President Barack Obama talked about terrorism and drones in a major speech on May 23, 2013. At one point, Obama said "there have been no large-scale attacks on the United States" since the start of his presidency, adding, "Now, make no mistake, our nation is still threatened by terrorists. From Benghazi to Boston, we have been tragically reminded of that truth. But we have to recognize that the threat has shifted and evolved from the one that came to our shores on 9/11." We wondered whether he was accurate when he said "there have been …

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Controversy is swirling around the White House, with inquiries into the consulate attack in Benghazi, the IRS' targeting of conservative groups and the Justice Department’s probe of journalists’ phone records. Some Republicans say these issues are emblematic of the how the Obama White House operates. "There is a culture of intimidation throughout the administration. The IRS is just the most recent example," Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said on Meet the Press on May 19, 2013. "… Over at HHS back during the Obamacare debate, Secretary (Kathleen) Sebelius sent out a directive to help insurance companies telling them …

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With the debate over gun control still simmering, a reader asked us to fact-check an ad on Baltimore TV stations that promotes tough laws on gun purchases. The ad, was put together by Marylanders to Prevent Gun Violence, a group headed by Vincent DeMarco, an adjunct assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. (We have written previously about the Bloomberg School’s role in gun policy research.) The group, whose board is chock full of Maryland political leaders, supported the gun-control bill signed earlier this year by Democratic Gov. …

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The fallout from the Internal Revenue Service’s tougher scrutiny of tea party groups continues with former IRS officials testifying that they never tried to mislead Congress about IRS practices. Republican senators like Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, were openly skeptical. "You lied by omission," Hatch said. President Barack Obama and Democrats have criticized the excesses of the IRS. But some would like to shift the focus to the legal ambiguity that allows some tax-exempt groups to engage in politics without revealing their donors, as formal campaign organizations must do. The chair of the House Democratic Caucus, Xavier Becerra …

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The Internal Revenue Service has been on the defensive since the news broke that the agency has been giving extra scrutiny to conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status. Among the lawmakers expressing concern about the IRS was Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Va. In a May 17, 2013, interview, Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson asked Forbes, "What's your No. 1 concern about the IRS being in charge of Obamacare?" (Carlson was wrong about the agency's role. It is not "in charge," as we addressed with our recent fact-check of Michele Bachmann.) Forbes responded, "Well, Gretchen, first of all, it …

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Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., says Hillary Clinton is to blame for inadequate security in Benghazi, Libya, where four Americans died on Sept. 11, 2012. She was asked repeatedly as secretary of state to provide security, Paul told CNN State of the Union host Candy Crowley on May 19, 2013, including in "direct cables." Crowley asked Paul about his recent comments in Iowa and New Hampshire that Clinton’s failure should disqualify her from the presidency. "It's that you did it in Iowa or New Hampshire which gives it a political patina, and I'm asking you if you …

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During a recent interview with Fox News, Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., raised the specter of the Internal Revenue Service — an agency currently under fire for appearing to target conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status — collecting a database full of "intimate" details about Americans. Referring to an inspector general’s report on IRS scrutiny of conservative groups, Bachmann said, "So now we find out these people are making decisions based on our politics and beliefs, and they're going to be in charge of our health care. There's a huge national database that's being created right now. Your health care, …

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Last week was a bad one for the Internal Revenue Service. First, it faced widespread criticism over revelations that officials gave extra scrutiny to tea party and other conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status. Now, Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., is charging that the IRS may be able to deny Americans the right to health care. During a May 15, 2013, interview on Fox News’ On the Record with Greta Van Susteren, Bachmann linked the IRS to a longtime target of hers, President Barack Obama’s health care law. Referring to an inspector general’s report on the IRS …

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Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn. is one of a number of Republican lawmakers who have recently sought to link the two longtime targets of conservatives — the Internal Revenue Service and President Barack Obama’s health care law. In a May 15, 2013, interview with Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren, Bachmann invoked an inspector general’s report critical of the IRS’ scrutiny of conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status. She said, "So now we find out these people are making decisions based on our politics and beliefs, and they're going to be in charge of our health care. There's …

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House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi says Democrats care about frugality — and the president’s health care law is one example. It’s bringing down the cost of health care, she told MSNBC host Chris Hayes. While key elements of the Affordable Care Act don’t go into effect until 2014, we wondered if the law has already brought down the cost of care. It depends partly on what you mean by "down." Growth rate Hayes and Pelosi chatted May 13, 2013, about Republicans’ focus on reducing the deficit. "It strikes me that they have been remarkably …

