While President Donald Trump's rhetoric regarding Portland and Chicago has largely focused on overall crime, National Guard deployments are specifically targeted at protecting federal immigration operations and facilities. Here, we'll unravel some of the rhetoric about what's happening in those cities, what the Trump administration is doing and under what authority, and what the courts have had to say about it so far. The post Q&A on Trump’s Attempt to Deploy National Guard to Portland and ...| FactCheck.org
The Trump administration has said while the federal government is shutdown, tariff revenue will be used to fund a key federal program that provides food aid and other services to nearly 7 million low-income women and young children. But as the shutdown entered its second week last week, Republicans and Democrats blamed each other for that program being in a financial bind. The post WIC Becomes a Political Football in Shutdown appeared first on FactCheck.org.| FactCheck.org
The legal clashes between New York Attorney General Letitia James and President Donald Trump took a U-turn with a federal indictment on Oct. 9 charging James with mortgage fraud. We'll look at the allegations and facts surrounding the case, the history of animosity between Trump and James, and what experts say about the weight of the charges. The post Appraising the Federal Indictment of Letitia James appeared first on FactCheck.org.| FactCheck.org
A day after a shooting at a school in Minnesota, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claimed, as he has before, that certain antidepressant drugs, known as SSRIs, “might be contributing to violence” in such cases. Experts say there is no direct evidence linking SSRIs to mass shootings. He also falsely claimed SSRIs have black box warnings for homicidal ideation. The post RFK Jr. Misleads About Antidepressants and School Shootings appeared first on FactCheck.org.| FactCheck.org
Amid confusion over this year's updated COVID-19 vaccines, we explain what's different this year and who experts say should get vaccinated. The post Q&A on the 2025-2026 COVID-19 Vaccines appeared first on FactCheck.org.| FactCheck.org
Statistical indicators of President Biden's four years in office. The post Biden’s Final Numbers appeared first on FactCheck.org.| FactCheck.org
A substantial body of evidence supports the safety of the COVID-19 vaccines during pregnancy, contrary to the suggestions of some members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory committee. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently reconstituted the committee. The post Vaccine Advisory Committee Members Mislead About COVID-19 Vaccination During Pregnancy appeared first on FactCheck.org.| FactCheck.org
In this story, which is the last in our five-part series on Project 2025, we look at how Trump implemented the document's recommendations on divisive cultural issues, including reproductive rights, transgender protections, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.| FactCheck.org
Month: July 2025| FactCheck.org
President Donald Trump and others in his circle have portrayed political violence as a problem exclusively or mostly on the left, which has then been used as justification for proposals that seek to crack down on left-leaning groups. While there is evidence of a rise in left-wing violence in recent years, data show that political violence in America spans the ideological spectrum. The post What We Know About Political Violence in America appeared first on FactCheck.org.| FactCheck.org
In our latest installment of the Project 2025 series, we look at some of the social safety net policy changes sought by Project 2025 and proposed or accomplished by Trump. The post Trump, Project 2025 and the Social Safety Net appeared first on FactCheck.org.| FactCheck.org
In a Sept. 22 press conference that he had billed as “one of the biggest [medical] announcements … in the history of our country,” President Donald Trump touted an unproven link between autism and the use of Tylenol, or acetaminophen, during pregnancy.| FactCheck.org
Year: 2023| FactCheck.org
Month: August 2025| FactCheck.org
Month: September 2025| FactCheck.org
Reviving an unfounded claim he has made for several years, President Donald Trump on Sept. 5 overstated the number of Americans who died in 2024 of drug overdoses, saying that he believed 300,000 or "350,000 people died last year from drugs." A spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told us the provisional number of drug overdose deaths in 2024 was 79,383, and an expert in addiction medicine told us Trump's number was "a gross exaggeration."| FactCheck.org
Since the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10, social media users have shared posts showing, quoting or paraphrasing remarks the posts attribute to the conservative activist. Many readers have asked us to provide the facts on whether Kirk, the founder of the youth political group Turning Point USA, made several of these comments.| FactCheck.org
After the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, social media claims offering political views of the assassination and the reaction to it quickly spread. One message falsely claimed that "not a single Republican condemned" the targeted shooting of a Democratic politician in Minnesota in June. Many Republicans, including President Donald Trump, condemned it.| FactCheck.org
Heated exchanges between some senators and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during a Sept. 4 hearing amplified confusion about the availability of COVID-19 vaccinations for the fall, with Kennedy misleadingly claiming that "anybody" can still get a vaccine. HHS policies have created roadblocks to vaccine access.| FactCheck.org
A large Danish study recently provided reassurance that aluminum-containing vaccines are not associated with increased rates of chronic health conditions in children, including autism. But Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. misrepresented the study’s findings, claiming that the paper's supplementary data “shows calamitous evidence of harm.”| FactCheck.org
President Donald Trump said on Truth Social on Sept. 2, "CHICAGO IS THE MURDER CAPITAL OF THE WORLD!" That's not the case, experts told us, and Chicago's overall homicide rate declined more than 30% in the first six months of this year as compared with last year.| FactCheck.org
