ISIS was not even on the map. Libya was cooperating. Egypt was peaceful. Iraq was seeing a reduction in violence. Iran was being choked by sanctions. Syria was somewhat under control.” “Aspects are not factually correct.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Trump likes to say ‘others’ have gotten punished for far worse than Hillary Clinton’s private email server, but there are few known cases that are comparable to hers.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Trump has criticized Clinton’s record as secretary of state and donations given to the Clinton Foundation. But critics […] have not been able to prove quid pro quo.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “America has lost nearly-one third of its manufacturing jobs since 1997, following the enactment of disastrous trade deals supported by Bill and Hillary Clinton.” “It is simplistic to pin all of the blame on trade agreements.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Donald Trump claim: “Remember, it was Bill Clinton who signed NAFTA, one of the worst economic deals ever made by our country.” “[NAFTA] was negotiated and signed by President George H.W. Bush.”
New Republic: “Trump is right that many American cities have murder rates that are unacceptable. But there are a lot of problems with this section of the speech, the biggest being that it’s just not really true. Blaming the national government for crime in cities is questionable at best.”
PolitiFact: “Pence said, “It was Hillary Clinton who left Americans in harm’s way in Benghazi and after four Americans fell said, ‘What difference at this point does it make?’” […] We rate Pence’s claim Mostly False.”
PolitiFact: “Ruffin said that Donald Trump ‘always pays his bills promptly.’ […] We rate the statement False.”
PolitiFact: “Scott said, “Our economy is not growing.” […] We rate this claim False.”
PolitiFact: “Glenn said, “Neighborhoods have become more violent under your watch,” referring to President Obama. […] We rate this claim Mostly False.”
CNN: “Priebus’ claim that the deal ‘lined the pockets’ of the Iranian government with American money is also false.”
CNN: “Because Priebus mischaracterized a number of details about the nuclear deal, we rate his claims false.”
CNN: “‘Our nuclear bases still use floppy disks. Our newest fighter jets can’t even fly in the rain,’ Thiel said. […] While the F-35 program continues to be mired with difficulties, we rate this particular claim as false.”
CNN: “Pence criticized the Obama administration’s use of executive orders. “We’ve seen relentless mandates from the executive branch. It seems no aspect of our lives is too small for the present administration to supervise, no provision of the Constitution too large for them to ignore,” Pence said. […] Because the actual count of executive orders issued by Obama is not out of line with those issued by modern day presidents, we rate Pence’s claim to be false.”
CNN: “Cruz also railed against the nuclear deal with Iran, claiming that the country expresses its hostility toward the West with two “holidays”: “Death to America Day” and “Death to Israel Day.” […] Verdict: False.”
CNN: “Donald Trump’s son, Eric, said in his speech that his father invested $2 million of his own money into the refurbishing of an ice skating rink in Central Park because he was ‘disgusted by government incompetence’ when the project ‘dragged on for over six years and ballooned to over $13 million — $5 million over an already inflated budget.’ […] So, while Trump took over the project, Eric’s claim that his father ‘invested $2 million of his own money’ is false.”
CNN: “Trump’s middle son rehashed one of his father’s favorite lines throughout his campaign: that the Obama administration agreed to give $150 billion to Iran as part of the terms of the 2015 nuclear agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. The line remains false.”
CNN: “Hamm, who helped pioneer the shale industry, slammed Obama’s energy policies Wednesday night, saying that restrictions on domestic oil and gas drilling was helping to fund terrorism. […] Therefore we rate the claim that restrictions on domestic oil and gas help “to fund terrorism” false.”
CNN: “We rate Hamm’s claim that Obama “chose not to get’ energy independence as false.”
CNN: “It’s also false to say Clinton wants to ‘eliminate fossil fuel development in America.’”
CNN: “[Michelle Van Etten] said the country needs a president “who will repeal Obamacare and allow small businesses to be able to provide health care for their employees again.” […] Small businesses are not now required to offer health insurance and they didn’t universally do so prior to Obamacare. Because of this, we rate Van Etten’s statement as false.”
AP: Pence and “other Republicans are wrongly accusing Hillary Clinton of speaking with indifference about the death of Americans in Benghazi, Libya — twisting her comments out of context to make their indictment.”
AP: Pence: “‘In my home state of Indiana we prove every day that you can build a growing economy on balanced budgets, low taxes.’ THE FACTS: While true, Pence’s balanced-budget claim isn’t much to brag about. … his biggest contribution to ‘low taxes’ was a reduction of Indiana’s income-tax rate from 3.4 percent to 3.3 percent last year — a savings of about $50 a year for someone with $50,000 in taxable income.”
AP: “NEWT GINGRICH, former House speaker: ‘Iran — the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism — is close to having nuclear weapons.’ […] Before the deal, Iran was just a few months away from having enough weapons-grade uranium to build 10 to 12 nuclear weapons, according to the U.S. government. Now, if Iran were to race toward an atomic weapon, the Obama administration and most independent experts say it would need at least a year, which they say would be enough time to discover the effort and intervene.”
AP: “GINGRICH: ‘So when you hear about Hillary’s dishonesty, or the emails, or taking millions from the Saudis and other Middle Eastern dictatorships — remember, this is not about politics.’ THE FACTS: Clinton was not personally paid for making any speeches in Saudi Arabia or other Mideast nations. […] Most of those donations were made before she took a leadership role in the charity after stepping down as secretary of state in 2013.”
AP: “CRUZ: ‘There is a better vision for our future: A return to freedom. … On health care, your freedom to choose your own doctor, without Obamacare.’ THE FACTS: Without ‘Obamacare’ or some replacement, millions of people would lose health insurance, which could make it tough for them to choose a doctor.”
AP: “FLORIDA GOV. RICK SCOTT: ‘We’ve allowed our military to decay, and we project weakness on the international stage.’ THE FACTS: The U.S. continues to have the most powerful military in the world. […] China, the second-biggest spender, has a defense budget less than a third of the Pentagon’s.”
AP: “GINGRICH: The terrorism danger to the United States ‘is even worse than September 11th, when 19 hijackers murdered almost 3,000 Americans.’ THE FACTS: Such an assertion fits the GOP convention’s theme of raising fears about the nation’s current political leadership, but it’s a stretch to say the danger has escalated since the 9/11 attacks. […] in the last 15 years the nation has spent massively on new security systems. The FBI has reinvented itself into a terrorism-fighting agency, securing surveillance powers that have diminished the likelihood of a coordinated attack in multiple cities.”
Vox: “Ted Cruz is being wildly misleading about Hillary Clinton’s Benghazi reaction […] If you’ve been listening to Republican convention speeches this week, you’ll have heard many, many, many variations on this riff — Republicans aren’t quite sure exactly why it’s Hillary Clinton’s fault that Americans died at Benghazi (spoiler: because it’s not).”
org: “Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, erroneously claimed that the Iran nuclear deal ‘lined the pockets of the world’s number one state sponsor of terrorism with your money.’ Your money? No.”
org: “Priebus also said that ‘a Clinton presidency only means more debt.’ Yes, but Clinton’s plan would result in a ‘relatively small’ increase in the debt, according to the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. On the other hand, the group found that Trump’s tax and spending plan would cause a ‘massive increase’ in the debt.”
org: “Vice presidential nominee Mike Pence said that Hillary Clinton’s ‘only answer’ to the debt ‘is to keep borrowing and spending.’ But the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget found that Trump’s tax and spending plan would cause a ‘massive increase’ in the debt, while Clinton’s plan would result in a ‘relatively small’ increase.”
org: “Pence said ‘we cannot have four more years of apologizing to our enemies,’ an old claim from 2012 that Obama apologized to other countries. […] Our fact-checking colleagues at PolitiFact and the Washington Post Fact Checker reached the same conclusion: Obama never apologized.”
org: “Both Cruz and Pence took a Hillary Clinton quote on the Benghazi terrorist attacks out of context, leaving the false impression that she didn’t care about the deaths of four Americans.”
org: “Eric Trump wrongly claimed that the U.S. is ‘one of the highest-taxed nations in the world.’ Though the U.S. has one of the highest business tax rates, U.S. personal taxes don’t even break the top ten among industrialized nations.”
org: “Florida Gov. Rick Scott claimed the U.S. has ‘world-record high debt,’ when, in fact, it doesn’t, at least by the measure economists prefer. And he said the U.S. economy is ‘not growing,’ when it is.”
org: “Continental Resources CEO Harold Hamm said that ‘America now has more oil than Saudi Arabia or Russia.’ Not so.”
org: “Pastor Darrell Scott was incorrect when he said that minority unemployment had increased under President Obama. In fact, unemployment for African Americans, Hispanics and Asians, the nation’s three largest minority groups, has declined significantly since Obama took office in January 2009.”
ABC News: “Priebus said: ‘It was on her watch ISIS began to spread its wings of evil over the Middle East.’ That is false.”
ABC News: “Claim: Hillary Clinton Took Money from Saudi Government Rating: Misleading. […] There is no evidence that Hillary Clinton personally ‘took’ money from the Saudi government, as Gingrich’s statement implies.”
ABC News: “Claim: Donald Trump set aside his company and global brand to run for president. Status: False.”
ABC News: “Claim: Hillary Clinton turned her back on American officials in Benghazi and lied about the attack […] No investigation has shown Clinton ignored the attack.”
ABC News: Ted Cruz claim: “The U.S. government admits ISIS terrorists as refugees.” “Rating: False. While intelligence gaps abroad means there’s a degree of risk in resettling refugees from Syria and elsewhere, the U.S. employs a thorough, multi-stage vetting process. Recent historical data further undermines this claim.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “This is a carefully phrased statement — note the use of the word ‘helped’ — that tries to pin the blame on Clinton for a complex dynamic that both pre-dates and post-dates her tenure as secretary of state.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Pence really pushes the envelope with this line. Numerous investigations into the September 2012 Benghazi attacks have found that security was inadequate at the Benghazi diplomatic facility, but no evidence has emerged that security requests ever reached Clinton’s level.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Pence’s attack on Hillary Clinton’s claim about coal jobs is another example of taking a statement out of context.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “[Pence] misfires when he criticizes Clinton’s proposals. Clinton proposes $1.45 trillion in new spending, but it would be mostly offset by new revenues.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: Eric Trump: “What had taken [New York City] over half a decade to botch, my father completed in less than six months.” “Actually, New York City ended up paying for this project, which ended up being a nice publicity boost for Trump.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “’If conservative reforms can work in a blue state like mine, they can work anywhere in the country.’ — Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. This was one of Walker’s favorite lines when he was running for president. But … it stretches the truth.”
Haven’t got enough? Here’s critical reports from independent fact checkers from just the first 48 hours of the convention.
Politifact:“Trump said he liked having the convention in Cleveland and that he had recommended Ohio. […] The selection of Cleveland was conducted by the party in 2014, when it wasn’t known who would ultimately win the nomination. We rate Trump’s statement False.”
Politifact:“Donald Trump Jr. said Clinton is proposing ‘destroying Medicare for seniors.’ […] We rate the claimFalse.”
Politifact:“McConnell said that Clinton changed her views on allowing Iran to enrich uranium. […] We rate this claimMostly False.”
Politifact:“Day said that as a senator Clinton ‘paid women less than the men in your office.’ […] We rate this claimMostly False.”
Politifact:“Manafort said, ‘The Clinton camp was the first to get it out there and try to say there was something untoward about the speech that Melania Trump gave.’ […] We rate Manafort’s claim False.”
Politifact:“Duffy said: ‘Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have left us with $19 trillion in debt.’ […] Our rating isMostly False.”
Politifact:“Sabato said Obama is “absolutely” a Muslim. That’s wrong. We rate this claim Pants on Fire!”
Politifact:“Sessions said, ‘There are about 350,000 people who succeed in crossing our borders illegally each year.’ […] The number of immigrants illegally in the country is staying the same or getting smaller. We rate Sessions’ statement False.”
Politifact:“Geist said, “We defied the stand-down orders” during the Benghazi attack. […] Testimony in the House Select Committee on Benghazi report shows there was no stand-down order to defy because there was never an order to not intervene in the unfolding disaster. […] We rate it Mostly False.”
Politifact:“Giuliani said, “Hillary Clinton is for open borders.” […] We rate this claim ”
Politifact:“Sessions said Clinton “has been a champion of globalist trade agreements. … Worst of all, they are now pushing the disastrous 5,554-page Obamatrade — the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement.” […] We rate Sessions’ claim Mostly False.”