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New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte saw her poll numbers drop after she voted against a proposal to expand background checks on gun sales. Now coming to her rescue is Marco Rubio’s Reclaim America PAC. The Florida senator’s group is out with an ad that says Ayotte "voted to fix background checks." What gives? Did she vote against them or vote to fix them? The answer depends on how you define the fix. Gun control groups say background checks won’t be fixed unless they are expanded to cover more types of gun sales. The bill …

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With Americans under attack in Benghazi, did the U.S. military do all it could to save lives? Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, says no. Four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, were killed in attacks that began Sept. 11, 2012, on U.S. compounds in Benghazi, Libya. Meanwhile, four special forces troops "willing to risk their lives to go save them" were "told to stand down," Chaffetz told Fox News host Sean Hannity. Did the U.S. fail to send life-saving help? Who knew what, when? Gregory Hicks was deputy chief of mission …

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President Barack Obama has been facing tough questions from journalists about recent congressional hearings that addressed the Sept. 11, 2012, attack against a U.S. facility in Benghazi, Libya. The attack, which left four Americans dead, has led to months of criticism by members of Congress about how the administration handled the incident. During a joint appearance with British Prime Minister David Cameron on May 13, 2013, Obama said Benghazi is being politicized by some members of Congress. "The day after it happened, I acknowledged that this was an act of terrorism," Obama said. "And what I pledged …

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Journalists peppered President Barack Obama’s press secretary, Jay Carney, with a series of tough questions about Benghazi at a White House press briefing on May 10, 2013.  The incident, in which four Americans were killed at two U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya, was the topic at a congressional hearing on May 8. Members of Congress have criticized how the administration handled the Sept. 11, 2012, incident, both in the immediate aftermath and in the months since. One of the issues receiving the most attention is whether, or to what extent, Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice misled …

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During an interview on the MSNBC show Morning Joe, Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., argued for legislation he’s proposing that would allow guns to be carried into lands controlled by the Army Corps of Engineers. To make the case that guns make places safer, Coburn cited a dramatic before-and-after statistic that stems from the lifting of a ban on guns in national parks. Coburn was a leader in the effort to get Congress to approve the change. President Barack Obama signed the national park provision into law, and it took effect in February 2010. "In 2010," Coburn said …

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Former Democratic cabinet member and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson caused a bit of a kerfuffle recently when he knocked Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, for Cruz’s skepticism about immigration legislation that’s pending in Congress. During a web interview with ABC News, host Benjamin Bell asked Richardson, "Do you think he represents most Hispanics with his politics?" "No," Richardson responded, "He’s anti-immigration. Almost every Hispanic in the country wants to see immigration reform. No, I don’t think he should be defined as a Hispanic. He's a politician from Texas, a conservative state."

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On NBC’s Meet the Press, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., pointed to a somewhat obscure labor statistic as evidence that the economy continues to fare poorly more than five years after the onset of the last recession. "I think it's very dangerous to suggest that this economy's healthy," Ginrgich said. He went on to argue that the implementation of President Barack Obama’s health care law could push some companies to turn full-time workers into part-timers in order to avoid providing health coverage. "The pain level it's going to cause, is going to be enormous," Gingrich said …

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One of the biggest news stories of last week came from the world of sports, with NBA player Jason Collins becoming the first active male athlete playing for a major U.S. team sport to come out as gay. Several Sunday public-affairs shows tried to put Collins’ declaration into historical context. CBS’ Face the Nation invited retired tennis great Martina Navratilova, among others, to discuss its significance. Navratilova came out as gay more than three decades ago. "I think when President (Barack) Obama came in favor of … gay marriage, that really changed the tide. But …

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Republican Sen. Marco Rubio is taking a precarious lead on immigration reform within his party, where the vocal conservative wing is wary of any hint of amnesty for people living in the U.S. illegally. Rubio is framing his case, in part, by reminding Republicans that they don’t want President Barack Obama leading the way on this issue. "We are dealing with 11 million people, but we are also dealing with the future of immigration in this country, and we are dealing with an administration that, quite frankly, has shown a reluctance to enforce the immigration law," Rubio …

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No more military chaplains? Soldiers court-martialed for their Christian faith? PolitiFact readers wanted to know if headlines across websites such as Breitbart.com and MrConservative.com last week were true. "Pentagon May Court Martial Soldiers Who Share Christian Faith," said Breitbart.com, claiming that "the Pentagon has released a statement confirming that soldiers could be prosecuted." It could "effectively abolish the position of chaplain in the military," the post said. "Pentagon Confirms They May Court Martial Soldiers Who Hold Christian Faith," said MrConservative.com, explaining that "the Pentagon has released an official statement affirming …

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