PolitiFact looks at Trump, Clinton and a pro-Sanders group

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.

Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and a pro-Bernie Sanders group from Georgia.

They all took a recent ride of the AJC Truth-O-Meter, courtesy of PolitiFact and PolitiFact Georgia.

Want to see how their faried? Abbreviated versions of our fact checks are below.

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Full versions can be found at www.politifact.com/georgia/.

Facebook posts by Georgians for Bernie Sanders for President, May 23:

Polls show Bernie Sanders would do better than Hillary Clinton in a head-to-head battle against Donald Trump.

A pro-Sanders Facebook group in Georgia said polls indicate Bernie Sanders would do better than Hillary Clinton in a head-to-head battle with Donald Trump.

Major polls support that contention.

But it’s difficult to say what the polls mean at this stage of the election cycle, when Sanders — a relative unknown on the national stage — is theoretically pitted against two well-known personalities, each with substantial baggage. That’s important context when looking at the numbers.

We rated the statement Mostly True.

Donald Trump on Friday, May 20th, 2016 in a speech to the National Rifle Association:

It “is Hillary Clinton’s agenda” to “release the violent criminals from jail. She wants them all released.”

It would be preposterous for any politician who wants to win an election to propose freeing every violent criminal from jail.

Like many political figures today on the right, center and left, Clinton supports something much more modest — easing how the criminal justice system treats nonviolent offenders. That’s a far cry from saying Clinton is poised to set free everyone from Charles Manson to Unabomber Ted Kaczynski.

We rated Trump’s claim Pants on Fire!

Hillary Clinton on Sunday, May 22nd, 2016 in an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press”:

“The only two (Donald Trump tax returns) we have show that he hasn’t paid a penny in taxes.”

We don’t know a lot about Trump’s tax situation, a fact exacerbated by his unwillingness to release his full tax returns.

Public records show that Trump did not pay federal income taxes in two years — 1978 and 1979 — which is what Clinton was referencing. But the same records include information from three other years — 1975, 1976, and 1977 — when Trump did pay federal income taxes.

The records we have are not full tax returns, which makes learning more about those years (or any others) difficult.

Clinton’s statement contains an element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give a different impression.

We rated Clinton’s statement Mostly False.

Hillary Clinton on Sunday, May 22nd, 2016 in an interview on “Meet the Press”:

“Let me say that I don’t think (Bernie Sanders has) had a single negative ad ever run against him.”

Clinton said, “Let me say that I don’t think (Sanders has) had a single negative ad ever run against him.”

The number of attack ads against Sanders pales in comparison to the number against Clinton, but she’s wrong that he’s been completely spared.

Democratic groups, including one supporting Clinton, and Republican outfits alike have gone after Sanders.