20 New Fact Checks Added to the Count the Lies Counter

The Democratic National Committee today updated the Count the Lies counter to reflect the 20 new fact checks published during and after last night's Presidential candidates' debate. Independent, non-partisan fact check organizations debunked John McCain's false claims and desperate attacks on everything from energy independence to tax cuts.

With these new articles, no fewer than 127 fact checks have been published debunking McCain campaign lies since John McCain said in February he would run a respectful campaign. Visit www.democrats.org/CountTheLies to see the updated Count the Lies counter.

Washington Post: Three Pinocchios for "Distorted" Pakistan Remark. "In last night's debate, Sen. John McCain repeated one of his regular complaints -- that Sen. Barack Obama said that he would strike targets inside Pakistan under certain conditions. McCain raises the issue to suggest that it is an example of Obama's inexperience in foreign affairs…McCain has repeatedly mischaracterized Obama's statement to make a somewhat tendentious point: that Obama should not say he would "attack Pakistan" because he should "speak softly" about his plans. But Obama did not say that -- as has been noted by independent fact checkers many times -- and he merely articulated a policy that has been used by the current administration. THREE PINOCCHIOS: Significant factual errors." [Washington Post, 10/08/08: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/08/AR2008100800091_pf.html]

AP: McCain Overstates Impact of Drilling. "MCAIN: 'Oil drilling offshore now is vital so we can bridge the gap between imported oil ... and it will reduce the price of a barrel of oil. ... We've got to drill offshore and do it now.' THE FACTS: The government estimates that opening the Atlantic and Pacific coasts and eastern Gulf of Mexico to drilling 'will not have a significant impact on domestic crude oil and natural gas production or prices before 2030.' Even then, it would only increase domestic oil production by 3 percent." [AP, 10/7/08: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DEBATE_FACT_CHECK?SITE=CAVIC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT]

USA Today: McCain Repeats Exaggerated $700 Billion a Year Energy Claim. "The claim: Speaking about energy costs, McCain said: 'We've got to stop sending $700 billion a year to countries who don't like us that much.' The facts: McCain repeatedly makes this claim, which often has been criticized as exaggerated by non-partisan groups -- including FactCheck.org, a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. The United States spends about $536 billion a year on imported oil, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. But about one-third of that goes to close U.S. allies of Canada, Mexico and the United Kingdom." [USA Today, 10/8/08: http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-10-07-fact-check_N.htm]

USA Today: McCain's Claim that Obama Encouraged Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Baseless. "The claim: 'With the encouragement of Sen. Obama and his cronies,' McCain said, government-sponsored mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were key drivers of the financial crisis -- 'the match that started this forest fire.' ,,,The McCain campaign has produced no evidence, however, that Obama did favors for the corporations. In 2005, McCain co-sponsored a bill to step up regulation on Fannie and Freddie. Dodd and other Democrats voted against it in committee; it never came to a vote in the full Senate, so Obama did not vote on it." [USA Today, 10/8/08: http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-10-07-fact-check_N.htm]

CNN: McCain Claim That Obama Never Stood Up to His Own Party "False." "Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain said at the Oct. 7 presidential debate in Nashville, Tennessee, that Democratic opponent Sen. Barack Obama has 'never taken on his leaders of his party on a single issue.' Verdict: False. While McCain is correct that Obama has supported the Democratic leadership almost all of the time, to say he's never differed with them is not true." [CNN, 10/7/08: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/10/07/fact-check-has-obama-never-taken-on-democratic-leaders/]

Politifact.com: 94 Tax Votes? Not Even Close. "During the second presidential debate in Nashville, Tenn., McCain made the charge directly. 'Senator Obama has voted 94 times to either increase your taxes or against tax cuts. That's his record.' Ninety-four times? Not that we could find. But 94 still is awfully far away. The McCain campaign could easily claim that Obama has 'repeatedly' supported higher taxes according to his record in the Senate… But by using such a precise number, the McCain campaign's charge carries a greater level of authority and credibility, which it really doesn't deserve. It's not merely that their count is wrong, but that they're misleading with their attempt at unsupported precision. We say False." [Politifact.com, 10/7/08: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/605/]

Politifact.com: McCain eBay Claim "Way Off." "That's way off. We hate to nitpick apparent misstatements, but this one's a doozy -- 1.3-million is the number of people worldwide who make some money off eBay, according to a 2006 A.C. Nielsen study. As of 2003, some 20,000 Americans made their living off eBay, company executive Jim Griffith told a Colorado newspaper at the time…. But it's not conceivable that the number of Americans making a living off eBay has climbed to 1.3-million. In 2005, the latest year for which statistics are available, just 724,000 Americans made money selling on eBay, according to a Nielsen study. But that includes many who made just a few bucks - not a living…This time, his number is more than a million higher, and not even conceivably true. McCain bought himself a False." [Politifact.com, 10/7/08: http://politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/778/]

