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The DNC kicked off Monday with a series of speakers and videos talking about former President Donald Trump’s response to COVID-19 while he was in office, and the subsequent response from President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris after they took over the administration in 2021. Get the facts on the claims of the speakers and video below. Speech by Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan Claim: “Our country was brought to the brink by failure to respond, but the Biden-Harris administration stepped in with quick and decisive action.”Get the Facts: COVID-19 brought the world to the brink, not just the United States. Trump was criticized for downplaying the virus initially and for inconsistent messaging, and the Biden-Harris administration did implement a more aggressive federal response. The use of “quick and decisive” is subjective, as some critics argue that certain actions, such as vaccine distribution, faced challenges.Rating: Needs ContextClaim: “They (the Biden/Harris administration) contained the virus, created millions of jobs, and invested in our nation’s future.”Get the Facts: The Biden administration’s actions helped reduce COVID-19 cases through vaccination efforts and created millions of jobs, especially as the economy rebounded from the pandemic-induced recession. It should be noted that containing the virus has been an ongoing challenge due to variants.Rating: Needs Context Speech by Illinois Congresswoman Lauren UnderwoodClaim: “Under the Biden-Harris administration, the number of uninsured Americans hit an all-time low.”Get the Facts: As of early 2022, the uninsured rate did hit a record low. That is largely due to expanded subsidies for Affordable Care Act plans under the American Rescue Plan.Rating: TrueSpeech by Rich Logis, a voter who formerly voted for Donald Trump Claim: “When the pandemic hit. We needed leadership but we were given almost nothing.”Get the Facts: The Trump administration implemented some measures, such as the CARES Act and Operation Warp Speed. Some of these actions helped flatten the curve in the United States. And Congress and the Trump administration did pass a few rounds of stimulus. However, the response was criticized for being delayed and insufficient in early stages.Rating: Needs ContextSpeech by California U.S. Rep. Robert GarciaClaim: “While schools closed and dead bodies filled morgues, Donald Trump downplayed the virus.”Get the Facts: Trump did downplay the virus early on. He compared it to the flu and suggested it would go away on its own.Rating: TrueClaim: “He told us to inject bleach into our bodies.” Garcia also claimed, “They got people vaccinated, they got the virus under control, they safely reopened our schools, and they passed the American Rescue Plan.”Get the Facts: Trump suggested exploring the use of disinfectants internally during an April 2020 press briefing. Later, he claimed he was being sarcastic.As far as Garcia’s second claim, yes, the Biden administration did push for mass vaccinations, which helped, but even though the virus was significantly reduced, there have been new variants that have continued to pose challenges. Schools were reopened, eventually. The American Rescue Plan was passed in March 2021.Rating: Needs contextVideo with representative from the Harris/Walz campaign headquarters (“Two Lies and a Lie” game)Claim: In a video, a speaker, identified as Ryan, says, “Trump lost 3 million jobs. In fact, he’s the first president to lose jobs since Herbert Hoover.”Get the Facts: This is accurate. The U.S. economy shed approximately 3 million jobs during Trump’s term, largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making him the first president since Herbert Hoover (during the Great Depression) to see a net loss in jobs.Rating: Needs contextClaim: The speaker in the video then says that “Trump claims his administration ‘created more jobs than we ever had before.’”Get the Facts: This claim by Trump is misleading. While job growth was strong in the first three years of his presidency, the pandemic wiped out those gains. The net job loss over his four years contradicts this claim.Rating: MisleadingClaim: The speaker in the video says the “Trump said we had the ‘greatest economy ever, and then we got hit with COVID.’”Get the Facts: Trump frequently claimed that the economy was the best in U.S. history before COVID-19. While the economy was strong, with low unemployment and a rising stock market, economists debate whether it was the “greatest ever.” COVID-19 caused a massive downturn.Rating: MisleadingClaim: The speaker in the video says, “Trump talked a big game, but actually lost 178,000 manufacturing jobs.”Get the Facts: Manufacturing declined under Trump, especially during the pandemic. That reversed some of the earlier gains in job figures.Rating: Needs context
The DNC kicked off Monday with a series of speakers and videos talking about former President Donald Trump’s response to COVID-19 while he was in office, and the subsequent response from President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris after they took over the administration in 2021.