CNN:“While Clinton was head of the State Department at the time, Christie says she “fought” to keep [Boko Haram] off the list and there is no evidence that she herself was personally responsible for the delay in the designation. Our verdict: false.”
CNN:“Christie went on to add: […] “what was the solution from the Obama/Clinton team? A hashtag campaign.” […] Therefore we rate the claim that the “solution from the Obama/Clinton team” was a “hashtag campaign” as false.”
CNN:“Christie assumed the role of prosecutor on the RNC stage, arguing that Clinton’s policy in Libya made her “guilty” of “ruining Libya” and “creating a nest for terrorist activity by ISIS. […] because Clinton was neither the first to call for military intervention, nor the only one to plan the administration’s handling of the aftermath, we rate Christie’s claim false.”
CNN:“Donald Trump Jr. said his father would be “a President not beholden to special interests, foreign and domestic and one who funded his entire primary run out of his own pocket just to prove it.” […] His son’s claim is false.”
CNN:“We rate Donald Trump Jr.’s claim that Clinton has proposed destroying Medicare false, however you read the phrase — Clinton has not proposed to destroy Medicare, but to expand it.”
CNN:“So, is Cox correct in his claim that Clinton would abolish the Second Amendment? […] Verdict: False.”
CNN:“Our verdict on McConnell’s charge that Clinton changed positions on Keystone XL: false.”
CNN:“‘Hillary Clinton is promising more of the same. Open borders, executive amnesty and the surge of Syrian refugees,’ said Mike McCaul, R-Texas, the chairman of the Homeland Security Commission. […] Clinton’s proposed policies and past rhetoric do not reflect open borders. That’s false.”
CNN:“Therefore, Sessions’ statement that immigrants have taken all the jobs is false.”
CNN:“Glenn also said American neighborhoods have become more violent since Obama has been in office. […] Glenn’s assertion here is false.”
CNN:“Because Clinton’s role in the attack in Benghazi has been thoroughly investigated and she has been cleared of wrongdoing, we find Smith’s claim of culpability false.”
CNN:“Ernst said the terrorist group’s threat is not limited to the Middle East, but is spreading. “Terrorists from ISIS are in every one of our 50 states,” Ernst said. […] Therefore, we judge her statement false.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“But the security decisions were made well below Clinton’s level and no evidencehas emerged that Clinton was aware of the requests or decided not to provide the requisite level of security.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“But, unlike the implication of Ernst’s statement, Comey did not say that the ISIS terror group was present in each state or that these troubled souls had already become terrorists.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“Trump has made the same claim about Clinton recently, but Giuliani repeating itdoesn’t make it any more correct. Giuliani exaggerates Clinton’s stance on border security and immigration enforcement.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“Recent data show the unauthorized immigrant population has leveled off, whichdoes not support Sessions’s claim.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“But even so, Christie appears to not have been listening to Obama speak about the issue. He’s simply wrong that Obama has been silent on violence in Chicago.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“For example, homicides are a small percentage of the crimes committed by noncitizens, whether they are in the United States illegally or not.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“Our friends at FactCheck.org took an extensive look into the internal data from 2002 to 2008 and found that the median salary for men and women were the same. And the Clintons’ staff had roughly twice as many women as men.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“Christie grossly simplifies a complex debate at the State Department — which actually did not involve Clinton personally.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “This is a mysterious claim by Trump’s son that appears to have no factual basis. There is no specific proposal by Clinton that could be said to ‘destroy’ Medicare, the health-care program for the elderly.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“We’ve looked at this number before, and it’s pretty bogus. […] The $15,000 figure has serious methodological problems — even the report admits it is “not scientific” and “back of the envelope” — and it is especially misleading when the benefit side of the equation is ignored.”
Washington Post Fact Checker:“Trump’s campaign manager tried to pin the blame on the Clinton campaign for the flap over allegations of plagiarism in Melania Trump’s prime-time address Monday night at the Republican National Convention. But no evidence has emerged that is the case; indeed, Manafort has offered no evidence.”
New York Times:“Fact Check: He suggested Mrs. Clinton’s use of a private email server was a crime, something the F.B.I. director had concluded it was not.”
New York Times:“Fact Check: While Mrs. Clinton has said she supports President Obama’s executive actions to allow some illegal immigrants to live and work in the United States, she has not called for “open borders” and her support for accepting Syrian refugees has been limited to 65,000 people, far fewer than the number who were accepted by some European countries.”
New York Times:“Fact check: The Obama administration and Mrs. Clinton opposed the “Buy America” provision because, they said, it was a protectionist measure that could cause a trade war with China in the midst of an economic crisis.”
New York Times:“Fact check: Mrs. Clinton’s comments about Mr. Assad came in an interview in 2011, before much of the bloodshed, when she said that some members of Congress in both parties “believe he’s a reformer.” Some in the George W. Bush administration had also expressed hope that he would be a better leader than his father, Hafez al-Assad. And Mrs. Clinton did not “defend” the atrocities committed by Mr. Assad during the later period of the civil war.”New York Times: “Fact check: Mrs. Clinton was already gone from the administration when Mr. Obama pursued secret negotiations with Cuba, though she did express support for his efforts.”
org:“Donald Trump Jr. distorted Clinton’s gun control proposal, claiming, as his father did, that she wants to ‘take away Americans’ guns.’ Clinton’s gun control proposal doesn’t call for taking away guns.”
org:“Two speakers claimed that Clinton paid women less than men in her Senate office […] The Clinton campaign provided FactCheck.org a list of the names, titles and annual salaries of every full-time person employed in Clinton’s Senate office between 2002 and 2008. Those data show the median salary for men and women to be the same at $40,000. The data also show Clinton hired roughly twice as many women as men.”
org:“Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson and former U.S. Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey both mentioned Clinton’s ‘what difference does it make’ quote on Benghazi, but left out the context of that remark. […] Republicans, like Mukasey, have portrayed the remarks as being uncaring toward the lives lost that night. Johnson himself went on to describe in his speech several victims of terrorists attacks, saying ‘it made a difference’ to them. But Clinton’s full remarks indicate she was concerned about the lives lost.”
org:“Sens. Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia took Clinton’s words on coal-mining jobs out of context. […] Sullivan and Capito ignore her promise to create new jobs for communities hurt by the shift away from coal.”
org:Sen. Shelly Moore Capito “used a one-sided report … to claim that ‘the burden of government regulations in this country amounts to $15,000 a household.’ And she exaggerated the number of coal mining jobs that have been lost since 2011, putting the figure at 60,000, when it’s 36,700.”
org:“Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wrongly said that Clinton was for the Keystone XL pipeline before she was against it. She did not take a position until she opposed the pipeline in 2015.”
org:Sen. Shelly Moore Capito said “the Obama ‘economic agenda’ has led to ‘the lowest workforce participation in decades,’ […] But Obama’s ‘economic agenda’ hasn’t caused the decline in the labor force participation rate, which actually started going down in the late 1990s, a full decade before he took office.”
org:“Sen. Jeff Sessions claimed that ‘respect for America has fallen,’ but the U.S. is viewed more favorably in many countries now than it was before President Obama took office. […] As we’ve written before, the U.S. is viewed more favorably now than it was before Obama took office in 2009.”
org:“Donald Trump Jr. also wrongly said that his father ‘funded his entire primary run out of his own pocket.’ Trump provided about 73 percent of the funding, but not all of it.”
org:“Two security contractors at the CIA annex in Benghazi on Sept. 11, 2012, repeated their claim that they were told to ‘stand down’ and not help Americans under attack. But multiple official reports say such an order was never issued.”
org:“The sister of a slain Border Patrol agent said President Obama has left ‘border patrol agents thinly equipped,’ and undermanned. In fact, both funding and staffing have increased under Obama.”
org:Darryl Glenn, Colorado Republican nominee for Senate, “wrongly suggested that violent crime in the United States had gone up during President Obama’s time in office. The violent crime rate has gone down 20 percent from 2008, the year before Obama was sworn in, and 2014, the most recent statistics available from the FBI.”
org:“Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Rep. Michael McCaul both wrongly claimed that Hillary Clinton supports ‘open borders.’ She supported a bill that would have created a path to citizenship for those in the country illegally, but it also would have increased border security.”
org:Rudy Giuliani said that Hillary Clinton “‘advocated for the overthrow of Moammar Gadhafi in Libya’ and should be ‘accountable’ for the country’s chaos. But he failed to mention that Trump, at the time, also supported the ouster of Gadhafi.”
org:“Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions claimed that wages ‘have fallen,’ when they’re up under Obama. He blamed immigration for a low labor force participation rate, when it’s mainly the result of demographics, including the aging of baby boomers.”
ABC News:“Claim: Hillary Clinton is an “apologist” for Boko Haram. She and Obama responded to its mass kidnapping with a “hashtag campaign.” Rating: ”
ABC News:“Claim: Clinton said that “what difference, at this point, does it make?” in discussing the deaths of Americans in Benghazi. Rating: ”
ABC News:“Claim: U.S. military responders were ordered to “stand down” during the 2012 Benghazi attack. Rating: Highly Questionable. Every investigation ever done on Benghazi concluded there was no “stand down order.”
ABC News: “Claim: ‘No one was ever held accountable’ for Fast & Furious. Rating: False.”
ABC News: Claim: ‘All security had been pulled from the embassy’ in Benghazi. Rating: False
NPR:“There’s been no evidence uncovered of a direct order to “stand down” from mounting a defense of the facilities.”
NBC News:“CLAIM (Rudy Giuliani): ‘Hillary Clinton’s answer to Congress about the death of these four brave Americans [in Benghazi] because of her failures as Secretary of State was ‘what difference at this point does it make?’ […] THE FACTS: According to the video of Clinton’s congressional testimony, Clinton’s ‘what difference at this point does it make’ was over whether the violence in Benghazi was inspired by anti-Islam video or not.”
NBC News:“CLAIM (Melania Trump): ‘Donald intends to represent all the people, not just some of the people. That includes Christians and Jews and Muslims, it includes Hispanics and African Americans and Asians, and the poor and the middle class.’ THE FACTS: In addition to the temporary Muslim travel ban that Trump first proposed in Dec. 2015, Trump has once talked about a ‘Muslim problem’ in a 2011 interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network’s David Brody.”
NBC News:“CLAIM (Rudy Giuliani): ‘…Obama’s Nuclear Agreement with Iran that will eventually let them become a nuclear power and put billions of dollars back into a country that the world’s biggest state sponsor of terrorism.’ […] THE FACTS: The Iran Deal requires that inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency continuously monitor Iran’s nuclear sites to verify that Tehran is keeping its enrichment activities within limits set out in the deal and that none of the fissile material is being moved to covertly build a bomb.”
NBC News:“CLAIM (Jeff Sessions): ‘…From 2000 to 2014, while our existing population increased by millions, the number of jobs held by Americans actually declined. Amazingly, all the net job growth during that period went to immigrants.’ THE FACTS: Sessions is citing the research of the Center for Immigration Studies […] PolitiFact has checked out claims made from this study before and found that this reading of the data is misleading. The organization found that the study looks at jobs for workers 16-65, ignoring the gains for workers over age 65 that existed and ignoring the recession.”
NBC News: “CLAIM (Darryl Glenn, Colorado Senate candidate): ‘Neighborhoods have become more dangerous under [Obama’s] watch’ THE FACTS: While there is some evidence of an increase in violent crime in some large American cities in the last few years, the national trend shows overall crime going down.”
NBC News:Donald Trump: “I wanted it to be in Ohio, I recommended Ohio, and people fought very hard that it be in Ohio.” The Facts: “The Republican National Committee’s Site Selection Committee announced in July 2014 its recommendation of Cleveland, Ohio, as the site of the convention. Donald Trump announced his intention to run for president nearly a year later, in June 2015.”
Star Ledger:“The facts: In actuality, she simply related others’ opinions. ‘There is a different leader in Syria now,” Clinton said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” in 2011, according to Politifact, the Pulitzer Prize-winning fact-checking site. “Many of the members of Congress of both parties who have gone to Syria in recent months have said they believe he’s a reformer.’”
Donald J. Trump took to the stage on the last night of the 2016 Republican National Convention saying he “humbly and gratefully” accept the Republican nomination for president. Then he said that he would not lie to the American people.
Both statements were patent lies.
He proceeded to create a false narrative, a coming apocalypse that only he could save America from.
