Checking the GOP response to the State of the Union

Through Twitter and “live blogging” and cable TV, Republicans offered a spirited reply to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union. Just as we did for Obama, we put their claims to the Truth-O-Meter. We’ll update this story as we publish additional items, so check back later.

• Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell, who delivered the official Republican response, earned a Half True for his claim that the federal debt is “on pace to double in five years and triple in 10. The federal debt is now over $100,000 per household.”

• McDonnell earned a True for his claim that if the government allows drilling off the coast of Virginia, it would be the first time on the East Coast.

• In a live-blogging response to the State of the Union address, House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, wrote that “a majority of Americans still oppose this health care bill.” We rated that claim Mostly True.

• Boehner earns a True for his claim that Obama’s spending freeze would affect a tiny portion of government spending.

• Boehner earned a Barely True for his claim that spending has increased 67 percent in the last year. 

Republican strategist Nancy Pfotenhauer made a ridiculously false claim about the impact on Obama’s health care plan on premiums. That earned a Pants on Fire.