Get the facts on the claims of the speakers and video below.
Speech by Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan
Claim: “Our country was brought to the brink by [Trump’s] failure to respond, but the Biden-Harris administration stepped in with quick and decisive action.”
Get the Facts: COVID-19 brought the world to the brink, not just the United States. Trump was criticized for downplaying the virus initially and for inconsistent messaging, and the Biden-Harris administration did implement a more aggressive federal response. The use of “quick and decisive” is subjective, as some critics argue that certain actions, such as vaccine distribution, faced challenges.
Rating: Needs Context
Claim: “They (the Biden/Harris administration) contained the virus, created millions of jobs, and invested in our nation’s future.”
Get the Facts: The Biden administration’s actions helped reduce COVID-19 cases through vaccination efforts and created millions of jobs, especially as the economy rebounded from the pandemic-induced recession. It should be noted that containing the virus has been an ongoing challenge due to variants.
Rating: Needs Context
Speech by Illinois Congresswoman Lauren Underwood
Claim: “Under the Biden-Harris administration, the number of uninsured Americans hit an all-time low.”
Get the Facts: As of early 2022, the uninsured rate did hit a record low. That is largely due to expanded subsidies for Affordable Care Act plans under the American Rescue Plan.
Rating: True
Speech by Rich Logis, a voter who formerly voted for Donald Trump
Claim: “When the pandemic hit. We needed leadership but we were given almost nothing.”
Get the Facts: The Trump administration implemented some measures, such as the CARES Act and Operation Warp Speed. Some of these actions helped flatten the curve in the United States. And Congress and the Trump administration did pass a few rounds of stimulus. However, the response was criticized for being delayed and insufficient in early stages.
Rating: Needs Context
Speech by California U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia
Claim: “While schools closed and dead bodies filled morgues, Donald Trump downplayed the virus.”
Get the Facts: Trump did downplay the virus early on. He compared it to the flu and suggested it would go away on its own.
Rating: True
Claim: “He [Trump] told us to inject bleach into our bodies.” Garcia also claimed, “They got people vaccinated, they got the virus under control, they safely reopened our schools, and they passed the American Rescue Plan.”
Get the Facts: Trump suggested exploring the use of disinfectants internally during an April 2020 press briefing. Later, he claimed he was being sarcastic.
As far as Garcia’s second claim, yes, the Biden administration did push for mass vaccinations, which helped, but even though the virus was significantly reduced, there have been new variants that have continued to pose challenges. Schools were reopened, eventually. The American Rescue Plan was passed in March 2021.
Rating: Needs context
Video with representative from the Harris/Walz campaign headquarters (“Two Lies and a Lie” game)
Claim: In a video, a speaker, identified as Ryan, says, “Trump lost 3 million jobs. In fact, he’s the first president to lose jobs since Herbert Hoover.”
Get the Facts: This is accurate. The U.S. economy shed approximately 3 million jobs during Trump’s term, largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making him the first president since Herbert Hoover (during the Great Depression) to see a net loss in jobs.
Rating: Needs context
Claim: The speaker in the video then says that “Trump claims his administration ‘created more jobs than we ever had before.’”
Get the Facts: This claim by Trump is misleading. While job growth was strong in the first three years of his presidency, the pandemic wiped out those gains. The net job loss over his four years contradicts this claim.
Rating: Misleading
Claim: The speaker in the video says the “Trump said we had the ‘greatest economy ever, and then we got hit with COVID.’”
Get the Facts: Trump frequently claimed that the economy was the best in U.S. history before COVID-19. While the economy was strong, with low unemployment and a rising stock market, economists debate whether it was the “greatest ever.” COVID-19 caused a massive downturn.
Rating: Misleading
Claim: The speaker in the video says, “Trump talked a big game, but actually lost 178,000 manufacturing jobs.”
Get the Facts: Manufacturing declined under Trump, especially during the pandemic. That reversed some of the earlier gains in job figures.
Rating: Needs context
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