Wednesday, June 19th, 2013
In silent protest, opponents of a series of Republican-backed bills dealing with abortions hold their hands over their mouths while watching debate in the state Assembly on June 13, 2013. AP photo by Scott Bauer

In silent protest, opponents of a series of Republican-backed bills dealing with abortions hold their hands over their mouths while watching debate in the state Assembly on June 13, 2013. AP photo by Scott Bauer

In Context: Strong statements on abortion

Lawmakers and partisans on both sides of the abortion issue reacted strongly to statements made during the legislative floor debate as the Wisconsin Senate narrowly passed a Republican-backed bill last week.

Here -- in our In Context feature -- we take a closer look at the attention-getting remarks on the bill, which requires women seeking an abortion to get an ultrasound.

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The Latest from PolitiFact Wisconsin

A scorecard separating fact from fiction

The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation is a "proven job creator."

Says the success of his economic agenda is supported by the fact "we went from unemployment at 9.2 percent when I decided to run for governor four years ago to two points lower."

Wisconsin is "not walking away from a dime" in federal funds by rejecting the Obamacare Medicaid expansion.

Says Madison Mayor Paul Soglin's stated intent when proposing that city contractors disclose private political donations was to "discourage contributions to organizations with which he disagrees."

"Our ranking in terms of the best and worst states to do business in was 43 four years ago, and we just moved up to 17 two weeks ago."

The National Rifle Association was "founded by religious leaders who wanted to protect freed slaves from the Ku Klux Klan."

"A bag of Cheetos costs less to buy than an apple," and in some Milwaukee neighborhoods "good luck trying to find an apple or a banana or some sort of healthy option"

Wisconsin has "one of the most progressive tax codes in the country."

"Nothing in the Constitution explicitly guarantees our right to vote."

An 11-year-old girl was investigated by the FBI and had to pay a $500 federal criminal fine "because she found an injured woodpecker and put it in a cage to make sure that the bird was OK."

"18 percent of our land in our state right now is either federally, state or county owned for conservation purposes."

Promise: Create 250,000 new jobs

Update: Two batches of not-so-good news

A referendum "gives the people the chance to decide" on cutting the Milwaukee County Board budget by two-thirds

A state report’s "projection is that approximately half of public employees" would live outside municipal boundaries in a decade if the state bans local residency requirements.

A 0.05 standard for drunken driving means having a glass of wine at dinner could make a person drunk.

"The State of Wisconsin thinks you should have to" wash your hands "at least 28 times to make one peanut butter-and-jelly sandwich."

A Wisconsin bill to limit use of food stamps for junk food would also "prevent -- or limit --  the extent to which" food stamps could be used for organic foods.

University of Wisconsin System's reserves are in the "mid- to low-range" of comparable university systems.

"Obama for President and Baldwin for Senate have kept their campaign offices up and running in Fox Valley, Eau Claire and La Crosse with their staffs preparing for the next battle."

Says a state bill checks the spending habits of the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors by "bringing it in line with other county boards around the state."  

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PolitiFact Wisconsin is a partnership of the
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and PolitiFact.com, a Pulitzer Prize-winning Web site of the Tampa Bay Times, to help you find the truth in politics.

Every day, reporters and researchers from the Journal Sentinel examine statements by Wisconsin 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.

For more details, see the Principles of PolitiFact and the Truth-O-Meter.

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