He lied about the economy, jobslessness, crime, about undocumented immigrants. He contradicted his stated positions.
And if you take him at his word, “I am the law and order candidate” and that from Day One of taking the oath of office, violence will therefore cease, ISIS will be defeated, the only way to understand that is in the context that he intends to make a police state.
That is indicated by his love for expanding intelligence.
First you create a false narrative – that America is sinking into an abyss of violence, bankrupt, that America is weak and humiliated – and then you offer empty promises that everything will be fixed by sheer force of personality.
And holding President Obama and Secretary Clinton to blame for every bad thing that occurs anywhere in the country and in the world, is preposterous – even the coup in Turkey. And yet, the Republicans don’t take any responsibility for four planes that over the course of hours on a single day on Sept. 11, 2001, were able to fly unimpeded, killing more than 3000, for the theft of trillions of dollars in wealth by banksters allowed to flourish in Bush’s laissez-faire deregulated environment, causing millions of Americans to lose their jobs, their homes, their savings and retirement.
“The American People will come first once again. My plan will begin with safety at home – which means safe neighborhoods, secure borders, and protection from terrorism. There can be no prosperity without law and order. On the economy, I will outline reforms to add millions of new jobs and trillions in new wealth that can be used to rebuild America,” Trump declared.
“A number of these reforms that I will outline tonight will be opposed by some of our nation’s most powerful special interests. That is because these interests have rigged our political and economic system for their exclusive benefit.”
A great bulk of his speech was devoted to violence. Indeed, it sounded like he was advocating for gun control – but then he used lies to threaten that if he is not elected, Hillary Clinton will repeal the 2nd Amendment.
Instead, the only remedy to violence here and abroad that he offered sounded a whole lot like a police state – a fact borne out by his declared admiration for Turkey Prime Minister’s Erdogan’s crackdown and purge after a failed military coup (50,000 judges, soldiers, teachers arrested and charged without due process).
“I will work with, and appoint, the best prosecutors and law enforcement officials in the country to get the job done. In this race for the White House, I am the Law And Order candidate. The irresponsible rhetoric of our President, who has used the pulpit of the presidency to divide us by race and color, has made America a more dangerous environment for everyone.
This Administration has failed America’s inner cities. It’s failed them on education. It’s failed them on jobs. It’s failed them on crime. It’s failed them at every level.
When I am President, I will work to ensure that all of our kids are treated equally, and protected equally.
“Every action I take, I will ask myself: does this make life better for young Americans in Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Ferguson who have as much of a right to live out their dreams as any other child America?”
He promises, as if by mere force of his personality, to rid the world of the scourge of radical jihadist terrorism:
“To make life safe in America, we must also address the growing threats we face from outside America: we are going to defeat the barbarians of ISIS….
“To protect us from terrorism, we need to focus on three things.
“We must have the best intelligence gathering operation in the world. We must abandon the failed policy of nation building and regime change that Hillary Clinton pushed in Iraq, Libya, Egypt and Syria. Instead, we must work with all of our allies who share our goal of destroying ISIS and stamping out Islamic terror.
“This includes working with our greatest ally in the region, the State of Israel. Lastly, we must immediately suspend immigration from any nation that has been compromised by terrorism until such time as proven vetting mechanisms have been put in place.”
And yes, build that wall. “We are going to build a great border wall to stop illegal immigration, to stop the gangs and the violence, and to stop the drugs from pouring into our communities. I”
“By ending catch-and-release on the border, we will stop the cycle of human smuggling and violence. Illegal border crossings will go down. Peace will be restored. By enforcing the rules for the millions who overstay their visas, our laws will finally receive the respect they deserve.
“Tonight, I want every American whose demands for immigration security have been denied – and every politician who has denied them – to listen very closely to the words I am about to say.
“On January 21st of 2017, the day after I take the oath of office, Americans will finally wake up in a country where the laws of the United States are enforced. We are going to be considerate and compassionate to everyone.
“But my greatest compassion will be for our own struggling citizens. My plan is the exact opposite of the radical and dangerous immigration policy of Hillary Clinton. Americans want relief from uncontrolled immigration. Communities want relief.”
But Trump, a failed businessman with multiple bankruptcies, who has defrauded and cheated investors, contractors and customers, is promising to lower taxes, eliminate regulations (like on environment and food safety and financial protection), and energy rules, which means promoting extracting of fossil fuels over clean energy.
“I have made billions of dollars in business making deals – now I’m going to make our country rich again. I am going to turn our bad trade agreements into great ones. America has lost nearly-one third of its manufacturing jobs since 1997, following the enactment of disastrous trade deals supported by Bill and Hillary Clinton.
“Remember, it was Bill Clinton who signed NAFTA, one of the worst economic deals ever made by our country.
“Never again.
“I am going to bring our jobs back to Ohio and to America – and I am not going to let companies move to other countries, firing their employees along the way, without consequences.”
Trump promises to overturn public education with school choice – with a dig at teachers unions – and repeal and replace Obamacare (“You will be able to choose your own doctor again,” he declartes, except that you never were able to choose your own doctor because of insurance companies, and you have the same ability now to pay for whatever doctor you want), to fix the TSA and rebuild a “depleted military.”
“We will take care of our great Veterans like they have never been taken care of before. My opponent dismissed the VA scandal as being not widespread – one more sign of how out of touch she really is. We are going to ask every Department Head in government to provide a list of wasteful spending projects that we can eliminate in my first 100 days. The politicians have talked about it, I’m going to do it. We are also going to appoint justices to the United States Supreme Court who will uphold our laws and our Constitution.”
In a payoff to evangelicals, who apparently don’t wield enough political power already, he promises to overturn the law that prevents religious centers from preaching politics or else lose their tax-exempt status – another sign so obviously on view throughout the RNC of Christians seeing the opportunity to turn the US into a theocracy.
Trump promises to bring back jobs, prosperity, eliminate violence and pretends to care about working families, about LGBTQ people.
“When innocent people suffer, because our political system lacks the will, or the courage, or the basic decency to enforce our laws – or worse still, has sold out to some corporate lobbyist for cash – I am not able to look the other way.”
And in a giant wink, suggests he will purge the political system of the power wielded by special interests: “I have joined the political arena so that the powerful can no longer beat up on people that cannot defend themselves. Nobody knows the system better than me, which is why I alone can fix it. I have seen firsthand how the system is rigged against our citizens, just like it was rigged against Bernie Sanders – he never had a chance.”
Closing out his 77 minute speech (longest of any acceptance speech; longer than Obama and Romney’s combined), he said:
“I am your voice.
“So to every parent who dreams for their child, and every child who dreams for their future, I say these words to you tonight: I’m With You, and I will fight for you, and I will win for you.
“To all Americans tonight, in all our cities and towns, I make this promise: We Will Make America Strong Again.
“We Will Make America Proud Again.
“We Will Make America Safe Again.
“And We Will Make America Great Again.”
Problem is, it was all complete and utter crap.
“Donald Trump’s big speech last night was full of false humility, false promises, false sympathy (for minorities, women, and workers), and outright falsehoods. He affirmed various right-wing tropes for his base, but the speech was — at its core — a naked attempt to con the voters Trump and the Republicans need to sway to their side by November,” writes Michael Keegan, President of People for the American Way (PFAW.org).
“Trump also distorted statistics to gin up the anxiety and inflame many of the false perceptions driven by right-wing media lies, oversaturation of sensationalistic news stories, and the violent videos and memes that constantly go viral on social media.
“The entire theme of Trump’s speech was that the country is beset by crises of a historic magnitude and that Trump and ONLY Trump can save us. His speech, which has widely been called “apocalyptic,” made the case that Americans are completely unsafe, and are under siege from enemies both within and outside our borders … that the state of the economy is terrible.
“He said he would fix all of our problems quickly upon taking office — make the streets safe, bring back all of our lost manufacturing jobs, expand opportunity for young people and minorities, and more — but declined to say how.
“He also reminded the crowd that his economic ‘plan’ includes the biggest tax cut of all of this year’s candidates in either major party — weighted heavily for the ultra-rich, of course — but at the same time promised wildly expensive programs, including his infamous border wall — the price tag of which analysts estimate would be at least $25 billion (no, Mexico is not going to pay for it). It’s a recipe for a behemoth deficit … but of course, facts don’t matter … and never have for Trump.
“Now, as if all of that wasn’t scary enough, here’s the really scary part: There are many — too many — Americans that will find all of Trump’s blustery rhetoric and empty promises appealing. If there is anything history has taught, it’s that when people are afraid, they will put power in the hands of strongman leaders who promise safety and national glory. We’re even seeing it right now in other places in the world,” Keegan writes.
Donald Trump’s Republican National Convention in Cleveland was all bluster, bombast, hyperbole and outright lies – designed to raise Hillary Clinton’s negatives and distract from Trump’s utter lack of policy, proposals, agenda, experience or temperament to be president – that demand to be corrected. (These references are supplied by the Hillary for America Campaign):
FBI’s Comey: Emails Reported as “Marked Classified” Were Improperly Marked and Could Be Reasonably Judged as Not Classified
In a key development at today’s House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing, FBI Director James Comey clarified an apparent inconsistency between his remarks earlier this week and Secretary Hillary Clinton’s long-running public statements.
Clinton has long stated that none of the emails she sent or received were marked classified at the time. Comey, however, said Monday that there was a “very small number” of emails that bore markings.
Moments ago, Comey reconciled this apparent contradiction. He acknowledged for the first time that there were only three such emails, and that in each case the emails contained only “partial” markings — meaning, he acknowledged, that they were improperly marked and that as a result, the materials could have been reasonably judged as not classified.
Comey’s statements add to the findings announced by the State Department yesterday. At a press briefing, a State Department spokesman said the markings on these emails were the result of “human error” and did not belong in these emails, as the underlying contents were not classified.
Below is the full exchange just now between Director Comey and Rep. Matt Cartwright:
KEY EXCHANGE WITH DIRECTOR COMEY AND REP. CARTWRIGHT
MATT CARTWRIGHT: You were asked about markings on a few documents, I have the manual here, marking national classified security information. And I don’t think you were given a full chance to talk about those three documents with the little c’s on them. Were they properly documented? Were they properly marked according to the manual?
JAMES COMEY: No.
MATT CARTWRIGHT: According to the manual, and I ask unanimous consent to enter this into the record Mr. Chairman
CHAIRMAN: Without objection so ordered.
MATT CARTWRIGHT: According to the manual, if you’re going to classify something, there has to be a header on the document? Right?
JAMES COMEY: Correct.
MATT CARTWRIGHT: Was there a header on the three documents that we’ve discussed today that had the little c in the text someplace?
JAMES COMEY: No. There were three e-mails, the c was in the body, in the text, but there was no header on the email or in the text.
MATT CARTWRIGHT: So if Secretary Clinton really were an expert about what’s classified and what’s not classified and we’re following the manual, the absence of a header would tell her immediately that those three documents were not classified. Am I correct in that?
JAMES COMEY: That would be a reasonable inference. There Has Never Been Any Evidence Clinton’s Server Was Hacked
Contrary to the baseless speculation and conspiracy theories, there has never been any evidence found to support the allegation that Hillary Clinton’s server was hacked:
NY Times: “Security Logs of Hillary Clinton’s Email Server Are Said to Show No Evidence of Hacking.”
Reuters: “The two sources said the U.S. investigation of Lazar turned up no evidence to support the hacker’s claims that he had broken into Clinton’s private server.”
FBI Director James Comey: “We did not find direct evidence that Secretary Clinton’s personal e-mail domain, in its various configurations since 2009, was successfully hacked.”
FBI Director James Comey: The hacker Guccifer “did not [gain access to Clinton’s server], he admitted that was a lie.”
Vox: “Importantly, the [State Department IG] report doesn’t turn up any evidence that Clinton’s emails were successfully hacked or compromised.”
Factcheck.org: “Trump falsely claimed that the private server that Clinton used as secretary of state “was easily hacked by foreign governments.” Attempts were made to hack into Clinton’s server, but the identity of the hackers has not been determined and there has been no evidence to date that any of them were successful.”
However, the same can not be said for the State Department and other government email systems:
Reuters: State Department’s Unclassified Email Systems Hacked
Washington Post: “The breach is the latest of a series of electronic intrusions first detected last month on government computer systems at a variety of agencies, from the White House to the U.S. Postal Service to the National Weather Service. The suspected hackers of the White House’s computer network were believed to be working for the Russian government.”