At a Cabinet meeting on Aug. 26, President Donald Trump proposed seeking the death penalty for anyone convicted of murder in Washington, D.C., claiming the death penalty is "a very strong preventative." But the research, which has been difficult to conduct, is inconclusive on whether capital punishment is a deterrent.| FactCheck.org
Month: May 2025| FactCheck.org
Year: 2025| FactCheck.org
Q: Did Pope Francis endorse Donald Trump? Is Tom Hanks supporting him? A: No, the pope has not endorsed him, and Tom Hanks does not support him. FULL QUESTION Did Pope Francis endorse Donald Trump? Has Tom Hanks come out in support of Donald Trump? FULL ANSWER We’ve received many questions asking whether Pope Francis has endorsed Donald Trump, and a few asking if the actor Tom Hanks has voiced his support for Trump.| FactCheck.org
Amid upheaval at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including the firing of the agency’s director, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. distorted the facts to falsely claim that the agency’s website lists abortion as one of the “10 greatest advances in medical science.”| FactCheck.org
Over the Labor Day weekend, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is running digital ads on social media blaming House Republicans for "driving up the price of burgers." But that's misleading. The sizable rise in ground beef prices is tied to drought conditions in recent years, among other factors.| FactCheck.org
Q: Did President Donald Trump solve seven wars in seven months? A: Trump has claimed he “ended” six or seven wars since returning to the White House in January. Experts in international relations said the president has had a significant role in ending fighting in four conflicts, though officials in one country refute Trump’s claim. But some of the international disagreements Trump cites have not been wars, and some clashes have not ended, experts said. FULL ANSWER In recent months Presi...| FactCheck.org
While signing executive orders at the White House on Aug. 25, President Donald Trump wrongly said that an 11-day span of no homicides in Washington, D.C., was the "first time that's taken place in years," a claim reiterated by other members of the administration who credited Trump's federal takeover of the district's law enforcement.| FactCheck.org
In early August, President Donald Trump claimed that a trade deal he negotiated with the European Union in July came with hundreds of billions of dollars that the U.S. can use for “anything we want.” But that’s not how the terms were described in a joint statement with the EU on Aug. 21.| FactCheck.org
Since announcing the temporary federal takeover of Washington, D.C.'s, law enforcement, President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized state laws limiting the use of cash bail. But his arguments have strayed from the facts in three key areas.| FactCheck.org
President Donald Trump launched his second-term assault on mail-in ballots and electronic voting machines on Aug. 18, firing off a series of unfounded claims while announcing an effort to do away with both.| FactCheck.org
Former President Donald Trump wrongly boasted that his administration "got 58 hostages released from various hostile countries without paying any money, or giving up anything."| FactCheck.org
In justifying the government's termination of $500 million in funding for mRNA vaccine projects, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. falsely claimed mRNA vaccines "fail to protect effectively" against COVID-19 and suggested they are unsafe. The mRNA shots saved millions of lives during the COVID-19 pandemic and have shown promise against influenza.| FactCheck.org
In recent months, U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary has amplified unfounded concerns about the safety of seed oils, a subset of vegetable oils used in infant formula. There isn’t evidence these fat sources are harmful to infants.| FactCheck.org
Unfounded rumors linking an extreme weather event to human attempts at weather modification are again spreading on social media. It is not plausible that available weather modification techniques caused or influenced the July 4 flash flooding along the Guadalupe River in Texas.| FactCheck.org
The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the House version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act would reduce Medicaid enrollment and cause millions of people to become uninsured by 2034. It didn’t say that “5 million” of the people who are “going to lose insurance” would have “other insurance” so “they’re still insured,” as National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett misleadingly claimed.| FactCheck.org
Q: Is it true that if President Donald Trump hadn’t defunded the National Weather Service, the death toll in the Texas flooding would have been far lower or nonexistent? A: The Trump administration did not defund the NWS but did reduce the staff by 600 people. Those staffing cuts did not cause the high number of deaths in the flash floods on July 4, experts said. Local forecasting offices were sufficiently staffed and issued timely warnings.| FactCheck.org
A CDC advisory panel vote to recommend against use of seasonal influenza vaccines containing small amounts of thimerosal followed a presentation that misled on the risks of the rarely used preservative. There isn’t evidence that thimerosal in vaccines is harmful, and studies assessing a variety of health problems, including neurological conditions, have supported its safety.| FactCheck.org
As the Republican budget bill, called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, nears the July 4 deadline set by the White House, lawmakers have been ramping up the rhetoric. We referee the claims from both sides.| FactCheck.org
Q: Has President Donald Trump issued a rule that VA doctors can refuse treatment to Democrats? A: No. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs changed the wording in its bylaws to comply with recent executive orders. In making the changes, words including “national origin, politics, marital status” were removed from language prohibiting discrimination. But existing federal law already prohibits discrimination on those grounds, the VA says. FULL ANSWER The U.S. Department of Veterans Affair...| FactCheck.org
