Stretch the truth? Yes they can
SUMMARY: As the Democrats increase their attacks on John McCain, they’re getting some facts wrong. But McCain and the RNC are also distorting the truth.
The Democrats began the week with True and Mostly True ratings, but their batting average slipped on Day 2 and 3 of the national convention. Not to be outdone, the McCain campaign and the Republican National Committee offered some distortions of their own. Here’s a look at how they fared on the Truth-O-Meter:
• Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer became an overnight sensation in Denver with his enthusiastic speech. But his claim that McCain’s energy plan relied solely on drilling earned him the convention’s first
Pants on Fire.
• Hillary Clinton leveled a serious accusation at John McCain, saying he “still thinks it’s okay when women don’t earn equal pay for equal work.” We found just the opposite was true, that McCain has said he is “all in favor of pay equity for women.” We gave Clinton a
False.
• Joe Biden exaggerated with his claim that McCain has opposed timelines to draw down troops from Iraq. That one earned a
Half True.
• We found Howard Dean was right that Joe Biden is one of the least wealthy members of Senate and gave him a
True.
• Seeking to show that seniority doesn’t necessarily require old age, Biden claimed that only four senators were more senior to him but that 44 were older. He was off slightly, so we gave him a
Mostly True.
The Republicans made some mistakes and stretches, too:
• A new McCain ad recycles a distortion of Obama’s comments on Iran. We gave it a
False.
• The Republican National Committee stretched the truth with its claim that “Barack Obama and Joe Biden oppose new drilling at home and oppose nuclear power.” We rated that one
Barely True.