About Those “Classified” Emails: FBI Director’s Testimony to House Committee Backed Up Clinton’s Public Statements
Comey: “Marked Classified” Emails Were Improperly Marked and Could Be Reasonably Judged as Not Classified; No Evidence Clinton Ever Knew She Had or Retained Classified Information
In key developments during FBI Director James Comey’s testimony to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing, he clarified an apparent inconsistency between his initial remarks and Secretary Hillary Clinton’s long-running public statements.
During the hearing, Comey acknowledged for the first time that there were only three emails that were supposedly marked classified, and that in each case the emails contained only “partial” markings — meaning, he acknowledged, that they were improperly marked and that as a result, the materials could have been reasonably judged as not classified. A day earlier, a State Department spokesman said the markings on these emails were the result of “human error”and did not belong in these emails, as the underlying contents were not classified.
3 key pieces of Comey’s testimony:
1) Emails reported as “marked classified” were improperly marked.
MATT CARTWRIGHT: I don’t think you were given a full chance to talk about those three documents with the little ‘C’s’ on them. Were they properly documented? Were they properly marked according to the manual? COMEY: No.
2) And those emails could be reasonably judged as not classified. MATT CARTWRIGHT: If Secretary Clinton really were an expert at what’s classified and what’s not classified and we’re following the manual, the absence of a header would tell her immediately that those three documents were not classified. Am I correct in that? | COMEY: That would be a reasonable inference.
3) There’s no evidence Clinton ever knew she had received classified information or intended to retain it on her server. COMEY: There’s not evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that she knew she was receiving classified information or that she intended to retain it on her server.
Day One of Donald Trump’s Convention: Lies About Hillary Clinton
Following in the footsteps of every speech Donald Trump has ever delivered, the first day of the Republican Convention was filled with omissions, exaggerations and lies. Here are a sample of the falsehoods told from the podium:
1. FALSE CLAIM: Former Gov. Linda Lingle: “Clinton and Obama have treated our allies as strangers, insulted their leaders, and ignored their advice and interests.”
TRUTH: America’s standing in the world drastically improved while Hillary Clinton was Secretary of State. 82 percent of countries surveyed by BBC had a more positive view of U.S. influence at the end of Secretary Clinton’s tenure than they did around its beginning (BBC 2009, BBC 2013).
2. FALSE CLAIM: Sen. Pat Roberts: “Hillary Clinton and the Democrats have changed our government. They have taxed us. They have regulated us. They have destroyed our health care system. They have stunned our economy and killed new jobs. They have made our world and our country less safe.
TRUTH:20 million more people have health care thanks to the Affordable Care Act. We’ve seen 72 months of job growth and 14.8 million private sector jobs.
3. FALSE CLAIM: Benghazi Video: “At a 7:30 meeting, Hillary Clinton’s State Department requested that the Marines go in civilian clothes, no military uniforms and no weapons – in a war zone, where Americans were under fire. Because they didn’t want to look like an invasion, because we didn’t want to offend anybody, really?”
TRUTH:PolitiFact: Mostly False: “The delay occurred after the surviving Americans and those who had been killed already had been evacuated to Tripoli.”
4. FALSE CLAIM:John Tiegen: “On three separate occasions, we got told to wait by the chief of base, and we told us to stand down.”
TRUTH:TPM: [M]ultiple fact-checking outlets have found no evidence that such an order was given by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In November 2014, the GOP-led House Intelligence Committee found the CIA properly responded to the Benghazi attacks, debunking residual claims that the CIA delayed its response or missed the opening for a possible rescue mission.
5. FALSE CLAIM: Sen. Pat Roberts: “Are we really ready to accept a different standard for the elites than for the rest of us? But that decision will no longer be made by a confused FBI or the administration’s Department of Justice.”
TRUTH: The FBI’s decision was not confused – it was unanimous. Republican FBI Director James Comey said unequivocally that “no reasonable prosecutor would bring this case.” And he made perfectly clear that Clinton did not receive preferable treatment – to the contrary, he said that pursuing charges against her would have been applying a double standard: “That would be celebrity hunting. That would be treating this person differently than John Doe.”
6. FALSE CLAIM: Rep. Mike McCaul: “And now Hillary Clinton is promising more of the same: open borders…”
TRUTH:Politifact: “This is a huge distortion of Clinton’s proposals. Clinton has praised work already done to secure the border, and she said she supported a 2013 bill that would have invested billions more in border security while creating a path to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants. Her plan calls for protecting the border and targeting deportation to criminals and security threats. Her plan would make it easier for many undocumented immigrants to avoid deportation, but that’s not the same as ending all enforcement. We rate this claim False.” (And they rated it false tonight too)
7. FALSE CLAIM: Rep. Mike McCaul: “When four Americans were murdered and Benghazi burned, it burned, she blamed it on a video.”
TRUTH:Washington Post Fact-Checker: There is “little support for [the] claim that Clinton told the American people that the attacks were because of a video. She certainly spoke about the video, but always in the context of the protests that were occurring across the Middle East.”
8. FALSE CLAIM: Rep. Sean Duffy and Rachel Campos-Duffy on rules of their household: “And no lying. Especially to the FBI.”
TRUTH:Reuters: “FBI Director James Comey told lawmakers on Thursday that Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton did not lie to the FBI about her handling of emails as secretary of state and did not break the law.”
COMEY: “I don’t think the [FBI] agents assessed she was evasive [in their 3.5 hour interview with Hillary Clinton.]”
FALSE CLAIM:Sen. Jeff Sessions: “Worst of all, they are now pushing the disastrous 5,000-page ‘Obamatrade’ – the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement.”
TRUTH:PolitiFact: “[Sessions is] painting Clinton’s position on free trade with an overly broad brush and is just plain wrong on her supporting for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP.”
10. FALSE CLAIM:Fmr. Mayor Rudy Giuliani: “[Hillary Clinton’s] dereliction of duty and failure to keep her people safe played a major role, as you heard tonight, in the horrific Islamic terrorist murders on September 11 and 12, 2012 in Benghazi, which claimed the lives of four brave Americans.”
TRUTH:Huffington Post: House Republicans Spent Millions Of Dollars On Benghazi Committee To Exonerate Clinton: “After spending more than two years and $7 million, the House Select Committee on Benghazi released a report Tuesday that found — like eight investigations before it — no evidence of wrongdoing by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or other members of the Obama administration.”
11. FALSE CLAIM:Lt. General Michael Flynn: President Obama and Hillary Clinton pursued a strategy of “coddling and displays of empathy toward terrorists”
Allegations of “Stand Down” Order Have Been Widely Debunked
In their continued quest to politically damage Hillary Clinton, Republicans have falsely claimed that Clinton told former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and U.S military personnel to ‘stand down’ in the wake of the Benghazi attacks. This unfounded allegation has been widely debunked:
Multiple bipartisan investigations have concluded that no ‘stand down’ order was ever issued to U.S. military personnel in Tripoli.
Even Republicans from the House Armed Services Committee have refuted this claim.
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence found no evidence of obstruction in mobilizing CIA security teams to respond to the attacks.
Secretary Panetta and General Dempsey have both confirmed Clinton did not in fact communicate with them on the night of the attacks. General Dempsey also stated that no limitations were placed on the military’s reaction to the attack.
AFRICOM Commander General Carter Ham has said no one under his command received a “stand down” order from Clinton.
The Commander of Special Operations in Tripoli at the time, Rear Admiral Brian Losey, publically stated “there was never an order to stand down.”
In fact, contrary to the GOP’s erroneous allegations, military assets were allocated and mobilized to address the crisis. The military’s ability to respond was limited—not because of Clinton or any official’s doing— but due to the status of U.S. forces that night and the speed of the attacks that unfolded:
The AFRICOM Command Center was given access to “every capability that was available and as quickly it could move.”
General Dempsey stated he was instructed “to use all available assets to respond to the attacks.”
Buck McKeon, Republican Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said the “military did what it reasonably could during a chaotic night.”
Admiral Mike Mullen, who was the only military member of the Accountability Review Board (ARB) concluded that the “U.S. did everything it could on the night of the attack.”
Even former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, claimed in an interview, “had I been in the job at the time of the Benghazi attacks…. I think my decisions would have been just as theirs were.”
The fact is, all of the numerous official sources analyzing the military response –from the countless interviews with military officials, to congressional reports, to the Independent Accountability Review Board—have concluded that the military did everything it could, given the circumstances, in their response to the attacks. Even Republicans have openly acknowledged DOD’s inability to “respond immediately to every conceivable global contingency.”
The House Benghazi Committee’s Investigation Was A Purely Partisan Exercise That Still Found No Wrongdoing By Hillary Clinton
The Select Committee on Benghazi was a taxpayer-funded attack vehicle targeting Hillary Clinton. Despite spending two years and more than $7 million of taxpayer money, Republicans still were unable to find any evidence to back up their wild conspiracy theories and accusations against Hillary Clinton.
Washington Post:Republicans’ Benghazi goose chase comes up empty
LA Times: Republicans release Benghazi report with no new evidence against Hillary Clinton
LA Times: Editorial: After two years and $7 million in tax dollars, the latest Benghazi report tells the same old story
Bloomberg: Benghazi Report Has No Major Revelations About Clinton’s Role
Miami Herald: Editorial: In effort to trap Hillary Clinton, Benghazi committee produces a dud
Huffington Post: House Republicans Spent Millions Of Dollars On Benghazi Committee To Exonerate Clinton
Even Republicans confirmed the partisan nature of the Committee.
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy: “Everybody thought Hillary Clinton was unbeatable right? We put together a Benghazi special committee, a select committee. What are her numbers today? Her numbers are dropping.”
Republican Congressman Richard Hanna: “This may not be politically correct, but I think that there was a big part of this investigation that was designed to go after people and an individual, Hillary Clinton.”
CNN: “A former investigator with the House Select Committee on Benghazi is accusing the Republican-led panel of carrying out a politically motivated investigation targeting former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton instead of the thorough and objective fact-finding mission it was set up to pursue.”
NYT:“Senior Republican officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were discussing confidential conversations, said that Mr. Boehner had long been suspicious of the administration’s handling of the attacks and that Mrs. Clinton’s emails gave him a way to keep the issue alive and to cause political problems for her campaign.” Even leading conservative voice Bill O’Reilly weighed in: “If you don’t think the Benghazi thing is political, of course it’s political.”
Chris Stevens’ Family: Don’t Blame Hillary Clinton For Benghazi
Rudy Giuliani just ran through a series of debunked conspiracy theories in order to put partisan blame on Hillary Clinton for the tragic attacks in Benghazi. Here’s what Anne Stevens, the sister of Ambassador Chris Stevens has said about it:
Whom do you fault for the lack of security that resulted in the death of your brother, in Benghazi?
“I do not blame Hillary Clinton or Leon Panetta. They were balancing security efforts at embassies and missions around the world. And their staffs were doing their best to provide what they could with the resources they had. The Benghazi Mission was understaffed. We know that now. But, again, Chris knew that. It wasn’t a secret to him. He decided to take the risk to go there. It is not something they did to him. It is something he took on himself.” – Dr. Anne Stevens, the sister of Ambassador Chris Stevens.
What did you think of Secretary Clinton’s conduct on Benghazi?
“She has taken full responsibility, being head of the State Department, for what occurred. She took measures to respond to the review board’s recommendations. She established better programs for a better security system. But it is never going to be perfect. Part of being a diplomat is being out in the community. We all recognize that there’s risk in serving in a dangerous environment. Chris thought that was very important, and he probably would have done it again. I don’t see any usefulness in continuing to criticize here. It is very unjust.” – Dr. Anne Stevens, the sister of Ambassador Chris Stevens.
The False Claim That Hillary Clinton Supports “Open Borders”
In an attempt to distract voters from his own divisive immigration policies, Donald Trump and his allies have falsely said Hillary Clinton wants to “create totally open borders.”
Politifact: “This is a huge distortion of Clinton’s proposals. Clinton has praised work already done to secure the border, and she said she supported a 2013 bill that would have invested billions more in border security while creating a path to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants. Her plan calls for protecting the border and targeting deportation to criminals and security threats. Her plan would make it easier for many undocumented immigrants to avoid deportation, but that’s not the same as ending all enforcement. We rate this claim False.”
