Mississippi | Political Correction

On the first weekend in October, the Sunday talk shows saw a presidential candidate, two governors, and a former vice president's daughter. Gov. Haley Barbour (R-MS) appeared on CBS and CNN to absolve President George W. Bush for the current economic situation while solely placing the blame on President Barack Obama. Not to be outdone by Barbour, Gov. Bob McDonnell (R-VA) appeared on Meet the Press to lie about the president's previous statements on unemployment. Herman Cain, still riding high from his Florida straw poll victory, appeared on Fox News Sunday to falsely claim that his "9-9-9 plan" is actually fairer than the current progressive tax system. Lastly, Keep America Safe's Liz Cheney appeared on State of the Union to claim that Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has said that enhanced interrogation led us to Osama bin Laden. In fact, Panetta has said that the Bush-era torture program produced lies and misinformation about the identity of bin Laden's personal courier.

August 08, 2011 11:46 am ET filed under Blog

Standard & Poor's Should Correct Widespread Misrepresentation Of Downgrade Decision

July 29, 2011 11:09 am ET filed under Blog

Bad Economic News And GOP Solutions That Would Make Things Worse

June 06, 2011 10:34 am ET filed under Blog

Fact Checking The Sunday Shows - June 5, 2011

June 06, 2011 10:09 am ET filed under Fact Check

Fact Checking The Sunday Shows - June 5, 2011

The first Sunday in June saw potential GOP presidential candidate Sarah Palin and Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour (R) dominating the misinformation in the Sunday talk shows. On Fox News Sunday, Palin distorted the truth about the economic recovery, blasting the Federal Reserve's quantitative easing efforts as ineffective and claiming that we've "hit a brick wall," when in fact economists agree that rounds of bond-buying easing helped stabilize the economy and that May's jobs numbers are merely a road bump. She also lied about the source of April's positive job-creation numbers, left out some key information about the U.S.'s corporate tax rate, and distorted Moody's warning about raising the debt ceiling. Palin and Barbour both had lots to say about the Republican budget proposal — all of it false. They both suggested that no one but Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) has offered a viable plan to save Medicare, even though the Democrats have discussed building on reforms in the health care law in order to contain costs and save the program. Palin claimed the GOP plan will "save" Medicare (but it won't) and that it doesn't affect current seniors (but it does). Barbour repeated the old falsehood that the GOP plan will give seniors options just like those of Congress (which it won't). He also attacked the Obama administration with claims that it has helped Wall Street at the expense of Main Street; that President Obama is responsible for high gas prices; and that health care reform discourages job creation. The facts do not support those claims either.

June 02, 2011 3:45 pm ET filed under Blog

Rep. Issa Crops Out The Truth To Advance A Partisan Sound Bite

March 02, 2011 4:10 pm ET filed under Blog

GOP Governors Complain About Lack Of Flexibility In The Affordable Care Act But Offer No New Plans

February 28, 2011 10:25 am ET filed under Blog

Fact Checking The Sunday Shows - February 28, 2011

February 28, 2011 10:12 am ET filed under Fact Check

Fact Checking The Sunday Shows - February 27, 2011

This week's Sunday political chatter was focused on two very, very different places: Wisconsin and Libya. Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI) defended his union-busting efforts on Meet the Press by arguing that union contract agreements in recent weeks prove public workers aren't being honest when they say they'll accept his pension and health insurance demands, but that's disingenuous; the agreements he referenced had been in the works long before his power grab. Gov. Haley Barbour (R-MS) joined Walker in suggesting that collective bargaining is to blame for state budget troubles, but the facts don't bear that out. Meanwhile on Fox News Sunday, Gov. Mitch Daniels (R-IN) asserted that public employees are overpaid (before absurdly claiming that the Bush tax cuts worked) and Gov. Nikki Haley (R-SC) told ABC viewers that Walker is simply fulfilling a campaign promise. None of these claims is true. On other topics, Mike Huckabee (R-AR) lied about the national debt on Fox News and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) falsely asserted that President Obama never showed support for Iranian protesters in the summer of 2009.

