Checking back on Duffy
With U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy announcing he is leaving office in September, let’s take a look back at how the Wisconsin Republican has fared on the PolitiFact Truth-O-Meter over the years.
Duffy — a former Ashland County district attorney and cast member of MTV’s “The Real World” franchise — was elected to Congress in 2010.
Since then we’ve fact-checked him 22 times. Those yielded two ratings of Mostly True, eight of Half True, nine of False or Mostly False and three of Pants on Fire. Here’s a sampling:
On Robert Mueller’s team
Statement: Says special counsel Robert Mueller “has brought in Democrat campaign donors at a very high level” on his team of lawyers. (Nov. 3, 2017)
Findings: Six of the 15 lawyers who have been publicly identified have not made campaign contributions to any political campaigns at the federal level. But among the lawyers who did make contributions, a total of $62,043 went to Democrats and $2,750 to Republicans, according to the special counsel’s office.
Rating: Half True
On single-payer health insurance programs
Statement: Vermont had to “scrap” its single-payer health insurance program because it was “going bankrupt.” (Sept. 20, 2017)
Findings: Vermont adopted legislation for single-payer in 2011. But by
2014, Vermont’s governor abandoned the plan, saying the tax increases it needed would have been too high. In short, single-payer in Vermont didn’t go bankrupt; it was never even funded or implemented.
Rating: False
On Republican election success
Statement: Republicans have “won a thousand seats since Obamacare.” (July 27, 2017)
Findings: There are many reasons for the decline of Democrats beyond dissatisfaction with Obamacare, including frustration over Washington gridlock, voters’ fears over budget deficits, national security, immigration, tax reform, the global economy, wages and jobs. Therefore, Obamacare is not the sole reason for the GOP seat gains, but one of many. But the “thousand seats” figure Duffy cites is accurate.
Rating: Mostly True
On Planned Parenthood and abortions
Statement: “Abortion providers like Planned Parenthood do little other than provide abortions.” (Feb. 24, 2017)
Findings: Planned Parenthood’s
most recent annual report covering a 12-month span between October 2013 and September 2014 states that abortions accounted for 3 percent of services the organization provided. About 13 percent of Planned Parenthood patients had abortions in the same period, a spokeswoman said.
What’s more, Duffy’s own measure to defund Planned Parenthood underlines how inaccurate this claim is. Federal money generally can’t be used for abortions, so the money he and others want to eliminate goes to pay for, well, things other than abortions.
Ruling: Pants on Fire
On Obama and Clinton and national debt
Statement: “Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have left us with $19 trillion in debt.” (July 19, 2016)
Findings: The total federal debt is at $19 trillion. But most of it was amassed before Obama took office. And many factors — Congress, the economy and Obama himself, but to almost no extent Clinton — played a role in the debt increases during Obama’s tenure.
Ruling: Mostly False