Trump’s False Claim that Clinton Will Repeal the 2nd Amendment
Chris Cox just parroted Donald Trump’s false claim that Hillary Clinton wants to repeal the 2nd Amendment. This debunked claim couldn’t be farther from the truth. In reality, Clinton believes that we can have common sense gun safety measures consistent with the Second Amendment and has repeatedly stated we can protect it while also protecting our families and communities
She will advocate for comprehensive federal background check legislation.
She will close the “Charleston loophole,” which allows any gun sale to proceed if a background check is not completed within three business days.
Hold dealers and manufacturers fully accountable if they endanger Americans:
She will repeal the gun industry’s unique immunity protection due to lobbying by the NRA.
She will revoke the licenses of bad dealers, such as those that supply guns to straw purchasers and traffickers.
Keep guns out of the hands of suspected terrorists, domestic abusers, other violent criminals and the severely mentally ill.
Clinton said “If you are too dangerous to fly, you are too dangerous to buy a gun, period.” She will insist on comprehensive background checks prevent suspected terrorists from buying guns.
She will support legislation to prohibit all domestic abusers and individuals suffering from severe mental illnesses from buying and possessing guns.
She will make straw purchasing a federal crime.
FLASHBACK: Support For Libyan Intervention Was Widespread, Including Trump and Pence
Donald Trump and his allies love to attack Hillary Clinton over the Libyan intervention. Curiously, they never seem to mention that Trump himself supported it. Repeatedly. And on his own video blog. And his running mate, Mike Pence backed the intervention as well, publicly thanking then-Secretary Clinton for her efforts on Libya.
BuzzFeed: Trump Claims He Didn’t Support Libya Intervention — But He Did, On Video
Trump, 2011: “I can’t believe what our country is doing. Qaddafi in Libya is killing thousands of people…. But we have go in to save these lives; these people are being slaughtered like animals. It’s horrible what’s going on; it has to be stopped. We should do on a humanitarian basis, immediately go into Libya, knock this guy out very quickly, very surgically, very effectively, and save the lives.”
Trump, 2011: “at this point, if you don’t get rid of Gadhafi, it’s a major, major black eye for this country.”
BuzzFeed: Mike Pence Publicly Thanked Hillary Clinton In 2011 For Her Efforts On Libya. Pence: “I also want to thank you, specifically, for the efforts by the administration and your offices to further isolate Libya during a time of extraordinary tragedy in the streets, tragedy of which I think we’re probably only partially aware.”
Donald Trump’s lies and hypocrisy aside, the reality is that in 2011, support for the Libyan intervention was widespread, at home and abroad. There was strong bipartisan support from U.S. leaders at home for the administration’s effort to impede Qadhafi’s brutality, and our closest NATO allies, partners in the region, and Libyan people were all making urgent calls for U.S. action.
Top Republicans were making calls for bold American leadership in this international crisis:
Feb. 22, 2011 – John McCain and Joe Lieberman: “The horrific situation in Libya demands more than just public condemnation; it requires strong international action. … Some Libyan diplomats have bravely called for a no-fly zone to stop the Qaddafi regime’s use of airpower to attack Libyan civilians. We support this course of action.”
Feb. 24, 2011 – Marco Rubio: “We should immediately engage willing partners to limit the regime’s ability to wage war against its own citizens. These measures could include (but are not limited to) pressing bordering nations to stop the flow of mercenaries into Libya, finding ways to restore severed communications, imposing a no-fly zone to protect civilians against aircraft attacks, and mobilizing a humanitarian relief effort.”
Feb. 28, 2011 – Lindsey Graham: “What I would suggest is that we really keep implementing U.N. sanctions on the economic side, on the travel side, go after assets. And a no fly zone would make a lot of sense to me.”
Feb. 28, 2011 – Susan Collins: “I do believe our allies may be able to join together with us to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya to help protect the people from Gadhafi,” she said. “Any actions that we take I believe should be in concert with our allies.”
March 1, 2011 – By unanimous consent, the Senate adopts a resolution urging the UN Security Council to take “further action to protect civilians in Libya from attack, including the possible imposition of a no-fly zone over Libyan territory.”
March 7, 2011 – Newt Gingrich: “Exercise a no-fly zone this evening, communicate to the Libyan military that Gadhafi was gone … All we have to say is that we think that slaughtering your own citizens is unacceptable and that we’re intervening. And we don’t have to send troops. All we have to do is suppress his air force…”
March 13, 2011 – John McCain: “First, the president [Barack Obama] should recognize Libya’s transitional national council, which is based in Benghazi but representative of communities across the country, as the sole legitimate governing authority of Libya, just as France has done. Second, the president should take immediate steps to implement a no-fly zone in Libya with international support.”
March 30, 2011 – Marco Rubio, to Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid: “I am writing to seek your support for bringing a bi-partisan resolution to the Senate floor authorizing the President’s decision to participate in allied military action in Libya. Furthermore, this resolution should also state that removing Muammar Qaddafi from power is in our national interest and therefore should authorize the President to accomplish this goal. To that end, the resolution should urge the President to immediately recognize the Interim Transitional National Council as the legitimate government in Libya
Day Two of Donald Trump’s Convention: Lies About Hillary Clinton
Day two of the Republican Convention built on the litany of lies heard on day one and every day since the beginning of Donald Trump’s candidacy. Once again, there were too many to count, but here are a sample of the falsehoods told from the podium:
FALSE CLAIM: Donald Trump Jr.: “Mark [Geist] was one of the men who received frantic phone calls from his buddies at the compound [in Benghazi]. Calls that pleaded for help. Calls that he and his team tried to answer. But calls that didn’t save all his friends, because Secretary Clinton’s State Department had ignored their requests for help, both on the night in question and even in the weeks and months leading up to the attack.”
TRUTH: Washington Post: “[S]ecurity decisions were made well below Clinton’s level and no evidence has emerged that Clinton was aware of the requests or decided not to provide the requisite level of security.”
FALSE CLAIM: Donald Trump Jr.: “Hillary Clinton is a risk Americans can’t afford to take. She said she’ll issue executive orders to take away Americans’ guns. She wants to appoint judges who will abolish the Second Amendment.”
TRUTH: PolitiFact: False. “We found no evidence of Clinton ever saying verbatim or suggesting explicitly that she wants to abolish the Second Amendment, and the bulk of Clinton’s comments suggest the opposite. She has repeatedly said she wants to protect the right to bear arms while enacting measures to prevent gun violence.”
FALSE CLAIM: Donald Trump Jr.: “Rather than being energy independent, our country will be forced to remain beholden to her buddies in the Middle East.”
TRUTH: Hillary Clinton has released a comprehensive plan to invest in modernizing our energy infrastructure to make America the clean energy superpower of the 21st century and continue to reduce our reliance on foreign oil.
FALSE CLAIM: Donald Trump Jr.: “A president who will repeal and replace Obamacare without leaving our most vulnerable citizens without health care and who will do it without destroying Medicare for seniors, as Hillary Clinton has proposed.”
TRUTH: Hillary Clinton fought throughout her career to protect Medicare and has released plans to preserve and strengthen Medicare as president. The idea that she has put forth proposals that would destroy Medicare is ludicrous.
FALSE CLAIM: Gov. Chris Christie: “In Syria, imagine this, imagine this, she called President Assad a ‘reformer.’”
TRUTH:Washington Post’s Josh Rogin: “Christie is wrong. Hillary did not call Assad a reformer. She referred to that Kerry did. Facts are stubborn things.”
FALSE CLAIM: Gov. Chris Christie: “In Nigeria, Hillary Clinton amazingly fought for two years to keep an Al-Qaeda affiliate off of the terrorist watch list…. These Al-Qaeda terrorists abducted hundreds of innocent young woman two years ago. These schoolgirls are still missing today. And what was the solution from the Obama/Clinton team? A hashtag campaign! Now let’s figure it out, let’s decide. Hillary Clinton, as an apologist for an Al-Qaeda affiliate in Nigeria resulting in the capture of innocent young women, is she guilty or not guilty?”
TRUTH: This attack is very wrong on many levels:
Hillary Clinton condemned the group’s unjustifiable use of violence in 2011 and worked to crack down on them as Secretary of State. She took the unprecedented step of designating their key leaders as terrorists.
Clinton’s State Department didn’t designate Boko Haram as a Foreign Terror Organization because experts, including George W. Bush’s ambassador to Nigeria, warned this would elevate the group and help them fundraise and recruit.
The appalling 2014 attack, which Clinton swiftly and aggressively condemned, took place several months after Secretary Kerry’s State Department designated Boko Haram as an FTO – sadly, it did nothing to prevent the attacks.
FALSE CLAIM: Gov. Chris Christie: “She said there was no marked classified information on her server. The FBI Director said that’s untrue.”
TRUTH:FactCheck.org: “[FBI Director Comey] said three emails had ‘portion markings’ on them indicating that they were classified, but they were not properly marked”
FALSE CLAIM: GOP Co-Chairman Sharon Day: “She repeatedly plays the gender card. In fact, she boasts, ‘deal me in.’ Well, Mrs. Clinton, consider yourself dealt in. Because as a Senator, you paid women less than the men in your office.”
TRUTH:PolitiFact: Florida’s Sharon Day misleads on Hillary Clinton and gender pay gap: “The data show a median salary of $40,000 for both men and women receiving official Senate pay over those seven years (excluding Clinton’s pay, since all senators have the same salary set by law.) The median salary remains equal if you factor in non-Senate work, too.”
FALSE CLAIM: Gov. Asa Hutchinson: “Hillary Clinton’s radical attempts at so-called ‘reform’ of the nation’s healthcare system would have been more destructive than even Obamacare has been.”
TRUTH: 20 million more Americans have health care as a result of the Affordable Care Act. As First Lady, Clinton worked with Democrats and Republicans to help expand health care to 8 million children. And as president, she’s vowed to strengthen and improve ACA, work with governors to expand Medicaid, and give states the opportunity to pursue a public option and a Medicare opt-in for adults over 55.
FALSE CLAIM: Gov. Asa Hutchinson: “Hillary Clinton’s bad judgment, as you heard last night, left us four dead Americans in Benghazi.”
TRUTH: Huffington Post: “After spending more than two years and $7 million, the House Select Committee on Benghazi released a report Tuesday that found — like eight investigations before it — no evidence of wrongdoing by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or other members of the Obama administration.”
FALSE CLAIM: Sen. Ron Johnson: “[Hillary Clinton] hatched her cover-up story and repeatedly lied to the American people” about what inspired the tragic attacks in Benghazi.
TRUTH:Washington Post Fact-Checker: There is “little support for [the] claim that Clinton told the American people that the attacks were because of a video. She certainly spoke about the video, but always in the context of the protests that were occurring across the Middle East.”
FALSE CLAIM: NRA’s Chris Cox: “In case you’re wondering where Hillary Clinton stands. She said, quote, ‘the Supreme Court is wrong on the Second Amendment.’ Think about that. All the Supreme Court said was that you have the right to protect your life in your own home.”
TRUTH: FactCheck.org: “Clinton’s gun violence prevention proposal would impose restrictions, including a ban on semi-automatic ‘assault weapons,’ but it does not call for banning all guns…. Asked about Clinton’s remarks about the Second Amendment, Clinton campaign spokesman Josh Schwerin confirmed that Clinton was referring to the Heller case. He said Clinton ‘believes Heller was wrongly decided in that cities and states should have the power to craft common sense laws to keep their residents safe.’”
FALSE CLAIM: Majority Leader Mitch McConnell: “Once a backer of the Keystone pipeline, last year [Hillary Clinton] opposed it.”
TRUTH: PolitiFact, after Clinton announced her opposition to the Keystone Pipeline: “Clinton said, ‘I never took a position on Keystone until I took a position on Keystone.’… We rate Clinton’s position a No Flip.”
Day Three of Donald Trump’s Convention: Lies About Hillary Clinton
Third time was not the charm for the speakers at the Republican National Convention trying to stick to the facts when talking about Hillary Clinton. Once again, there were too many lies, distortions and exaggerations to count, but here are a sample of the falsehoods told from the podium.
But, to start, just for good measure, one lie from the stage about Donald Trump:
FALSE CLAIM: Businessman, Phil Ruffin: “He always pays his bills promptly. You won’t hear that. Promptly.”
TRUTH:PolitiFact: “ USA Today investigation found a large number of lawsuits — at least 60, plus hundreds of liens, judgments and other filings — because people have accused Trump of failing to pay for services rendered or products delivered. The complaints even come from law firms that had formerly represented Trump in these types of lawsuits. […] We rate the statement False.”
