Why facts matter

In an essay, PolitiFact editor Bill Adair explains why facts are important — and why we nitpick.

By Bill Adair :: Published on Friday, November 30th, 2007 at 04:39 p.m.

Romney misses easy grounder

At the CNN/YouTube debate, the candidates argued about immigration, crime and Iraq. We found they generally got their facts right, although Huckabee distorted the facts on an education program for immigrants and Romney missed an easy one about the Red Sox.

By Bill Adair :: Published on Thursday, November 29th, 2007 at 06:02 p.m.

Looking for Mr. Right

Each of the candidates running for the Republican nomination for president claims to be a conservative. And each one is -- to a point.

By Wes Allison :: Published on Tuesday, November 27th, 2007 at 03:23 p.m.

Giuliani and Romney duel on crime stats

Romney and Giuliani cite different statistics on Massachusetts crime to make their points.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Monday, November 26th, 2007 at 03:34 p.m.

Who made Big Apple sweeter?

Rudy Giuliani presided over an economic rebound in New York City, but his claims ignore the nation's economic expansion. And he doesn't mention the less rosy details of his tenure.

By Neil Skene :: Published on Wednesday, November 21st, 2007 at 04:36 p.m.

Frustration with forms

Clinton and Richardson are right that Americans are frustrated with long college aid forms, but their numbers don't add up.

By Jeffrey S. Solochek :: Published on Tuesday, November 20th, 2007 at 06:25 p.m.

Spend-O-Meter vs. Truth-O-Meter

Once you accept some assumptions about how they did the math, the RNC does a pretty good job crunching Clinton's numbers.

By David Baumann :: Published on Monday, November 19th, 2007 at 07:06 p.m.

The intel numbers game

Rudy Giuliani blames President Clinton for the sad state of the intelligence budget.

By Shawn Zeller :: Published on Monday, November 19th, 2007 at 05:46 p.m.

Edwards not new to populism

Barack Obama says John Edwards is new to populism, but a review of Edwards' political resume shows he has long argued the cause of regular people against economic elites.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Monday, November 19th, 2007 at 11:49 a.m.

No sanctuary from exaggeration

Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney tussled over "sanctuary cities" for illegal immigrants at the CNN/YouTube debate. But their attacks exaggerate the effects of municipal policies on immigration.

By Bill Adair :: Published on Monday, November 19th, 2007 at 07:53 a.m.

Obama zapped by lightning claim

The Democrats slugged it out in a Las Vegas debate. We found several claims were true, but Obama was wrong about the probability of lightning strikes vs. undocumented worker prosecutions and Richardson was way off about the popularity of Vice President Cheney and HMOs.

By Bill Adair :: Published on Friday, November 16th, 2007 at 06:32 p.m.

Taking stock of 'tax-hike Mike'

Fred Thompson says Mike Huckabee raised lots of taxes in Arkansas. Huckabee responds that he cut taxes "almost 100 times." We find Thompson on solid ground but Huckabee stretching the truth.

By Miranda Blue :: Published on Wednesday, November 14th, 2007 at 04:29 p.m.

Making 'disruption' equal 'destruction'

Rudy Giuliani frequently attacks Hillary Clinton over her views on the free market, but he's blatantly misquoting her.

By John Frank :: Published on Tuesday, November 13th, 2007 at 06:18 p.m.

Decoding the Clinton records ruckus

Sen. Clinton's records as first lady are stuck in an archivist quagmire, but that doesn't mean President Clinton couldn't be helping.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Friday, November 9th, 2007 at 12:00 a.m.

Obama targeted in chain e-mail

A chain e-mail says Barack Obama is unpatriotic because he "refused" to say the Pledge of Allegiance and did not put his hand over his heart. But it relies on a photo taken during the national anthem, not the pledge.

By Bill Adair :: Published on Thursday, November 8th, 2007 at 11:55 a.m.

Sparring over spending

It's true that Rudy Giuliani sued to end the president's line item veto, it's just not clear how much that means.

By David Baumann :: Published on Wednesday, November 7th, 2007 at 03:54 p.m.

What's in a resume?

The candidates have been making boasts and attacking each other over who has the most experience. We check their math.

By Michael Van Sickler :: Published on Tuesday, November 6th, 2007 at 05:13 p.m.

Barbers give Dodd a good cut

The barbers in the TV ads aren't real, but they're correct that Dodd was the prime sponsor of the Family and Medical Leave Act.

By Bill Adair, Nell Benton :: Published on Monday, November 5th, 2007 at 03:31 p.m.

Biden wants a bite of the Big Apple

The Delaware senator says he's the one who lowered crime in New York while Rudy Giuliani was mayor.

By Wes Allison :: Published on Friday, November 2nd, 2007 at 03:35 p.m.

Not just for the richest anymore

Candidates pillory the alternative minimum tax, though not always with solutions in hand.

By David DeCamp :: Published on Thursday, November 1st, 2007 at 05:38 p.m.