Did a U.S. federal judge just release Benghazi evidence that puts former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in "deep trouble"? No, that's not true: This didn't just happen. The claim being shared is based on a foxnews.com article from 2018, an
Publication: Politics
Lead Stories→ Fake News: NO Obama Vacation Scam That President Trump Ended
Did President Trump send President Obama a bill for tax-payer funded vacations that Obama has taken since leaving office? No, that's not true: This is a satirical story created by a website that publishes fake content aimed at a conservative a
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Bernie Sanders Does NOT Return $18.53 To Mike Bloomberg
Did Bernie Sanders return a donation from Mike Bloomberg in the amount of $18.53? No, that's not true: This claim was put out by a satirical website and has no basis in fact. The claim originated from an article (archived here) that was publis
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Bloomberg Did NOT Say Elderly People Should Be Denied Care Past Certain Age When Ill
Did Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg say that all elderly people should be denied care past a certain age when they become ill? No, that's not true: The website circulating the claims pulled only a snippet of the former New
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Ben Carson Did NOT Offer to Perform ‘Much Needed’ Brain Surgery On Maxine Waters
Did Ben Carson, the Housing and Urban Development Secretary, offer to do brain surgery on U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters? No, that's not true: Although Carson and Waters, a California Democrat, have shown great disdain for one another in the past, Ca
Lead Stories→ Fake News: There Is NO Evidence That Hillary Clinton Put A Hit Out On Brett Kavanaugh
Did the FBI ignore evidence that Hillary Clinton put a hit out on Associate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh? No, that's not true: This is a work of satire put out by a site that trolls conservatives with fabricated stories in hopes they
Lead Stories→ Fake News: DOJ Did NOT Order Raid On Obama Compound After Massive Fraud Found In Audit
Did the U.S. Department of Justice order a raid on former President Barack Obama's compound after an audit detected a massive fraud? No, that's not true: The story is a work of satire, and the author of the post is trolling conservatives into
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Dr. Ben Carson Did NOT Say Muslims Cannot Be Good Americans
Did Dr. Ben Carson, the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, say that Muslims cannot be good Americans? No, that's not true: The quotes have been wrongly attributed to him. Some of the quotes in a viral post were actually part of a
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Can We Brainstorm Ways to Make This Sound Less Racist’ Michael Bloomberg Subreddit Post
Amid ongoing controversy involving Democratic candidate Mike Bloomberg and his attitude toward New York City’s stop-and-frisk policies, blogger and reporter Zaid Jilani tweeted a screenshot from Reddit’s r/PresidentBloomberg — in whi
Lead Stories→ Fake News: AOC Did NOT Propose $10.5B Cut To Social Security; Did NOT Say, "We Need To Sock It To The Boomers"
Did U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who is popularly known as AOC, propose a $10.5 billion cut to Social Security? No, that's not true: The Democratic congresswoman from New York never made such a proposal. The author of the post is trolli
Truth or Fiction?→ Did North Dakota Republicans ‘Block Native Americans From Voting’?
Stories continue to circulate online about a federal judge’s October 2018 ruling around a North Dakota voter identification law, but readers on social media may not be aware that as of February 2020, the legal fight against the law has not concl
Lead Stories→ Fake News: NOT The Bernie Bros
Were a group of supporters for Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders holding signs that said "Work is hard" and "Brain Surgeons + McDonald's managers deserve equal pay"? No, that's not true: This is a politcal advertisement being shar
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Mods are Asleep, Post Mike Bloomberg in Epstein’s Black Book’
On February 11 2020, a tweet (also shared to Facebook) invoked the “mods are asleep” meme in a broader post about former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg’s purported appearance in the late Jeffrey Epstein’s “little blac
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Photo Did NOT Show Pete Buttigieg Posing In Leather Bodysuit
Does a photo show Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg posing in a leather bodysuit with two other men? No, that's not true: The picture has been doctored using photo-editing tools. The real person has been swapped out with the hea
Lead Stories→ Fake News: State Of The Union Guests Were NOT Wearing "Q" Flag Pins
Did several guests at the recent State of the Union wear American flag pins with the "Q" logo on them? No, that's not true: While supporters of the so-called QAnon conspiracy theory claimed that several guests were wearing "Q" flag pins, we en
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Pelosi’s Lapel Pin Does NOT Mean She’s A Witch Or Nazi
Does a lapel pin worn by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi show allegiance with witches or Nazis? No, that's not true: The pin she wears is a replica of the silver mace, a symbol used in the House since 1841. The claim originated from a post (archive
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Michael Bloomberg Say Young Men of Color Commit ’95 Percent of Your Murders’?
Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg’s defense of “stop and frisk” police tactics disproportionately targeting young people of color was brought back to light after audio from a 2015 speech found new life on social me
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Mel Gibson Did NOT Say, ‘The Only Reason Liberals Hate Trump Is They Hate God’
Did actor Mel Gibson say, "The only reason liberals hate Trump is they hate God"? No, that's not true: The actor never made such a statement. The article is a work of satire, and the author of such posts is trolling conservatives into believin
Lead Stories→ Fake News: FBI Intelligence Bulletin Was NOT Falsified
Did members of the media falsify an FBI intelligence bulletin that warned conspiracy theories are a new domestic terrorism threat? No, that's not true: The FBI has commented to Lead Stories about the document, and multiple members of the media
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Federal Records Did NOT Show George Soros Was Biggest Funder Of Iowa Caucus App
Did federal records show that George Soros, a liberal financier, was the biggest funder of the troubled app used during the Iowa Caucus? No, that's not true: The records are actually a donation by Soros to a Super Pac associated with Shadow, I
Lead Stories→ Fake News: New Hampshire Democrats Are NOT Encouraging Voter Fraud By Nonresidents
Are New Hampshire Democrats encouraging out-of-state residents to commit voter fraud, telling nonresidents they can vote in New Hampshire and remain nonresidents? No, that's not true. Some ultra-conservatives got upset after a Democratic activ
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Former FBI Director James Comey NOT Implicated In Spy Ring
Did a website point to evidence implicating former FBI Director James Comey in a spy ring? No, that's not true: The story is "clickbait" and offers no documentary evidence to back up its claims. The site links to another website that has knowi
Lead Stories→ Fake News: IG Report Did NOT Say Hillary Clinton Committed ‘Sexual Crimes Against Children’ And That Barack Obama Covered Up Those Crimes
Did an Inspector General's Report say Hillary Clinton committed 'sexual crimes against children'? And did Barack Obama lie to cover up Clinton's supposed crimes? No, neither are true: The IG report did not refer to any sexual crimes against ch
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Nancy Pelosi NOT Fined $40K For Destruction Of Government Property
Was U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi fined $40,000 for destruction government property for shredding her copy of President Donald Trump's State of the Union address? No, that's not true: This is a work of satire that has been ripped off by real
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Obama Did NOT Award Medal Of Freedom To Harvey Weinstein
Did former President Obama award the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honor bestowed on an American civilian, to Harvey Weinstein, the famous producer on trial for sex crimes against scores of women? No, that's not true: The image on
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Pete Buttigieg’s Campaign Insert ‘Artificial Applause’ Into a Video Ad?
A progressive activist group highlighted an editing trick used in a video promoting Democratic Party presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg’s campaign on Twitter in early February 2020. The Center for Popular Democracy’s tweet, which has b
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Facebook Is NOT Using "Fact-Checking" Bots To Stalk Your Page
Is Facebook using "fact-checking" bots to stalk your page and report on your posts? No, that is not true. The popular social media platform says such allegations are false and that no fact-checking bots are being used in such a way. It's uncle
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Pelosi Does NOT Face 3 Years In Prison For Ripping Up State of Union Speech Copy
Could U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi face up to three years in prison for tearing up a copy of President Donald Trump's State of the Union address? No, that's not true: The law in question applies only to documents that are considered officia
Truth or Fiction?→ What is a ‘Recanvass’?
Democratic National Committee chair Tom Perez’s demand on February 6 2020 not only prolonged ongoing controversy surrounding the Iowa Democratic Party Caucuses — it also ignited interest in the process of a recanvass. “Enough is enou
Lead Stories→ Fake News: DNC NOT Caught Flipping Votes From Bernie To Buttigieg
Did the Democratic National Committee get caught flipping votes from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders to former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg during the 2020 Iowa caucus? No, that does not appear to be true: The reporting out of Iowa sugge
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Bernie Sanders Is NOT Seeking Medical Release From Life Sentence In Prison
Is U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Democratic presidential candidate, seeking medical release from a life sentence in prison because he's in the final stages of terminal kidney disease? No, that's not true: The tweet suggesting this mentioned the
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Conservative Dinesh D’Souza NOT Dead At 58
Did conservative political provocateur Dinesh D'Souza die at the age of 58? No, that's not true: D'Souza is alive, and an article suggesting otherwise is just the latest in a long line of celebrity death hoaxes to take the Internet by storm. T
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Pete Buttigieg’s Campaign Donate $42,500 to Iowa Caucus App Developer Shadow, Inc.?
On February 4 2020, Twitter user Ariän El-Tahry tweeted a claim that Shadow, Inc., the company that built an app used to tally votes in the chaotic Iowa caucus the day before, had received donations from groups associated with only two candidate
Lead Stories→ Fake News: NO Audio Or Video Proof Of Woman Harassing Political Rival At His Home
Did a young woman running for government office in Lewiston, Maine, get caught on audio and video making violent threats and harassing another candidate at his home? No, that's not true: The audio and video are actually of another individual -
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Elizabeth Warren Does NOT Want Criminal Penalties For Anybody Who Spreads ‘Disinformation’ On The Internet
Does U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic presidential candidate, want criminal penalties for anybody who spreads "disinformation" on the Internet? No, that's not true: The meme is misleading and leaves out key details about Warren's propo
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Bernie Sanders’ Campaign ‘Have Five Lawyers’ Contact Democratic Officials in Iowa?
Amid heavy criticism of breakdowns in the February 3 2020 Iowa Democratic Party caucus, a progressive congressional candidate attracted attention to himself with a claim involving a meeting between members of the Democratic National Committee and staf
Truth or Fiction?→ Which States Will Caucus in 2020?
On February 4 2020, the American political news cycle was dominated with news of chaos and delayed results after Iowa’s caucus the previous day; Iowans were the first to cast primary votes in the relatively uncommon format of a caucus, drawing e
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Trump Did NOT Say That Muslims Who Want To Live Under Islamic Sharia Law Must Leave U.S.
Did U.S. President Donald Trump say that Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law need to leave the country? No, that's not true: Trump never explicitly said that. The quotes have been making the rounds on social media and via email c
Lead Stories→ Fact check: Eight Iowa Counties Do NOT Have Total Registration Rates Larger Than Eligible Voter Population – NO 18,600 Extra Names on Voter Rolls
Do eight Iowa counties have more registered voters than there are people eligible to vote in those counties? No, that's not true. Looking at the latest available data in February 2020 there are only five counties where the number of total regi
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Donald Trump Did NOT Set Secret Trap To Catch Obama 24 Hours After Rogue UN Official Exposes Active Coup At White House
Did President Donald Trump set a trap for former President Barack Obama to stop him from staging an overthrow of the White House? No, that's not true: the story seems loosely based on a story from October of 2019 when Trump referenced a coup o