And now back to the lies about Hillary Clinton…
FALSE CLAIM:Mike Pence: And it was Hillary Clinton who left Americans in harm’s way in Benghazi and after four Americans fell, said “What difference at this point does it make?”
TRUTH:ABC News: “Claim: Clinton said that ‘what difference, at this point, does it make?’ in discussing the deaths of Americans in Benghazi. Rating: False.”
2, FALSE CLAIM:VP Nominee Mike Pence: “You know, it was Hillary Clinton who helped to undo all the gains of the troop surge, a staggering failure of judgment”
TRUTH:AP Fact Check: “And she had nothing to do with the ‘disastrous strategy’ of giving a departure date from Iraq. It was the George W. Bush administration that announced the planned withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq in 2008.”
3. FALSE CLAIM: Laura Ingraham: “Hillary Clinton, she does not believe in borders.”
TRUTH:PolitiFact, two days ago, on the claim, “Hillary Clinton is for open borders.” – False.
4. FALSE CLAIM: Kentucky State Sen. Ralph Alvarado: “I have a message for one more person – Hillary Clinton, you failed the Hispanic community and you don’t deserve our vote.”
5. FALSE CLAIM:Oil mogul Harold Hamm: “Hillary Clinton would eliminate fossil fuel development in America, she would kill jobs, drive up gasoline prices and increase oil imports from her enemies”
TRUTH: Hillary Clinton’s energy plan specifically calls for ensuring that fossil fuel production taking place today is safe and responsible, and for investing in clean energy technology to make America the clean energy superpower of the 21st century.
6. FALSE CLAIM: Sen. Marco Rubio: “[Hillary Clinton] planted the seeds for the disaster we now know as Obamacare.”
7. FALSE CLAIM: Sen. Marco Rubio: “She was a key figure in implementing Barack Obama’s shameful foreign policy record of appeasing our enemies and betraying our allies and diminishing our role in world.”
TRUTH:Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates: “In a world that is ever more complex, turbulent and dangerous, Secretary Clinton….has made a singular contribution to strengthening this country’s relationships with allies”
8. FALSE CLAIM: Former Speaker Newt Gingrich: “ We know that Hillary Clinton lied to us knowingly about the terror attack on our Benghazi consulate.
TRUTH:Washington Post Fact-Checker: There is “little support for [the] claim that Clinton told the American people that the attacks were because of a video. She certainly spoke about the video, but always in the context of the protests that were occurring across the Middle East.”
9. FALSE CLAIM: Former Speaker Newt Gingrich: “We know that Hillary Clinton and President Obama lie to the American people when they say they can safely screen the Syrian refugees. They cannot.”
TRUTH:CNN: “to say that there is no way to screen refugees or that Clinton believes that they should not be vetted is false.”
Independent Fact Checkers Weigh in on GOP Convention: “False,” “Simply Wrong,” “No Evidence,” “No Factual Basis,” Distorted”
The Republican National Convention has reached its midway point and the number of lies, distortions and exaggerations has been staggering. With positive words for Donald Trump few and far between, Republican speakers have resorted to their only real strategy – lie about Hillary Clinton.
Below are a sampling of the critical reports from independent fact checkers from just the last 48 hours:
“The Republican recipe: Take an ambiguous set of facts. Add in some innuendo. Arrange the facts in the most suspicious-seeming way. Then level an allegation that cannot be disproven.” – Michael Tomasky,Daily Beast
Politifact: “Trump said he liked having the convention in Cleveland and that he had recommended Ohio. […] The selection of Cleveland was conducted by the party in 2014, when it wasn’t known who would ultimately win the nomination. We rate Trump’s statement False.”
Politifact: “Donald Trump Jr. said Clinton is proposing ‘destroying Medicare for seniors.’ […] We rate the claim False.”
Politifact: “McConnell said that Clinton changed her views on allowing Iran to enrich uranium. […] We rate this claim Mostly False.”
Politifact: “Day said that as a senator Clinton ‘paid women less than the men in your office.’ […] We rate this claim Mostly False.”
Politifact: “Manafort said, ‘The Clinton camp was the first to get it out there and try to say there was something untoward about the speech that Melania Trump gave.’ […] We rate Manafort’s claim False.”
Politifact: “Duffy said: ‘Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have left us with $19 trillion in debt.’ […] Our rating is Mostly False.”
Politifact: “Sabato said Obama is “absolutely” a Muslim. That’s wrong. We rate this claim Pants on Fire!”
Politifact: “Sessions said, ‘There are about 350,000 people who succeed in crossing our borders illegally each year.’ […] The number of immigrants illegally in the country is staying the same or getting smaller. We rate Sessions’ statement False.”
Politifact: “Geist said, “We defied the stand-down orders” during the Benghazi attack. […] Testimony in the House Select Committee on Benghazi report shows there was no stand-down order to defy because there was never an order to not intervene in the unfolding disaster. […] We rate it Mostly False.”
Politifact: “Giuliani said, “Hillary Clinton is for open borders.” […] We rate this claim False.”
Politifact: “Sessions said Clinton “has been a champion of globalist trade agreements. … Worst of all, they are now pushing the disastrous 5,554-page Obamatrade — the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement.” […] We rate Sessions’ claim Mostly False.”
CNN: “While Clinton was head of the State Department at the time, Christie says she “fought” to keep [Boko Haram] off the list and there is no evidence that she herself was personally responsible for the delay in the designation. Our verdict: false.”
CNN: “Christie went on to add: […] “what was the solution from the Obama/Clinton team? A hashtag campaign.” […] Therefore we rate the claim that the “solution from the Obama/Clinton team” was a “hashtag campaign” as false.”
CNN: “Christie assumed the role of prosecutor on the RNC stage, arguing that Clinton’s policy in Libya made her “guilty” of “ruining Libya” and “creating a nest for terrorist activity by ISIS. […] because Clinton was neither the first to call for military intervention, nor the only one to plan the administration’s handling of the aftermath, we rate Christie’s claim false.”
CNN: “Donald Trump Jr. said his father would be “a President not beholden to special interests, foreign and domestic and one who funded his entire primary run out of his own pocket just to prove it.” […] His son’s claim is false.”
CNN: “We rate Donald Trump Jr.’s claim that Clinton has proposed destroying Medicare false, however you read the phrase — Clinton has not proposed to destroy Medicare, but to expand it.”
CNN: “So, is Cox correct in his claim that Clinton would abolish the Second Amendment? […] Verdict: False.”
CNN: “Our verdict on McConnell’s charge that Clinton changed positions on Keystone XL: false.”
CNN: “‘Hillary Clinton is promising more of the same. Open borders, executive amnesty and the surge of Syrian refugees,’ said Mike McCaul, R-Texas, the chairman of the Homeland Security Commission. […] Clinton’s proposed policies and past rhetoric do not reflect open borders. That’s false.”
CNN: “Therefore, Sessions’ statement that immigrants have taken all the jobs is false.”
CNN: “Glenn also said American neighborhoods have become more violent since Obama has been in office. […] Glenn’s assertion here is false.”
CNN: “Because Clinton’s role in the attack in Benghazi has been thoroughly investigated and she has been cleared of wrongdoing, we find Smith’s claim of culpability false.”
CNN: “Ernst said the terrorist group’s threat is not limited to the Middle East, but is spreading. “Terrorists from ISIS are in every one of our 50 states,” Ernst said. […] Therefore, we judge her statement false.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “But the security decisions were made well below Clinton’s level and no evidence has emerged that Clinton was aware of the requests or decided not to provide the requisite level of security.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “But, unlike the implication of Ernst’s statement, Comey did not say that the ISIS terror group was present in each state or that these troubled souls had already become terrorists.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Trump has made the same claim about Clinton recently, but Giuliani repeating it doesn’t make it any more correct. Giuliani exaggerates Clinton’s stance on border security and immigration enforcement.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Recent data show the unauthorized immigrant population has leveled off, which does not support Sessions’s claim.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “But even so, Christie appears to not have been listening to Obama speak about the issue. He’s simply wrong that Obama has been silent on violence in Chicago.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “For example, homicides are a small percentage of the crimes committed by noncitizens, whether they are in the United States illegally or not.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Our friends at FactCheck.org took an extensive look into the internal data from 2002 to 2008 and found that the median salary for men and women were the same. And the Clintons’ staff had roughly twice as many women as men.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Christie grossly simplifies a complex debate at the State Department — which actually did not involve Clinton personally.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “This is a mysterious claim by Trump’s son that appears to have no factual basis. There is no specific proposal by Clinton that could be said to ‘destroy’ Medicare, the health-care program for the elderly.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “We’ve looked at this number before, and it’s pretty bogus. […] The $15,000 figure has serious methodological problems — even the report admits it is “not scientific” and “back of the envelope” — and it is especially misleading when the benefit side of the equation is ignored.”
Washington Post Fact Checker: “Trump’s campaign manager tried to pin the blame on the Clinton campaign for the flap over allegations of plagiarism in Melania Trump’s prime-time address Monday night at the Republican National Convention. But no evidence has emerged that is the case; indeed, Manafort has offered no evidence.”
New York Times: “Fact Check: He suggested Mrs. Clinton’s use of a private email server was a crime, something the F.B.I. director had concluded it was not.”
New York Times: “Fact Check: While Mrs. Clinton has said she supports President Obama’s executive actions to allow some illegal immigrants to live and work in the United States, she has not called for “open borders” and her support for accepting Syrian refugees has been limited to 65,000 people, far fewer than the number who were accepted by some European countries.”
New York Times: “Fact check: The Obama administration and Mrs. Clinton opposed the “Buy America” provision because, they said, it was a protectionist measure that could cause a trade war with Chinain the midst of an economic crisis.”
New York Times: “Fact check: Mrs. Clinton’s comments about Mr. Assad came in an interview in 2011, before much of the bloodshed, when she said that some members of Congress in both parties “believe he’s a reformer.” Some in the George W. Bush administration had also expressed hope that he would be a better leader than his father, Hafez al-Assad. And Mrs. Clinton did not “defend” the atrocities committed by Mr. Assad during the later period of the civil war.”New York Times: “Fact check: Mrs. Clinton was already gone from the administration when Mr. Obama pursued secret negotiations with Cuba, though she did express support for his efforts.”
Factcheck.org: “Donald Trump Jr. distortedClinton’s gun control proposal, claiming, as his father did, that she wants to ‘take away Americans’ guns.’ Clinton’s gun control proposal doesn’t call for taking away guns.”
Factcheck.org: “Two speakers claimed that Clinton paid women less than men in her Senate office […] The Clinton campaign provided FactCheck.org a list of the names, titles and annual salaries of every full-time person employed in Clinton’s Senate office between 2002 and 2008. Those data show the median salary for men and women to be the same at $40,000. The data also show Clinton hired roughly twice as many women as men.”
Factcheck.org: “Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson and former U.S. Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey both mentioned Clinton’s ‘what difference does it make’ quote on Benghazi, but left out the context of that remark. […] Republicans, like Mukasey, have portrayed the remarks as being uncaring toward the lives lost that night. Johnson himself went on to describe in his speech several victims of terrorists attacks, saying ‘it made a difference’ to them. But Clinton’s full remarks indicate she was concerned about the lives lost.”
Factcheck.org: “Sens. Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia took Clinton’s words on coal-mining jobs out of context. […] Sullivan and Capito ignore her promise to create new jobs for communities hurt by the shift away from coal.”
Factcheck.org: Sen. Shelly Moore Capito “used a one-sided report … to claim that ‘the burden of government regulations in this country amounts to $15,000 a household.’ And she exaggerated the number of coal mining jobs that have been lost since 2011, putting the figure at 60,000, when it’s 36,700.”
Factcheck.org: “Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wrongly said that Clinton was for the Keystone XL pipeline before she was against it. She did not take a position until she opposed the pipeline in 2015.”
Factcheck.org: Sen. Shelly Moore Capito said “the Obama ‘economic agenda’ has led to ‘the lowest workforce participation in decades,’ […] But Obama’s ‘economic agenda’ hasn’t caused the decline in the labor force participation rate, which actually started going down in the late 1990s, a full decade before he took office.”
Factcheck.org: “Sen. Jeff Sessions claimed that ‘respect for America has fallen,’ but the U.S. is viewed more favorably in many countries now than it was before President Obama took office. […] As we’ve written before, the U.S. is viewed more favorably now than it was before Obama took office in 2009.”