The Department of Health and Human Services has defended cuts to vaccine research with statements that mislead on the safety of mRNA technology, despite an extensive history of testing.| FactCheck.org
Republican and Democratic leaders have either downplayed or overstated the estimated impact of the House reconciliation bill on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that due to work requirements in the bill, 3.2 million people would lose all of their SNAP benefits, which provide financial help to low-income people for groceries.| FactCheck.org
Republicans say that able-bodied adults who don’t work would lose Medicaid coverage under the House tax-cuts-and-spending bill, while Democrats say the legislation would hurt vulnerable groups. The bill’s main target is those able-bodied adults, but other groups would lose coverage due to paperwork burdens and other provisions in the bill, health policy experts say.| FactCheck.org
The Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center estimates that, on average, Americans' taxes would rise about 7.5% if the 2017 tax cuts are allowed to fully expire at the end of the year. But President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that if the Republican budget bill, called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, doesn't pass, Americans "will get a 68% tax increase."| FactCheck.org
Multiple independent analyses say the recently passed House reconciliation bill -- even with its deep spending cuts in some areas -- would add trillions of dollars to the federal deficit over 10 years. Those analyses contradict Republican lawmakers who have downplayed the net cost of the bill and White House claims that it wouldn't increase the deficit at all.| FactCheck.org
Under the Trump administration, the Department of Health and Human Services has canceled or frozen billions of dollars in scientific research grants and attempted to cull around 20,000 agency employees, including some scientists. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., however, has misleadingly claimed that there have been no cuts to “life-saving” research or "working scientists."| FactCheck.org
A House-passed reconciliation bill would reduce federal funding to states that provide state-funded health insurance to people in the U.S. illegally, resulting in 1.4 million people losing coverage, according to a preliminary Congressional Budget Office analysis. But President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers have wrongly cast the bill as removing these immigrants from Medicaid.| FactCheck.org
In a salient moment with the leader of South Africa, President Donald Trump played a video that he said showed "burial sites" for a thousand white farmers -- the victims of what he has called a genocide -- along a roadside in South Africa. It actually showed a 2020 demonstration bringing attention to the issue of violence against farmers of all races in South Africa.| FactCheck.org
The Supreme Court ruled on the evening of April 10 that the Trump administration must comply with a lower court's order to "facilitate" the release from custody of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, an immigrant who was deported without a hearing to a mega prison in El Salvador. The case underscores the issue of due process and what legal protections are afforded to noncitizens.| FactCheck.org
In an interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made several unsupported or misleading claims about the measles vaccine, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said is safe and “the most important tool to prevent” the disease. Meanwhile, a measles outbreak in Texas continues to expand.| FactCheck.org
In the midst of a growing measles outbreak in Texas that has killed one child, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has misleadingly focused on vitamin A, including from cod liver oil, and two non-standard medications as treatments for measles.| FactCheck.org
After U.S. and Russian officials met in Saudi Arabia to discuss an end to Russia's war in Ukraine, President Donald Trump made several false and misleading statements about the conflict and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.| FactCheck.org
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., head of the Department of Health and Human Services, downplayed the seriousness of an ongoing measles outbreak in Texas, falsely claiming that people had been hospitalized “mainly for quarantine” and misleadingly stating that the situation is “not unusual.” The Texas outbreak is already larger than any single outbreak last year and has led to the first measles death in the U.S. since 2015.| FactCheck.org
Our SciCheck team has combed through RFK Jr's recent interviews to identify and correct some of his most common health claims.| FactCheck.org
Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s suggestion that vaccines might cause autism because “there’s not been a direct study on each individual vaccine” misunderstands what’s known about autism, the extensive research on the subject and how science works.| FactCheck.org
In one of his most controversial Cabinet picks, President-elect Donald Trump said he would nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Here, we summarize our past work fact-checking Kennedy's claims about health and science.| FactCheck.org
Q: Does a proposed law in Washington state say that the government can take children away from parents who don’t agree to gender transition surgery? A: No. Under the bill, licensed youth shelters no longer have to report the location of a runaway child to the child’s parents if the child is seeking gender-affirming or reproductive care. Instead, the shelters must notify the state’s child services department. FULL QUESTION Is it true that SB-5599 say[s] that the government can take away ...| FactCheck.org
The president repeatedly sows doubt about mail-in voting, echoing what intelligence officials have said is a Russian strategy to undermine public trust in the election. We review his statements this month and recap our stories on his false, misleading and unsupported claims.| FactCheck.org