February 16, 2011 3:39 pm ET filed under Blog

Gov. Barbour's Sudden Discomfort With 'Denouncing' People

February 15, 2011 1:58 pm ET filed under Fact Check

A Comprehensive Fact Check Of Gov. Barbour's Comprehensive CPAC Falsehoods

As the final day of the Conservative Political Action Conference got underway, potential 2012 presidential candidate Gov. Haley Barbour (R-MS) took to the microphone to deliver a rambling half-hour-long speech crammed with tired talking points copy-and-pasted from the prior speeches of more prominent Republicans.

December 20, 2010 12:14 pm ET filed under Blog

Gov. Barbour On Segregated South: It Wasn't "That Bad"

December 16, 2010 9:53 am ET filed under Blog

With $384M In 2010 Pork In Hand, Sen. Wicker Swears Lard Will Be Gone Next Year

November 18, 2010 3:25 pm ET filed under Video

Rep.-Elect Palazzo On Taxes: "People Don't Work For Poor People...They Work For Rich People"

November 16, 2010 11:47 am ET filed under Blog

Rep.-Elect Palazzo On Taxes: "People Don't Work For Poor People...They Work For Rich People"

October 28, 2010 10:17 am ET filed under Ad Check

New NRCC Ad Misrepresents Recovery Act

The NRCC clearly doesn't "understand" who's to blame for the rising deficit and debt. In their latest attack on Rep. Travis Childers (D-MS), the NRCC claims that he and Pelosi are "punishing our grandchildren" by increasing the debt — when it was actually Bush-era policies that ballooned publicly- and privately-held debt. The NRCC also blasts the Recovery Act, calling it a "failed" program, when in fact the legislation created millions of jobs and revived the economy.

October 27, 2010 12:01 pm ET filed under Ad Check

The NRCC's Lies Are Costing Mississippi Voters

The NRCC tries to pin a price tag on how much a vote for Rep. Gene Taylor (D-MS) would cost Mississippi voters — and fails miserably. Though the NRCC's latest ad feigns objectivity by citing data from the non-partisan Tax Foundation, it completely ignores the organization's conclusion and makes up its own, suggesting that a vote for Taylor is a vote for $1,556 in higher taxes. However the NRCC bases this conclusion on the false claim that Democrats want to eliminate all of the Bush-era tax cuts. In fact, the Tax Foundation's study shows that middle class families will have lower taxes because Speaker Pelosi and the Democrats in Congress favor extending tax cuts to 97% of American families. Additionally, if taxes did increase in 2011, voters would have Republicans to thank for writing in an expiration date on the Bush tax cuts in order to hide their true cost.

October 16, 2010 1:51 pm ET filed under Ad Check

NRCC Misleads Mississippi Voters In Attack On Rep. Childers

In a new ad, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) attacks Rep. Travis Childers (D-MS) for supporting the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. While the NRCC claims that the stimulus bill "failed," the fact is that the Recovery Act created millions of jobs and helped the country avoid a second Great Depression. Moreover, contrary to the NRCC's suggestion that the Recovery Act is to blame for the national debt, it was Republican policies from the Bush era that caused deficits to explode.

October 15, 2010 5:22 pm ET filed under Ad Check

Center For Individual Freedom "Wasting" Airtime On Stale Stimulus Falsehoods

The conservative non-profit Center for Individual Freedom is using some of its undisclosed funding to run TV ads this election season, and like so many other right-wing ads, the CIF relies on a false portrayal of the Recovery Act. In new ads attacking Democratic Reps. Travis Childers (MS), Larry Kissell (NC), Paul Kanjorski (PA), Allen Boyd (FL) and Michael Arcuri (NY), CIF uses the "failed stimulus" argument that appears in so many ads this season. In reality, the Recovery Act was successful at boosting American employment by millions and avoiding another great depression. Blaming the Recovery Act for the debt means ignoring the Bush-era policies that put us in this mess. The Center for Individual Freedom is free to do so, of course — but they shouldn't force their lies on voters.

September 01, 2010 5:28 pm ET filed under Blog