Factcheck.org: “Donald Trump Jr. also wrongly said that his father ‘funded his entire primary run out of his own pocket.’ Trump provided about 73 percent of the funding, but not all of it.”
Factcheck.org: “Two security contractors at the CIA annex in Benghazi on Sept. 11, 2012, repeated their claim that they were told to ‘stand down’ and not help Americans under attack. But multiple official reports say such an order was never issued.”
Factcheck.org: “The sister of a slain Border Patrol agent said President Obama has left ‘border patrol agents thinly equipped,’ and undermanned. In fact, both funding and staffing have increased under Obama.”
Factcheck.org: Darryl Glenn, Colorado Republican nominee for Senate, “wrongly suggested that violent crime in the United States had gone up during President Obama’s time in office. The violent crime rate has gone down 20 percent from 2008, the year before Obama was sworn in, and 2014, the most recent statistics available from the FBI.”
Factcheck.org: “Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Rep. Michael McCaul both wrongly claimedthat Hillary Clinton supports ‘open borders.’ She supported a bill that would have created a path to citizenship for those in the country illegally, but it also would have increased border security.”
Factcheck.org: Rudy Giuliani said that Hillary Clinton “‘advocated for the overthrow of Moammar Gadhafi in Libya’ and should be ‘accountable’ for the country’s chaos. But he failed to mention that Trump, at the time, also supported the ouster of Gadhafi.”
Factcheck.org: “Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions claimed that wages ‘have fallen,’ when they’re upunder Obama. He blamed immigration for a low labor force participation rate, when it’s mainly the result of demographics, including the aging of baby boomers.”
ABC News: “Claim: Hillary Clinton is an “apologist” for Boko Haram. She and Obama responded to its mass kidnapping with a “hashtag campaign.” Rating: False.”
ABC News: “Claim: Clinton said that “what difference, at this point, does it make?” in discussing the deaths of Americans in Benghazi. Rating: False.”
ABC News: “Claim: U.S. military responders were ordered to “stand down” during the 2012 Benghazi attack. Rating: Highly Questionable. Every investigation ever done on Benghazi concluded there was no “stand down order.”
ABC News: “Claim: ‘No one was ever held accountable’ for Fast & Furious. Rating: False.”
ABC News: Claim: ‘All security had been pulled from the embassy’ in Benghazi. Rating: False
NPR: “There’s been no evidence uncovered of a direct order to “stand down” from mounting a defense of the facilities.”
NBC News: “CLAIM (Rudy Giuliani): ‘Hillary Clinton’s answer to Congress about the death of these four brave Americans [in Benghazi] because of her failures as Secretary of State was ‘what difference at this point does it make?’ […] THE FACTS: According to the video of Clinton’s congressional testimony, Clinton’s ‘what difference at this point does it make’ was over whether the violence in Benghazi was inspired by anti-Islam video or not.”
NBC News: “CLAIM (Melania Trump): ‘Donald intends to represent all the people, not just some of the people. That includes Christians and Jews and Muslims, it includes Hispanics and African Americans and Asians, and the poor and the middle class.’ THE FACTS: In addition to the temporary Muslim travel ban that Trump first proposed in Dec. 2015, Trump has once talked about a ‘Muslim problem’ in a 2011 interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network’s David Brody.”
NBC News: “CLAIM (Rudy Giuliani): ‘…Obama’s Nuclear Agreement with Iran that will eventually let them become a nuclear power and put billions of dollars back into a country that the world’s biggest state sponsor of terrorism.’ […] THE FACTS: The Iran Deal requires that inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency continuously monitor Iran’s nuclear sites to verify that Tehran is keeping its enrichment activities within limits set out in the deal and that none of the fissile material is being moved to covertly build a bomb.”
NBC News: “CLAIM (Jeff Sessions): ‘…From 2000 to 2014, while our existing population increased by millions, the number of jobs held by Americans actually declined. Amazingly, all the net job growth during that period went to immigrants.’ THE FACTS: Sessions is citing the research of the Center for Immigration Studies […] PolitiFact has checked out claims made from this study before and found that this reading of the data is misleading. The organization found that the study looks at jobs for workers 16-65, ignoring the gains for workers over age 65 that existed and ignoring the recession.”
NBC News: “CLAIM (Darryl Glenn, Colorado Senate candidate): ‘Neighborhoods have become more dangerous under [Obama’s] watch’ THE FACTS: While there is some evidence of an increase in violent crime in some large American cities in the last few years, the national trend shows overall crime going down.”
NBC News: Donald Trump: “I wanted it to be in Ohio, I recommended Ohio, and people fought very hard that it be in Ohio.” The Facts: “The Republican National Committee’s Site Selection Committee announced in July 2014 its recommendation of Cleveland, Ohio, as the site of the convention. Donald Trump announced his intention to run for president nearly a year later, in June 2015.”
Star Ledger: “The facts: In actuality, she simply related others’ opinions. ‘There is a different leader in Syria now,” Clinton said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” in 2011, according to Politifact, the Pulitzer Prize-winning fact-checking site. “Many of the members of Congress of both parties who have gone to Syria in recent months have said they believe he’s a reformer.’”
Hatred pumped up by lies. That is what characterized the Republican National Convention. Not policy pronouncements that would solve the problems facing this country or the world. Platitudes. Slogans. Lies, beginning with Melania’s plagiarism (denied for days).
There was notable disinterest in the first two days of the Trump Republican Convention. The first night, Make America Safe offered no actual solutions around that theme, just one tirade after another against Hillary Clinton. Oh yes, we learned how Donald Trump holds high values and is trustworthy from his third wife Melania, who plagiarized those lines directly from Michelle Obama’s 2008 speech to the Democratic National Convention. Barack Obama, Donald Trump. It’s all the same, apparently.
Oh yes, we learned what an adoring father Donald Trump was – writing notes on report cards – from Tiffany Trump, his daughter by second wife Marla, who grew up with her mother in California, so it is curious what father-daughter experiences she was referring to.
But the delegates did come together, like a frightening lynch mob, during the mock trial conducted by the guy auditioning for Trump’s Attorney General: Chris Christie, the guy who abused the power of his office, who obstructed justice and destroyed evidence and really did put lives at risk with Bridgegate. Five of his administration – including David Samson, Christie’s BPF (best political friend) and henchman, who Christie gave the plum appointment of heading the multi-billion dollar Port Authority of NY & NJ – have already been convicted. But Christie worked the mob to a frenzy. This must have been what the Salem Witch Trials were like.
By the end, the mob were screaming “Lock her Up” and one Trump aide, New Hampshire State Senator Al Baldasaro was actually being investigated by Secret Service, after he called for Hillary Clinton’s execution for “treason.”
You know who actually committed treason? David Petreaus, the former CIA Chief, who that same crowd would have cheered to have as a candidate for President.
The other irony was George W. Bush’s Attorney General Michael Mukasey accusing Clinton of violating the Constitution. This was the guy who was complicit as Bush shredded the Constitution over habeus corpus (remember that?), torture, lying to Congress and the American people to launch a preemptive invasion into a country that never attacked the US.
Indeed, it is a campaign built on hatred, on demonizing, vilifying, fear-mongering – and even just watching on TV was chilling: like watching a frenzied Nazi rally.
The further irony is how they keep using the frustration and anger that voters feel because of the dysfunction, inaction by the Republicans who have done everything to obstruct the very policies Obama has proposed to raise wages, create jobs (American Jobs Act), invest in infrastructure, to say that Trump is the guy because he will bring people together! How does that happen when his entire campaign is fueled by hatred, division, bigotry, racism, scapegoating.
It comes down to Trump’s new slogan, “I am the Law and Order candidate.” Except these people don’t respect the federal government (that is when a Democrat, a Black-American is in the Oval Office). Trump’s call to lift restrictions on guns (and his lie that Clinton wants to repeal the 2nd Amendment), is all about these people wanting to be arm themselves against the government – manifested in the slaying of police officers in Dallas and Baton Rouge. That is the realization of what they have advocated, only it becomes heinous when it is a black revolutionary, rather than a white man like Bundy, threatening to kill federal agents who come to arrest him for failing to pay $1 million in fees to the American people.
Not to mention that Trump doesn’t propose anything to actually make homes, communities, or the country safer. The RNC speakers threw out hollow phrases – about increasing wages, helping “everyone” succeed, improving education. How? How? How?
And yet, even as Trump’s VP pick Mike Pence was saying, “Vote for Trump because he will support our allies,” Trump was telling the New York Times he would not defend Balkan states, members of NATO, if Russia chose to “Crimea” them, and would tear up (uh, “renegotiate”) treaties.
The upside/downside Alice-in-Wonderland world (as so well visualized by Rudolph Giuliani, continues in every subject that was thrown out, like complete BS: Gingrich saying that Trump would invest in infrastructure, even as Republican platform promises to defund mass transit in favor of highways, cancel clean energy in favor of coal.
The lies and attacks It is all the tactic that the Republicans like that evil Machiavellian Karl Rove used so successfully of attacking opponents for the sins/crimes they have committed.
That’s Trump’s entire campaign strategy, why he is so ready to attack Bill Clinton for his adultery when Trump is a serial adulterer (didn’t bother the Preacher at the opening convocation who pronounced Trump ordained by Jesus, a true messenger of Jesus). Why Trump, who has built his business around fraud , bullying, cheating and taking advantage of others,needs to build on this fabrication of Hillary as “crooked”, a “liar”.
Their tactic is to set up a false narrative, one that strikes deeply, emotionally, and then strike it down. For example, this from a fund-raising letter from Eric Trump. “The Obama-Clinton liberals want us to sit back and accept the idea that America is no longer the leader of the free world. They want us to fall in line behind the United Nations. They want us to stop thinking of America as the “land of the free, home of the brave.” They want us to apologize for America.”
Complete and utter balderdash.
Trump has already proved himself to be as ignorant, idiotic, incurious and “from the gut” as George W (‘I’m the Decider”) Bush and as autocratic, paranoid and ruthless as Richard “Dirty Tricks” Nixon (“If the President does it, then it’s not illegal.)
Which means that Trump will be rallying the state elections officials to do whatever they can to suppress, impede, depress voting in Democratic neighborhoods – whether that means sending thugs to challenge voters’ credentials, too few machines or voting hours to accommodate people, or other deceptive tactics.
I write this column as the Republican National Convention that will coronate Donald Trump as its nominee for President, gets underway in Cleveland, Ohio. Tonight’s theme is “Keep America Safe.” To present this theme, he has on the program his wife and former NYC Mayor Rudolph Guiliani.
The Donald had just named his VP pick: Indiana Governor Mike Pence, cheering disgruntled Tea Party right-wingers who distrusted Trump’s bonafides as a rabid regressive.
The problem many GOPers have with Trump (and what led to an opening gavel protest) isn’t his racism, misogyny, his adoration for despicable despots like Putin, Saddam Hussein and Kim Jong Un, or even his deceit, his cheating of veterans, small businessowners, investors and failures as a businessman (Trump’s supposed advantage) – it is that Trump isn’t dependably anti-civil rights and anti-human rights – that is, not sufficiently and dependably a Christian conservative, that he can’t be counted on to strip women of their reproductive freedom, or to deny LGBT their rights and dignity. What is more, he has had the audacity to break with the Corporatists who own the Republican party in challenging trade agreements and the TPP.
But in picking Indiana Governor Mike Pence (over the bullying criminal Chris Christie or Newt Gingrich), they have a calmer, more politically astute, more solidly and dependably anti-woman, anti-immigrant, anti-gay autocrat who has already proved his bonafides by shutting down the government in order to extort the repeal of Obamacare.
According to Pence, Trump’s main attribute is that he has tapped into the frustration of Americans “like no other since Reagan.” Add to that “fear” and “anger” and you have the complete package. But while Trump has been able to corral the so-called “angry [white] voter by casting himself as the anti-establishment, outside-Washington guy (all non-National electeds do that), a businessman, not a politician, he tapped in Pence the poster boy for why voters feel so angry and frustrated, alienated and cynical over the dysfunction of government. When 66% of Americans say the country is on the “wrong track” for a sizeable proportion of the “wrong trackers,” it’s not because of what Obama has done, but what Republicans have obstructed.
Pence, who spent six terms in Congress and was a central figure in the Tea Party, supported the government shut down, holding the entire nation hostage to Tea Party extortion to repeal Obamacare. The Tea Party would rather destroy the US economy, see people lose their jobs, homes, retirement, rather than support a woman’s right to choose or every Americans’ right to life-saving health care. He is part and parcel of the ruling elite responsible for stagnant wages, massive college debt, who voted for the Iraq War that contributed to the rise of ISIS (the list goes on and on).
