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Latest Fact-Checks In Federal Budget

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John McCain
John McCain
stated on June 17, 2008 a comment by McCain campaign adviser Carly Fiorina on MSNBC's "Morning Joe"
"George Bush, and a Republican Congress, have presided over a 55 percent increase in the size of domestic government spending in the last seven years."
Mostly True
By Adriel Bettelheim • June 18, 2008
Barack Obama
Barack Obama
stated on June 12, 2008 a campaign e-mail to reporters
"McCain lobbied for (a) $10-million pork project honoring conservative justice."
Mostly True
By Shawn Zeller • June 17, 2008
Bob Barr
Bob Barr
stated on May 12, 2008 a news conference announcing his Libertarian candidacy in Washington, D.C.
Eliminating earmarks "would make barely a drop in the bucket with regard to the national debt, the deficit."
Mostly True
By Shawn Zeller • May 13, 2008
John McCain
John McCain
stated on April 20, 2008 a television interview.
"My friend, we have increased the size of government by some 40 percent just in the last few years."
Mostly True
By Will Van Sant • May 7, 2008
John McCain
John McCain
stated on April 7, 2008 a poll on McCain's Web site
Democrats' budget resolution would raise America's tax bill by "$500-billion."
False
By Adriel Bettelheim • April 14, 2008
Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
stated on February 29, 2008 a graphic on the RNC website.
"Obama's liberal fiscal agenda: Over $874-billion in new spending."
Half-True
By Adriel Bettelheim, Ryan Kelly • February 29, 2008
John McCain
John McCain
stated on February 3, 2008 a campaign event in Fairfield, Conn.
"In her short time in the United States Senate, the senator from New York, Senator Clinton, got $500-million worth of pork barrel projects."
Mostly True
By Bill Adair • February 4, 2008
Mike Huckabee
Mike Huckabee
stated on January 30, 2008 a debate in Simi Valley, Calif.
"Let's not blame President Bush for all of this. We've got a Congress who sat around on their hands and done nothing but spend a lot of money ... leaving us $9-trillion in debt that we're passing on to our grandchildren."
Half-True
By Adriel Bettelheim • January 31, 2008
John McCain
John McCain
stated on January 12, 2008 a speech to the Americans for Prosperity Michigan summit in Livonia, Mich.
"Congress just passed another huge, pork-filled spending bill. The Democrats allowed less than a day to read all 3,400 pages and stuffed it with nearly 10,000 earmarks costing about $10-billion dollars."
Half-True
By Adriel Bettelheim • January 16, 2008
John McCain
John McCain
stated on January 6, 2008 a debate in Manchester, N.H.
"I have never asked for nor received a single earmark or pork barrel project for my state."
False
By John Frank • January 15, 2008
John McCain
John McCain
stated on November 28, 2007 St. Petersburg, Fla.
"I saved the taxpayers $2-billion on a bogus Air Force Boeing tanker deal where people went to jail."
True
By Tom Tobin • November 29, 2007
Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
stated on November 26, 2007 Web "Spend-O-Meter"
"If Sen. Hillary Clinton could enact all of her campaign proposals, taxpayers would be faced with financing more than $777.6-billion in new spending over one White House term."
Mostly True
November 26, 2007
Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
stated on November 26, 2007 a Web site.
"Hillary's baby bond proposal would give $5,000 to each of the 4-million babies born in the U.S. each year, totaling $20-billion per year, multiplied by four years = $80-billion."
False
November 26, 2007
Rudy Giuliani
Rudy Giuliani
stated on July 1, 2007 "Innovators in Action" magazine
"The $2.3-billion budget deficit I inherited when I came into office became a $2.9-billion surplus."
Half-True
By Neil Skene • November 21, 2007
Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney
stated on October 6, 2007
"Mayor Giuliani's lawsuit killed the line-item veto."
Mostly True
November 7, 2007
Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney
stated on October 9, 2007 an interview on CNBC.
"John McCain is right on that one. The line-item veto is the best tool the president has to rein in excessive spending."
Half-True
November 7, 2007
John McCain
John McCain
stated on October 21, 2007 a Republican debate in Orlando, Fla.
"Senator Clinton tried to spend $1 million on the Woodstock Concert Museum."
True
By Sasha Bartolf • October 19, 2007
John McCain
John McCain
stated on October 8, 2007 a campaign Web site.
"Earmarked dollars have doubled just since 2000, and more than tripled in the last 10 years."
Half-True
October 12, 2007
John McCain
John McCain
stated on July 25, 2007 a speech in Nashua, N.H.
"We spent $223-million on a bridge in Alaska to an island with 50 people on it."
False
October 12, 2007
John McCain
John McCain
stated on August 4, 2007 a comment to a reporter.
"We spent approximately $20-billion of that money on pork barrel, earmark projects. Maybe if we had done it right, maybe some of that money would have gone to inspect those bridges and other bridges across the country."
True
October 12, 2007
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