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How does PolitiFact Georgia’s Truth-O-Meter work?
Our goal is to help you find the truth in American politics. Reporters from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution fact-check statements by local, state and national political leaders, including lobbyists and interest groups. We then rate them on the AJC Truth-O-Meter.
To fact-check a claim, reporters first contact the speaker to verify the statement. Next, the research begins. Reporters consult a variety of sources, including industry and academic experts. This research can take hours or a few days or even longer, depending on the claim. Reporters then compile the research into story form and include a recommended Truth-O-Meter ruling.
The fact check then moves on to a panel of veteran editors who debate the statement and the reporter’s recommended Truth-O-Meter ruling. The panel votes on a final ruling; majority prevails.
Just when you thought Bill Clinton had left the stage, he reappears.
And this time, he got a ride on the AJC Truth-O-Meter, courtesy of those fact-checking scribes at PolitiFact and PolitiFact Georgia. GOP presidential hopefuls Donald Trump, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz also came along for a ride.
Abbreviated versions of our fact checks are below.
Want to comment on our rulings or suggest one of your own? Just go to our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/politifact.georgia). You can also follow us on Twitter (http://twitter.com/politifactga).
Full versions can be found at www.politifact.com/georgia/.
Bill Clinton on Tuesday, February 16th, 2016 in a campaign event for Hillary Clinton:
“The people that perpetrated that travesty in San Bernardino had never been to the Middle East.”
The former president gets this one very wrong.
The husband and wife pair who carried out the Dec. 2 shooting in San Bernardino, Calif., killing 14, spent significant time in the Middle East.
A spokesman for Clinton told us that he misspoke.
The wife, Tashfeen Malik, was born in Pakistan but moved to Saudi Arabia at a young age. She returned to Pakistan in 2007 to study pharmacology. And the husband, Syed Rizwan Farook, traveled to Saudi Arabia on at least two recent occasions to meet with her.
We rated Clinton’s claim Pants on Fire.
GOP presidential hopeful Marco Rubio on Sunday, February 14th, 2016 in a web video:
“People (are) paying more in taxes than they will for food, housing and clothing combined.”
Rubio’s statement only measures up if we look at aggregate spending on those basics by all Americans.
But whether individuals spend more on taxes than food, housing and clothing varies widely depending upon their income. Wealthier Americans do spend more on taxes than food, housing and clothing combined, while those with low incomes do not.
We rated Rubio’s statement Half True.
GOP presidential hopeful Ted Cruz on Sunday, February 21st, 2016 in an interview on “Meet the Press”:
“About 70 percent of Republicans nationwide … don’t think Donald Trump is the right guy” to take on Hillary Clinton in November.
Cruz is referring to the polling average of 34 percent of GOP voters who say Trump is their top choice. Inverted, 66 percent of Republicans prefer someone else.
That doesn’t mean, however, that the 66 percent refuse to support Trump overall.
The highest estimate we found for Republicans flat-out protesting Trump is 42 percent.
Cruz’s statement is largely accurate but leaves out some context.
We rated Cruz’s statement Mostly True.
GOP front-runner Donald Trump on Sunday, February 21st, 2016 in an interview on “Meet the Press”:
With Obamacare, “You have no options .. you can’t get competitive bidding.”
That is true in about 10 percent of the counties where individuals buy their coverage on the government’s insurance exchange.
In another 30 percent of counties, people have only two companies to choose between.
But the people living in about 60 percent of the rest of the counties have at least three insurance providers to compare.
There’s an element of truth in Trump’s words, but his statement leaves out a lot of information that would leave a different impression.
We rated Trump’s statement Mostly False.
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