Fishy Claim #1

The Obama Administration Said That The Stimulus Would Stop Unemployment From Going Above Eight Percent:

Obama Advisers Christina Romer & Jared Bernstein Claimed That The "Unemployment Rate With ... The Recovery Plan," Would Not Exceed Eight Percent. (Christina Romer & Jared Bernstein, "The Job Impact Of The American Recovery And Reinvestment Plan," P.4, 1/9/09)

Unemployment Is Now 9.4 Percent. "Employers throttled back on layoffs in July, cutting just 247,000 jobs, the fewest in a year, and the unemployment rate dipped to 9.4 percent." ("Job Losses Slow To 247,000; Jobless Rate Dips," The Associated Press, 8/7/09)

Fishy Claim #2

The White House Said That The Stimulus Would Not Be A "Jolt" Despite Claiming That Just Months Ago:

Vice President Biden: "But the act was intended to provide steady support for our economy over an extended period - not a jolt that would last only a few months. Instead of quick-hit rebates, we are giving Americans a tax cut in each paycheck." (Vice President Biden, Op-Ed, "What You Might Not Know About The Recovery," The New York Times, 7/26/09)

• Vice President Biden: "And, of course, we also came forward with what we're going to talk about today, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, an initial big jolt to give the economy a real head start." (Vice President Biden, Remarks, New York, NY, 6/2/09)
• Vice President Biden: "The Recovery Act, as we call it, provides a necessary jolt to our economy to implement what we refer as ‘shovel-ready' projects..." (Vice President Biden, Remarks, Vina del Mar, Chile, 3/28/09)
• Then President-Elect Obama: "But I think the most important thing to recognize is that we have a consensus, which is pretty rare, between conservative economists and liberal economists, that we need a big stimulus package that will jolt the economy back into shape and that is focused on the 2.5 million jobs that I intend to create during the first part of my administration. We have to put people back to work." (President Elect Obama, Press Conference, 11/24/08)
• President Obama: "But at this particular moment, with the private sector so weakened by this recession, the federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back to life." (President Obama, Press Conference, Washington, D.C., 2/9/09)

Fishy Claim #3

President Obama Claims He Will Cut The Deficit In Half, Despite The Deficit Climbing To A New Record:

"President Barack Obama Pledged On Monday To Cut The Ballooning U.S. Budget Deficit By Half In The Next Four Years And Said The Country Would Face Another Economic Crisis If It Did Not Address Its Debt Problems Soon." ("Obama Pledges To Halve Budget Deficit By 2013," Reuters, 2/23/09)

• President Obama: "If we confront this crisis without also confronting the deficits that helped cause it, we risk sinking into another crisis down the road." ("Obama Pledges To Halve Budget Deficit By 2013," Reuters, 2/23/09)

"The Congressional Budget Office Has Just Released More Mind Boggling Deficit Numbers -- The Federal Deficit Topped $1.3 Trillion In July, A New Record." ("Deficit Hits Record $1.3 Trillion For July," Politico, 8/6/09)

Fishy Claim #4

President Obama Promises That Nobody Will Lose Coverage Despite The Fact That He Can't Make That Promise:

President Obama: "If You Like Your Current Plan, You Will Be Able To Keep It.  Let Me Repeat That:  If You Like Your Plan, You'll Be Able To Keep It." (President Obama, Remarks At The White House, Washington, D.C., 7/21/09)

• AP Fact Check: "This Is A Pledge That's Beyond The President's Power To Keep." ("Fact Check: Obama's Words About Iran Get Tougher," The Associated Press, 6/23/09)
• AP Fact Check: "Health Care Coverage For 160 Million People Is Provided By Employers, And Obama's Plan Leaves Companies Free To Change Their Health Plans In Ways That Workers May Not Like, Or To Drop Insurance Altogether. In addition, his health care plan is only that - an idea proposed by the administration - and is subject to reworking by Congress. A preliminary analysis by the Congressional Budget Office estimates that a Democratic plan being worked on in the Senate would force 10 million Americans to seek new coverage because their employers would no longer offer it." ("Fact Check: Obama's Words About Iran Get Tougher," The Associated Press, 6/23/09)

Fishy Claim #5

President Obama Claims That He Won't Raise Taxes, But His Advisers And Congressional Democrats Have Other Ideas:

President Obama: "You Don't Raise Taxes In A Recession." "What about raising taxes? What about people who worry about raising taxes during a recession? ‘You don't raise taxes in a recession,' Obama said. ‘We have not proposed a tax hike for the wealthy that would take effect in the middle of a recession,' he said of his plans for financing healthcare reform, with taxes for higher-income Americans planned after 2011." ("Obama: No New Taxes In A Recession," Chicago Tribune's "The Swamp," 8/5/09)

• Then Sen. Barack Obama: "If You Are A Family Making Less Than $250,000, My Plan Will Not Raise Your Taxes - Not Your Income Taxes, Not Your Payroll Taxes, Not Your Capital Gains Taxes, Not Any Of Your Taxes." (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks On Taxes, Kaukauna, WI, 6/12/08)

• Obama: "And If You're A Family Making Less Than $250,000 A Year, My Plan Won't Raise Your Taxes One Penny -- not your income taxes, not your payroll taxes, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes." (Barack Obama, Remarks, Orlando, FL, 8/3/08)
• Obama: "You Will Not See Any Of Your Taxes Increase One Single Dime." "And if you make less than $250,000 -- if you make less than $250,000 a year, you will not see any of your taxes increase one single dime." (Sen. Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Espanola, NM, 9/18/08)

• Obama: "No Family Making Less Than $250,000 Will See Their Taxes Increase." "And I can make a firm pledge: under my plan, no family making less than $250,000 will see their taxes increase - not your income taxes, not your payroll taxes, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes." (Barack Obama, Remarks, Dover, NH, 9/12/08)

Secretary Tim Geithner: "We Have To Bring These Deficits Down Very Dramatically" And "That's Going To Require Some Very Hard Choices." ABC's GEORGE STEPHANOPOLOUS: "Including new revenues?" SEC. TIM GEITHNER: "Well, we're going to have to look at -- we're going to have to do what's necessary. Remember, the critical thing is people understand that when we have recovery established, led by the private sector, then we have to bring these deficits down very dramatically. We have to bring them down to a level where the amount we're borrowing from the world is stable at a reasonable level, and that's going to require some very hard choices." (ABC's "This Week," 8/2/09)

Larry Summers: "It's Never A Good Idea To Absolutely Rule Things, Rule Things Out No Matter What." CBS' BOB SCHIEFFER: "No tax increases for -"  LARRY SUMMERS: "-- of this economy." SCHIEFFER: "-- middle-income Americans?" SUMMERS: "There's a lot -- oh, there's a lot that could happen over time. But, the priority right now -- and so you, it's never a good idea to absolutely rule things, rule things out no matter what." (CBS' "Face The Nation," 8/2/09)

"House Democratic Leaders Took A Big Step Toward Guaranteeing Health Insurance For Most Americans On Tuesday As They Unveiled A Bill That Detailed How They Would Expand Coverage, Slow The Growth Of Medicare, Raise Taxes On High-Income People And Penalize Employers Who Do Not Provide Health Benefits To Their Workers." ("House Health Plan Outlines Higher Taxes On Rich," The New York Times, 7/15/09)

• "Starting In 2011, A Family Making $500,000 Would Have To Pay $1,500 In Additional Income Tax To Help Subsidize Coverage For The Uninsured. A Family Making $1 Million Would Have To Pay $9,000." ("House Health Plan Outlines Higher Taxes On Rich," The New York Times, 7/15/09)
• "Employers Who Do Not Provide Health Insurance To Workers Would Generally Have To Pay A Fee Or Penalty To The Government. The Fee Would Be Equal To 8 Percent Of Wages For An Employer With An Annual Payroll Of More Than $400,000." ("House Health Plan Outlines Higher Taxes On Rich," The New York Times, 7/15/09)
• "The Surtax Would Apply To Any Adjusted Gross Income Exceeding $280,000 A Year For An Individual And $350,000 For A Couple Filing A Joint Return. The Tax Rates Would Range From 1 Percent To 5.4 Percent." ("House Health Plan Outlines Higher Taxes On Rich," The New York Times, 7/15/09)
• "Combined With The Expiration Next Year Of Tax Cuts Enacted During The Bush Administration, The Surtax Would Drive The Top Federal Tax Rate To 45 Percent, The Highest Level Since Lawmakers Rewrote The Tax Code In 1986." ("Health-Care Plan Would Add Surtax On Wealthy," The Washington Post, 7/15/09)