FactCheck.org: McCain Misleads on 2005 Energy Bill. "McCain accused Obama of voting for a "Bush and Cheney" energy bill that gave away billions to oil companies. McCain is referring to the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which Obama did in fact vote for. Sen. Clinton raised this same charge against Obama during the Democratic primaries. It was misleading then and it's equally misleading now. In fact, according to a Congressional Research Service report, more tax breaks were taken away from oil companies than were given. Overall, the Act resulted in a small net tax increase on the oil industry: Congressional Research Service: The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT05, P.L. 109-58) included several oil and gas tax incentives, providing about $2.6 billion of tax cuts for the oil and gas industry. In addition, EPACT05 provided for $2.9 billion of tax increases on the oil and gas industry, for a net tax increase on the industry of nearly $300 million over 11 years. The bill did contain $14.3 billion in tax breaks, but most of those went to electric utilities, and nuclear, and also to alternative fuels research and subsidies for energy-efficient cars, homes and buildings - not to the oil industry." [FactCheck.org, 10/7/08: http://wire.factcheck.org/2008/10/07/the-return-of-the-oil-slick/]

FactCheckorg: McCain Still Misleading on 94 Tax Votes Claim. "McCain said that Obama had voted 94 times for higher taxes or against tax cuts. He's getting warmer -- the first time we dinged him for this one, he said Obama voted 94 times to increase taxes, which is way off. This is still misleading, though. The real breakdown includes: 23 votes against tax cuts (which would have produced no increase in taxes); seven votes that would have lowered taxes for most people, but increased taxes on a few; 11 votes that would have increased taxes on those making over $1 million a year. The majority of the 94 votes (53 of them, including some of the above) were on budget measures, not tax bills, and would not have resulted in any tax change. Four other votes were non-binding motions related to conference report negotiations." [FactCheck.org, 10/7/08: http://wire.factcheck.org/2008/10/07/counting-errors/]

FactCheck.org: Obama Health Care Plan Would Not Create Mandate For Small Businesses. "McCain said that Obama's health care plan would mandate that "small businesses" provide coverage for their employees and would fine them if they failed to do so. Actually, Obama's health care plan, posted on his Web site, says: "Small businesses will be exempt from this requirement." McCain previously used this charge in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention." [FactCheck.org, 10/7/08: http://wire.factcheck.org/2008/10/07/health-care-fines-for-small-businesses/]

FactCheck.org: McCain Spending Claims Misleading. "McCain said that Obama has proposed $860 billion in new spending. That's based on a McCain campaign estimate of how much Obama's new proposals will cost, without figuring in any savings or reductions in spending. Any increase in funding and any created program counts as 'new spending' in this estimate, whether or not it is offset by decreases in spending elsewhere. A more traditional, and arguably more useful, measure of spending is how much a given candidate's proposals will increase the federal deficit. The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget evaluated both candidates' proposals for both spending and saving. The group's president, Maya MacGuineas, told CNN that by 2013, Obama's major budget policies would add $286 billion to that year's deficit, while McCain's would add $211 billion." [FactCheck.org, 10/7/08: http://wire.factcheck.org/2008/10/07/more-on-that-860-billion/]

Washington Post Fact Checker: McCain 94 Tax Hike Claim "Misleading." "Once again, McCain said that Obama raised taxes 94 times. This came up in the vice presidential debate, and it is a bogus charge. Fact check.org, a non-partisan watchdog, has analyzed the charge. Of the 94, 23 of those votes were indeed votes against proposed tax cuts. Eleven of them were increases on families earning over $1 million to help fund programs such as Head Start and school nutrition. And 53 were on non-binding budget resolutions that foresaw allowing tax cuts to expire as scheduled. Such out-year projections are meaningless, since non-binding budgets are passed each year. Fact.check.org ruled the claim misleading." [Washington Post Fact Checker blog, 10/7/08: http://blog.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/]

Washington Post Fact Checker: McCain Health Care Tax Credit Claim "Only Part of the Story." "In outlining his tax policy, John McCain boasted that he would give all American families a $5,000 tax credit to allow them to go out and buy their own health insurance. This is true but it is only part of the story. The other part, which McCain rarely mentions on the campaign trail, is that the Republican candidate has also proposed taxing employer-provided health benefits, which will wipe out most of extra income from the tax credit." [Washington Post Fact Checker blog, 10/7/08: http://blog.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/]

