Latest Stories By Louis Jacobson

PolitiFact has been tracking falsehoods in politics since 2007. But we’ve never seen anyone like U.S. Rep. George Santos. Santos won a seat in the U.S. House in 2022, representing a district that includes portions of Queens and Long Island, New York. Some of his claims were scrutinized by a local publication called the North […]

One year into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, polls show that a rising number of Americans — though well short of a majority — are tiring of U.S. support for Ukraine. In polls conducted in March, May and September of 2022 and in January of 2023, the Pew Research Center found that the share of respondents […]

A disastrous train derailment in a small Ohio town has left many of the area’s residents concerned about public safety and the environment. On Feb. 3, a Norfolk Southern freight train derailed around 9 p.m. in East Palestine, Ohio, a village of about 4,700 people near the Pennsylvania border, about an hour northwest of Pittsburgh. […]

After a train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, and ignited a fire, authorities issued evacuations and implemented a controlled release of the chemicals. The Feb. 3 derailment set off investigations and raised questions about how serious its impacts will be on local residents and the environment. Although no one was injured or […]

President Joe Biden wasted little time in crowing about stronger-than-expected job creation numbers.  At a Feb. 3 event at the White House, Biden touted the creation of 12 million jobs during his presidency, the lowest unemployment rate since 1969, increases in real wages for the past six months, and 2.9 percent growth in gross domestic […]

As the American public has recently been finding out, when presidents and vice presidents leave the White House, their documents may end up in unexpected places. Ted Nugent, a rock musician and prominent supporter of conservative causes, recently shared a graphic on Instagram that said only one former president — Donald Trump — had his […]

How well is President Joe Biden doing his job? As he hits the halfway point in his four-year term, public opinion polls continue to show more Americans dissatisfied than satisfied with Biden’s performance in office. But another way of measuring his performance is by examining what he’s accomplished so far.  PolitiFact’s Biden Promise Tracker monitors […]

On Jan. 19, the United States officially hit its legal debt limit of almost $31.4 trillion. Over the next few months, the Treasury Department will be able to shift money around to buy time, but sooner or later, unless the limit is raised or suspended, the country risks defaulting on its debts. With members of […]

Soon after news broke that classified documents had been found in an office belonging to President Joe Biden at a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, former President Donald Trump and his allies compared it with the classified files seized at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida.  “When is the FBI going to raid the many homes of […]

Seemingly endless roll call votes have become the signature of the House’s inability to choose a speaker for the new Congress. But however long it takes to choose a speaker, it might be time to get accustomed to hearing hundreds of representatives’ names called out. Whoever wins the speakership looks likely to have a fragile […]

The unusually drawn-out voting for House speaker has overshadowed the tale of Rep.-elect George Santos, R-N.Y., during the first days of the 118th Congress.  According to news reports, Santos seems to have fabricated most of his biography, including his college degree (he has none), his employment (he was never employed by Citigroup or Goldman Sachs), […]

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., wants to be House speaker. If he gets the House’s top post — which is not a certainty given dissent within his caucus — he wants to remove some Democrats from high-profile committees. In January 2022, McCarthy named three Democratic members he would unseat: Reps. Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell of […]