Our November High Five: Opposites attract (clicks)

They are polar-opposite politicians.

But President Barack Obama and newly elected Republican congressman Glenn Grothman had this in common in November:

Items on the two men were the most-clicked on PolitiFact Wisconsin in the runup to and immediate aftermath of the November elections.

Here’s the High Five for November:

1. Obama made a September visit to Milwaukee to fire up Democrats. While here, he contended the national deficit has been more than cut in half on his watch.

We rated that True. Thanks to income tax revenues rising and spending on emergency assistance dropping, America’s deficit has fallen by more than 50 percent from its highest point since World War II to a level $733 billion lower.

2. Grothman, of Campbellsport, easily won the race to succeed retiring Republican Tom Petri.

We compiled and put In Context some of the controversial remarks Grothman has made while serving in the Wisconsin Legislature.

3. The Republican Party of Wisconsin claimed that 25,000 new businesses have sprung up under Gov. Scott Walker.

Mostly False, we said, noting that the figure reflects not just operating businesses, but registrations for corporate shells, non profit organizations, reconstituted versions of existing businesses and out-of-state firms.

4. Our series of stories on how Scott Walker and Democratic Party gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke have fared on the Truth-O-Meter on education, taxes, jobs, business growth, wages and income, and higher education.

5. Our story from late 2013 examining Walker’s early departure from Marquette University and his entry into politics drew a lot of attention, perhaps due to Walker’s 2016 presidential aspirations.

Other popular items included this quiz on our fact checks in the governor’s race, and a story checking Walker’s statements on “Meet the Press” following his re-election and renewed buzz about his presidential potential.