New York Times: McCain "Repeated Again his Misleading Attack" on 94 Tax Votes. "As for Mr. McCain, he repeated again his misleading attack that 'Senator Obama has voted 94 times to either increase your taxes or against tax cuts.' This comes from a tally that has been pushed by both the campaign and the Republican National Committee, but Factcheck.org, a non-partisan group, conducted an analysis and found most of the votes were actually on non-binding budget measures or motions. Others would have actually increased taxes but only on those making more than $1 million a year. A handful would have actually lowered taxes for most but increased them for some corporations or wealthy individuals." [New York Times, 10/07/08: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/07/check-point-the-second-presidential-debate/#more-6551]

AP: McCain Claim About Sending $700 Billion to Countries That Don't Like Us Not True. "McCAIN: Said one way out of the financial crisis is to 'stop sending $700 billion a year to countries that don't like us.' THE FACTS: Although he didn't spell it out, he was referring - as he has in the past - to purchases of oil from countries hostile to the U.S. The figure is inflated and misleading. The U.S. is not spending nearly that much on oil imports and roughly one-third of what it does spend goes to friendly countries such as Canada, Mexico and Britain." [AP, 10/7/08: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DEBATE_FACT_CHECK?SITE=ALANN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT]

AP: McCain Claim about Fannie and Freddie Cronies Ignores his Own Connections. "McCAIN: Complained that Obama's 'cronies and friends' had received money from Fannie and Freddie. THE FACT: McCain has his own ties to the mortgage giants. Rick Davis, his campaign manager, has been a focus of attention because Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae paid him or his lobbying firm more than $2 million dating back to 2000." [AP, 10/7/08: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DEBATE_FACT_CHECK?SITE=ALANN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT]

AP: McCain Repeats Debunked Tax Increase Claim. "McCAIN: Said Obama had voted for tax increases '94 times.' THE FACTS: This inflated count, heard before, includes repetitive votes as well as votes to cut taxes for the middle class while raising them on the rich. An analysis by factcheck.org found that 23 of the votes were for measures that would have produced no tax increase at all, seven were in favor of measures that would have lowered taxes for many, 11 would have increased taxes on only those making more than $1 million a year." [AP, 10/7/08: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DEBATE_FACT_CHECK?SITE=ALANN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT]

First Read: "McCain Overstates Obama on Pakistan." "McCain said: 'Sen. Obama likes to talk loudly. In fact, he wants to announce that he's going to attack Pakistan -- remarkable.' But this is what Obama said originally on August 1, 2007: 'There are terrorists holed up in those mountains who murdered 3,000 Americans. They are plotting to strike again. It was a terrible mistake to fail to act when we had a chance to take out an al Qaeda leadership meeting in 2005. If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf will not act, we will.' It's worth noting that Palin -- on at least two occasions -- seemed to back Obama on this issue." [MSNBC First Read, 10/7/08: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/10/07/1509857.aspx]

First Read: McCain's Claims About Tax Hike Votes "An Exaggeration." "McCain just said that Obama has voted to raise taxes 94 times. As fact-checkers have constantly pointed out, that is an exaggeration. Per Factcheck.org: -- 23 votes were for measures that would have produced no tax increase at all; they were against proposed tax cuts. -- 7 were in favor of measures that would have lowered taxes for many, while raising them on a relative few, either corporations or affluent individuals. -- 11 votes the GOP is counting would have increased taxes on those making more than $1 million a year - in order to fund programs such as Head Start and school nutrition programs, or veterans' health care. -- The GOP sometimes counted two, three and even four votes on the same measure. We found their tally included a total of 17 votes on seven measures, effectively padding their total by 10. -- The majority of the 94 votes - 53 of them, including some mentioned above - were on budget measures, not tax bills, and would not have resulted in any tax change. Four other votes were non-binding motions related to conference report negotiations." [MSNBC First Read, 10/7/08: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/10/07/1509339.aspx]

CNN: McCain Claims on Obama Tax Hike Voting Record "Misleading." "Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain said at the Oct. 7 presidential debate in Nashville, Tennessee, that Democratic opponent Sen. Barack Obama 'has voted 94 times to either increase your taxes or against tax cuts. That's his record.' … Misleading. McCain's summary ignores the fact that some of the votes were for measures to lower taxes for many Americans, while increasing them for a much smaller number of taxpayers. A nonpartisan examination also finds that the 94 total includes multiple votes on the same measures and budget votes that would not directly lead to higher taxes." [CNN, 10/7/08: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/10/07/fact-check-did-obama-vote-94-times-for-higher-taxes-2/]