Pence may be more reserved, more dignified, dare I say, more presidential in his demeanor that his boss, The Don, but his policies and rabid ideology are more venal.
The difference is that while Trump sounds like a bumbling, stumbling fool when he attempts to express any idea beyond bombastic sloganeering – and there are people who dismiss his most radical ideas saying “he doesn’t really mean it”, Pence not only speaks in controlled complete sentences, is effective at using political dodges, but has a record.
He is particularly abominable on Women’s Reproductive Rights. In his 12 years in the House of Representatives, Pence cosponsored legislation that would make abortion illegal nationwide in almost all cases and ban some of the most common forms of contraception; in 2006. He led the fight to defund Planned Parenthood, even bringing the federal government to the brink of a shutdown. He voted for the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, a law to give separate legal status to an embryo or a fetus and voted to impose a new, impossibly complex national patchwork of parental-notification mandates on doctors and young women. In 2011, he co-sponsored a bill that allowed hospitals to refuse to perform an abortion on a woman who needed one to live and co-sponsored a federal personhood amendment, the “Life At Conception” Act.
He shut down the only HIV testing center in Scott County, Indiana — in the name of preventing HIV/AIDS. That county later experienced what the press called “an exploding HIV outbreak.”
Last year, Pence proudly signed the “Religious Freedom Restoration Act,” essentially making it legal for businesses in Indiana to discriminate against LGBTQ individuals and families.
He supports voucherizing Medicare, raising the eligibility age and privatizing Social Security.
He thinks climate change is a hoax. “Global warming is a myth. The global warming treaty is a disaster. There, I said it.”
An advocate for gun rights, Pence voted to loosen restrictions on guns purchased across state lines; voted to keep victims from holding firearm manufacturers financially responsible for crimes committed at gunpoint; allowed guns to be brought onto school property; and at the NRA’s 2016 Leadership Forum, championed looser conceal carry regulations.
He’s been a consistent opponent of comprehensive immigration reform; in 2010, he opposed a pathway to citizenship; in 2009, he supported revoking birthright citizenship for children of immigrants; and in 2006, advanced an immigration proposal to deport millions of immigrant families.
All of these policies have been codified in the most regressive GOP platform ever proposed.
Supports Trump’s Call to Expand Torture
In Congress, Pence derived those who opposed torture by saying that it was a “somewhat absurd thought that you could move people who have masterminded the death of 3,000 Americans by Oprah Winfrey methods.”
In his first interview after being named Trump’s VP, he told Leslie Stahl on “60 Minutes,” (www.cbsnews.com/news/60-minutes-trump-pence-republican-ticket ), he doubled down to make it clear he agreed with Trump’s policy to expand the use of torture, saying, “What I’m OK with– what I’m OK with is protecting the American people. …what I can tell you is enhanced information gleaned information that saved American lives and, I was informed, prevented incoming terrorist attacks on this country from being successful. The American people expect the president of the United States to be prepared to support action to protect the people of this nation, and I know Donald Trump will.”
But getting back to the theme of the RNC’s first night, making America Safe (again), restoring law and order – there is nothing that Trump or Pence have proposed that would actually accomplish that, or that either one have a clue – beyond the force of Trump’s strongman personality.
We got a taste of that during Lesley Stahl’s interview with Trump/Pence on “60 Minutes” (www.cbsnews.com/news/60-minutes-trump-pence-republican-ticket/):
Pointing to the Nice terror attack, the Dallas and Baton Route police shootings – the world “spinning apart” (in Trump’s words), Stahl asks, “Are you ready for this world that we are facing today?”
Trump replies, “We’re both ready. I’ve no doubt. We need toughness. We need strength. Obama’s weak, Hillary’s weak. And part of it is that, a big part of it. We need law and order. We need strong borders.”
But when pressed about what that would actually mean – does he propose sending more American troops into the fight? How would “strength” have prevented the Nice terror attack, or the failed coup in Turkey?
“Well, as a president, I’m going to be– you know, they’ve been an ally and I stay with our allies. They have been an ally. But that was a quick coup. I was actually surprised to see how well it was handled. And you know who really handled it? The people. So, I mean, we can say what we want, but the people handled it. When they surrounded the army tanks and without the people, you would’ve never had it. The military would’ve taken over.” (No comment about how Turkey President Erdogan is using the coup to cement anti-democratic, autocratic control or how he is pushing to make Turkey an Islamic, not a secular, state.)
To which Pence chimes in, “But I truly do believe that the larger issue here is declining American power in the world. I truly do believe that history teaches that weakness arouses evil and whether it be the horrific attack in France, the inspired attacks here in the United States, the instability in Turkey that led to a coup. I think that is all a result of a foreign policy of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama that has led from behind and that has sent an inexact, unclear message about American resolve. One of the reasons why I said yes in a heartbeat to run with this man, is because he embodies American strength, and I know that he will provide that kind of broad-shouldered American strength on the global stage as well.”
Since “Keeping America Safe” is the essence, really, of the Trump hate-filled campaign, it is really curious how the evening’s speakers did not cast an iota of detail how Trump/Pence would actually accomplish that, short of throwing around wounding sound bites. Indeed, most of the night was devoted to accusing Hillary Clinton of various crimes (Benghazi), but all the accusations were based on outright lies. And even Melania Trump’s speech was plagiarized from Michelle Obama’s 2008 speech to the Democratic National Convention (the part she intended about Donald’s values and trustworthiness), rather than reveal anything real about her husband’s qualities to be president, or shed any light on the need for comprehensive immigration reform.
Donald Trump’s 45 minute attack on Hillary Clinton on June 22 – a rebuttal of sort to her scathing attack on Trump as someone who would crash the economy rather than create jobs – sounds like a desperate reaction to the building negatives his presidential campaign is facing as reporters begin to expose his hypocrisies and failures.
The New York Times today reported how he is funneling millions of dollars of campaign spending back to his own businesses and relatives: In May, the biggest-ticket item was Mr. Trump’s use of the Mar-a-Lago Club, his Florida resort, which was paid $423,000. The campaign paid $350,000 to TAG Air for his private airplanes, $125,000 to Trump Restaurants and more than $170,000 to Trump Tower, the Manhattan skyscraper that houses the campaign’s headquarters….” And said, “the presumptive Republican nominee, who points to his business acumen as a case for his candidacy, is trying to do what he has suggested he would in 2000 when he mulled making an independent run: ‘It’s very possible that I could be the first presidential candidate to run and make money on it.’” (Donald Trump’s Self-Funding Includes Payments to Family and His Companies).
The Hillary for America Campaign also offered its own fact-checking.
Fact Check: 15 Biggest Lies in Trump’s Speech Attacking Hillary Clinton
In his speech attacking Hillary Clinton Wednesday, Donald Trump — Politifact’s reigning ‘Liar of the Year’ — resorted to a litany of hypocritical attacks, nutty conspiracy theories and outright lies.
Many of the most outrageous attacks were long ago discredited by independent fact checkers, but Trump is still peddling them.
Here is a breakdown of 15 of Trump’s biggest lies about Clinton in his Wednesday speech:
LIE: “Ambassador Stevens and his staff in Libya made hundreds of requests for security. Hillary Clinton’s State Department refused them all.” FACT CHECK: Trump made a similar allegation before, and the Washington Post Fact Checker called it a “whopper.”
LIE: “Under her plan, we would admit hundreds of thousands of refugees from the most dangerous countries on Earth – with no way to screen who they are or what they believe.” FACT CHECK: Hillary Clinton has called for being “vigilant in screening and vetting refugees from Syria.” Moreover, Politifact has rated the claim that there was no way to screen refugees from the Middle East as “false.”
LIE: “For the amount of money Hillary Clinton would like to spend on refugees, we could rebuild every inner city in America.” FACT CHECK: To date, the only financial commitment Hillary Clinton has specified along these lines is $15 million to broadly support the integration of immigrants, including refugees. And an independent analysis of the potential cost associated with resettling an additional 70,000 refugees–as Clinton proposed last year–has pegged the price tag at $582 million. By comparison, the cost to rebuild the city of Detroit alone is $1.25 billion, according to the city’s emergency manager.
LIE:“Thanks to Hillary Clinton, Iran is now the dominant Islamic power in the Middle East, and on the road to nuclear weapons.” FACT CHECK:Politifact rated the claim that Iran is on the road to nuclear weapons “false,” saying, “the terms of the deal expressly forbid pursuing a militarized nuclear program.”
LIE: “Hillary Clinton’s State Department approved the transfer of 20% of America’s uranium holdings to Russia, while 9 investors in the deal funneled $145 million to the Clinton Foundation.” FACT CHECK:According to Factcheck.org, “the author of ‘Clinton Cash’ falsely claimed Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State had ‘veto power and ‘could have stopped’ Russia from buying a company with extensive uranium mining operations in the U.S.” In fact, the State Department was just one member of a nine-agency panel that reviewed this transaction. The panel was led by the Treasury Department, not State, and Hillary Clinton was never personally involved in the consideration of the deal.
LIE: “Hillary’s Wall Street immigration agenda will keep immigrant communities poor, and unemployed Americans out of work.” FACT CHECK: Comprehensive immigration reform would boost economic growth and increase the size of the labor force.
LIE:Hillary Clinton “has even deleted this record of total support [for TPP] from her book.” FACT CHECK: According to NBC News, “The cuts were part of 96 pages of cuts made to account for the paperback’s smaller size, according to a publisher’s note. But not all of them were cut: there’s still two pages praising the deal, or at least the idea of it.”
LIE:“Among the victims is our late Ambassador, Chris Stevens. He was left helpless to die as Hillary Clinton soundly slept in her bed — that’s right, when the phone rang at 3 o’clock in the morning, she was sleeping.” FACT CHECK: According to Factcheck.org, “Trump is certainly entitled to his opinion, but the evidence shows Clinton was fully engaged in the immediate response, and subsequent congressional investigations concluded the government response to the attack — including Clinton’s — was appropriate.”
LIE: “She has pledged to grant mass amnesty and in her first 100 days, end virtually all immigration enforcement, and thus create totally open borders in the United States.” FACT CHECK: While Hillary Clinton has pledged to push for comprehensive immigration reform in her first 100 days, Politifact has given a ruling of “Pants on Fire” to the claim that such a plan would equal “mass amnesty.” In fact, in her memoir, Hard Choices, Clinton wrote that she supported the 2013 Senate immigration bill, which included unprecedented investments in border security, along with a path to citizenship.
LIE: “To cover her tracks, Hillary lied about a video being the cause of his death.” FACT CHECK: According to the Washington Post Fact Checker, “Clinton says that in speaking with the families, she did not blame the Benghazi attacks on the video. Most participants we interviewed (four out of six) back up her version, saying they do not recall her mentioning a video.”
LIE: “She helped force out a friendly regime in Egypt and replace it with the radical Muslim Brotherhood.” FACT CHECK: According to the New York Times, “Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton warned on Sunday that removing President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt too hastily could threaten the country’s transition to democracy.”
LIE: Hillary Clinton’s foreign policy has “unleashed ISIS across the world.” FACT CHECK:Politifact looked at a similar claim Jeb Bush made and rated it “Mostly False.”
LIE: “To cover-up her corrupt dealings, Hillary Clinton illegally stashed her State Department emails on a private server.” FACT CHECK:Independent experts like Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists have said there was no criminal aspect to her use of a private email server. Additionally the Wall Street Journal reported that federal officials do not expect criminal charges to be filed as part of the Justice Department’s ongoing review of the private email system.
LIE:“Her server was easily hacked by foreign governments – perhaps even by her financial backers in Communist China – putting all of America in danger.” FACT CHECK:The New York Times reported that security logs show no evidence of foreign hacking.
LIE: “Hillary Clinton appointed a top donor to a national security board with top secret access – even though he had no national security credentials.” FACT CHECK: Contrary to Trump’s claim, the appointee in question actually serves on the Board of Directors of the American Security Project, the Foreign Policy Program Leadership Committee at the Brookings Institution, and on the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Brigadier General Stephen A. Cheney, a member of the national security board to which Fernando was appointed, said Fernando’s “expertise in cyber-security is a great asset to our national security.” Brookings executive vice president and former U.S. ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk said of Fernando: “I’ve always valued his foreign policy insights.”
