PolitiFact New Jersey | Sorting out the truth in politics

Rulings from PolitiFact National

Sander Levin Says the inspector general for the IRS said there was "no political motivation" and ...
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Barack Obama Says that since he took office, "there have been no large-scale attacks on the ...
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Marylanders to Prevent Gun Violence Education Fund A law that mandates fingerprinting for gun purchasers is "a requirement that's reduced gun ...
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Xavier Becerra "We have a tax code that allows groups to use their political operations within ...
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Randy Forbes "The IRS doesn't have to prove something against you ... you've got the burden ...
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Rand Paul Says Hillary Clinton "was asked repeatedly to provide security in Benghazi on several occasions, ...
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Michele Bachmann The IRS is going to be "in charge" of "a huge national database" on ...
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Michele Bachmann The IRS is "going to be in charge of our health care."
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Michele Bachmann "The IRS will have the ability potentially" to deny or delay health care.
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Nancy Pelosi "The Affordable Care Act is bringing the cost of health care in our country ...
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Reclaim America PAC Says Kelly Ayotte voted to "fix background checks."
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Jason Chaffetz "We had people that were getting killed (in Benghazi), we had people who are ...
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Barack Obama "Over the last several months, there was a review board headed by two distinguished ...
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Jay Carney When Susan Rice spoke about Benghazi on Sunday news shows, she said "that al-Qaida ...
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Tom Coburn "In 2010, everybody said you can't dare let guns go into the national parks, ...
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The Latest from PolitiFact New Jersey Sunday, May 26th, 2013

A scorecard separating fact from fiction

New Jersey State AFL-CIO

Give or take a billion

"New Jersey's governor cut $1.6 billion from public education while handing out $2.1 billion in corporate tax breaks, more than the entire previous decade."

Christie for Governor

Taxes and fees and votes, oh my

"Buono voted 154 times to raise our taxes -- like the sales tax, the income tax, health care taxes, even small business taxes."

One New Jersey

Missing a few details

"Under Republican Governor Chris Christie, tolls cost more. Train and bus rides cost more. College tuition goes up. But Christie protected a tax cut for millionaires."

Christie for Governor

Part II: Claims have context concerns

"Four balanced budgets in a row, with no new taxes for anyone. The best job growth in 12 years. Nearly 130,000 new private-sector jobs. Merit pay to reward New Jersey’s best teachers, and the most education funding ever."

Christie for Governor

Part I: Jobs are growing

"Four balanced budgets in a row, with no new taxes for anyone. The best job growth in 12 years. Nearly 130,000 new private-sector jobs. Merit pay to reward New Jersey’s best teachers, and the most education funding ever."

Chris Christie

Spending's down, but also up

"We’re spending less money today, in upcoming fiscal year 2014 than the Corzine-Buono budget spent in fiscal year 2008."

Leonard Lance

Too long a read

"The Internal Revenue code has ballooned to a 5,600-page, 4 million-word complicated mess that is seven times as long as the Bible with none of the good news."

Chris Christie

Lots of blame to go around

"If anyone should know irresponsible it should be Senator Buono. She’s the one, her budget left us with a $2 billion budget deficit in fiscal 10 that I had to fix. Her mistakes. And for fiscal year 2011 an $11 billion budget deficit. Her mistakes, along with her partner Jon Corzine."

Leonard Lance

Same old claim, same ruling

"The United States currently has the highest corporate tax rate in the world."

One New Jersey

Something rotten in Garden State?

"Under Republican Chris Christie, New Jersey had the highest increase in unemployment in the country last year. Nearly 1 in 10 jobless. The worst unemployment in the region. Near the bottom in economic growth, yet Christie protected a tax cut for millionaires but vetoed a minimum wage hike."

Chris Christie

Corzine didn't divert money

"The people who were running the budget, in the Corzine years, decided to steal from the unemployment trust fund. … As did other Governors before. We simply don’t do that, haven’t done it, and won’t permit it."

Jeff Tittel

Report never IDs AshBritt

"A report by the US General Accountability Office (GAO) in 2008 found that the disposal of Katrina wastes by AshBritt in the south resulted in the creation of contaminated sites along the Gulf Coast and two new Superfund sites in New Orleans."

Sheila Oliver

Sad but true

"In 2011 alone, 269 New Jerseyans were killed by gun violence."

Barbara Buono

Nation, other states seem to be doing better

"While the United States has seen its unemployment rate steadily decline, New Jersey's remains nearly two percent higher than the national average and more than a point higher than Connecticut and New York."

Liberals Are Cool

Facts dodger

"Q: What do these ‘Patriotic' Americans have in common? A: They are all Draft Dodgers."

Chris Christie

Same ol' blame game

Said the year before he took office, the state lost 119,000 private-sector jobs, labeling them "Corzine jobs losses of 2009."

Jeff Tittel

Numbers are off

"DEP has 2,812 employees, the lowest level since the mid-’80s."

Cory Booker

Depends on measure used

"More than 30 percent of all commercial and multifamily development in the entire state is happening in Newark."

Barbara Buono

Similar story, similar concerns

"Governor Christie, his idea of jumpstarting the economy is to propose a trickle-down income tax cut last year and in his budget address this year, he stated his support for it again."

James Florio

Statistic's on target

"We have over 300,000,000 weapons, firearms in this country. That’s almost as big as the population."

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Every day, reporters and researchers from the Star-Ledger examine statements by New Jersey elected officials and candidates and anyone else who speaks up on matters of public importance. We research their statements and then rate the accuracy on our Truth-O-Meter:

TRUE – The statement is accurate and there’s nothing significant missing.

MOSTLY TRUE – The statement is accurate but needs clarification or additional information.

HALF TRUE – The statement is partially accurate but leaves out important details or takes things out of context.

MOSTLY FALSE – The statement contains an element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give a different impression.

FALSE – The statement is not accurate.

PANTS ON FIRE – The statement is not accurate and makes a ridiculous claim.

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