PolitiFact.com
Statements about States
Texas secession petition

Texas secession petition

True

Presuming California doesn't peel off

Says Texas has the 15th largest economy in the world.

Thomas Ratliff

Thomas Ratliff

Half-True

Finnish finish with at least four tests

Says Massachusetts has three state-mandated student tests and Finland just one.

Raymond Bateman

Raymond Bateman

True

Nearly 800k more votes than rival

Says that in the 1985 election former Gov. Tom Kean had "the largest winning margin for a gubernatorial candidate in Jersey history."

Chris Christie

Chris Christie

Mostly True

Change back for every $1 sent

Says New Jersey is "50th in return of our federal tax dollars."

Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney

Mostly True

Highest percentage in the nation — his first year

Says a university survey concluded his Massachusetts administration "had more women in senior leadership positions than any other state in America."

Planned Parenthood

Planned Parenthood

Half-True

Presidents and senators can't directly 'overturn' decision

Says Mitt Romney and George Allen "would overturn Roe v. Wade and allow states to end safe, legal abortion even in cases of rape, incest or when a woman's life is at risk."

Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney

Mostly True

Different ways to count, but MA is up there

Massachusetts schools "are ranked No. 1 of all 50 states."

Jennifer Beck

Jennifer Beck

False

Still below peak employment

"We have more people working in the state of New Jersey today than we've ever had in our history."

Deval Patrick

Deval Patrick

Half-True

Governors have limited impact on state economies

"By the time (Mitt Romney) left office, Massachusetts was 47th in the nation in job creation."

Scott Walker

Scott Walker

Half-True

Many of those increases weren't statistically significant

"Last month, 44 of the 50 states saw an increase in the unemployment rate."

Chris Christie

Chris Christie

True

Solidly Democrat since 1992

Says "a Republican hasn't won [an election] for a presidency in New Jersey since 1988."

Mike Stenhouse

Mike Stenhouse

Half-True

Depends on who's counting; "burden" debatable.

Rhode Island has "the most burdensome level of health-insurance mandates in the nation."

John Kasich

John Kasich

True

Digging deep for the truth

"Ninety percent of the topsoil has inadequate moisture to grow crops."

Scott Walker

Scott Walker

False

Study's author begs to differ

A study showed that President Barack Obama’s health-care reforms will "devastate Wisconsin" by pushing people off employer-sponsored insurance, driving up premiums, increasing dependency and making 122,000 people ineligible for Medicaid.

Robert DiMuccio

Robert DiMuccio

True

Multiple surveys, similar message

"Rhode Islanders pay among the highest auto repair bills in the nation."

John Robitaille

John Robitaille

Half-True

Rate fell under 7 of 8 Democratic governors as well

"Unemployment rate dropped in every state that elected a Republican gov. in 2010"

AFSCME

AFSCME

Mostly False

Taxpayers help in a big way

The Wisconsin Retirement System for public employees is "a self-funded pension plan" and "it’s the money of the workers’ that funds it."

Vincent Prieto

Vincent Prieto

False

Big claims, short on facts

Says Gov. Chris Christie’s proposed budget is "the biggest spending budget in the history of the state of New Jersey. It is the largest in the nation at this point in time."

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Half-True

Figure is correct, but lots of context is missing

"When Mitt Romney was governor, Massachusetts ... (had) more debt per person than any other state in the country."

American Bridge 21st Century

American Bridge 21st Century

Mostly False

Most calculations show an increase

"As Governor: Romney did not keep public safety funding in line with inflation."

Advertisement
How to contact us:

We want to hear your suggestions and comments. For tips or comments on our campaign promise database, please e-mail the Obameter. If you are commenting on a specific promise, please include the promise number. For comments about our Truth-O-Meter or Flip-O-Meter items, please e-mail the Truth-O-Meter. We’re especially interested in seeing any chain e-mails you receive that you would like us to check out. If you send us a comment, we'll assume you don't mind us publishing it unless you tell us otherwise.

Browse the The Truth-O-MeterTM:
Browse The Obameter:
Subscribe:

Keep up to date with Politifact National: