QUOTE
Live Fact Check
Democratic Debate Las Vegas
11:05 p.m.
Clinton and Iraq
Hillary Clinton was more specific than she has been previously on withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq. "We will start withdrawing within 60 days," she said. "We will move as carefully and responsibly as we can, one to two brigades a month, I believe, and we'll have nearly all the troops out by the end of the year, I hope." Previously she has used words like "can" or "may" to describe her intentions.
What "nearly all" means is open to question, of course. Clinton has said it will be necessary to keep some combat troops in Iraq to fight al-Qaeda, protect U.S. interests, counterbalance Iran, train Iraqi troops, and support the Kurds in the north. That is quite a long list of caveats . It is unclear how many troops will be required to accomplish these missions.
--Michael Dobbs
10.45 p.m.
Contributions from Pharmaceutical interests
The Obama campaign is disputing a claim by John Edwards that Obama has overtaken Clinton as the candidate who has taken the most money from pharmaceutical and insurance interests. Data collected by the Center for Responsive Politics appear to support the Obama case. Clinton took around $525,000 from employees of insurance companies, compared to $390,000 for Obama. Or does the Edwards campaign have more recent data?
--Michael Dobbs
10.30 p.m.
2005 Energy Bill
Hillary Clinton slammed the 2005 energy bill as the "Dick Cheney lobbyist energy bill," saying that it had "enormous giveaways to oil and gas industry." In fact, according to a paper by the non-partisan Congressional Research Service, the 2005 bill provided for $2.9 billion of tax increases for the gas and oil industry--against $2.6 billion of tax cuts. That resulted in a net tax increase to the industry of "nearly $300 million over 11 years," according to the CRS report.
--Michael Dobbs
10 p.m.
Warren Buffett's tax rate
Obama came up with a surprising stat. Warren Buffett pays tax at a lower rate than his secretary. Buffett's tax rate, mainly on capital gains, is 17.7 per cent. Buffett says that his secretary, who earned $60,000, was taxed at 30 per cent. Glenn Kessler, a former economics reporter, believes this is right if you include social security and medicare. The secretary would pay 23 percent of her income in income taxes and about 7 percent in social security and medicare. [This assumes that she does not have big exemptions.] Buffett, making $46 million, pays only about 1.5 percent of his income on medicare but his social security payments are capped. Anybody got any thoughts on this one?
--Michael Dobbs
Tuesday, January 15, 9.25 p.m.
Edwards and Lobbyists
Little to fact check in the first 20 minutes. All "Kumbaya" and fraternity so far. Clinton rules Robert Johnson's statements about Obama doing strange things "in the neighborhood" as "out of order." Obama regrets saying that Hillary was "likable enough" in the Saint Anselm debate in New Hampshire, saying the comment "didn't come out the way it was supposed to."
Edwards repeats his claim that he has "never taken a dime" from a Washington lobbyist. Depends on how you define Washington "lobbyist." His former campaign manager and occasional contributor, Nick Baldick, was a registered Washington lobbyist at one time, although he tried to get his name off the list.
Update: The Edwards campaign points out that Baldick was not a registered lobbyist when he contributed to the Edwards campaign in 2003 and 2004. His company, Dewey Square, said in 2003 that he had been registered incorrectly. Dewey Square had registered Baldick as a federal lobbyist in 2000, 2001, and 2002.
--Michael Dobbs
Please join me and diplomatic reporter Glenn Kessler for a live fact check of tonight's Democratic debate from Las Vegas, Nevada, on MSNBC beginning at 9 p.m. EDT. Researcher Alice Crites will be digging up facts for us. Readers can help by using the comments or Contact the Fact Checker tools to point out mistakes or exaggerations by the candidates. We are also asking the campaigns to contribute.
This will be our third live fact check. We inaugurated this new feature with the back-to-back Republican and Democratic debates from Saint Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., on January 5. Last week, we fact checked a GOP debate from Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Since this is a live fact check, we will not issue definitive rulings this evening. Our aim is more modest--to flag questionable statements and contribute to a more informed discussion.
Democratic Debate Las Vegas
11:05 p.m.
Clinton and Iraq
Hillary Clinton was more specific than she has been previously on withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq. "We will start withdrawing within 60 days," she said. "We will move as carefully and responsibly as we can, one to two brigades a month, I believe, and we'll have nearly all the troops out by the end of the year, I hope." Previously she has used words like "can" or "may" to describe her intentions.
What "nearly all" means is open to question, of course. Clinton has said it will be necessary to keep some combat troops in Iraq to fight al-Qaeda, protect U.S. interests, counterbalance Iran, train Iraqi troops, and support the Kurds in the north. That is quite a long list of caveats . It is unclear how many troops will be required to accomplish these missions.
--Michael Dobbs
10.45 p.m.
Contributions from Pharmaceutical interests
The Obama campaign is disputing a claim by John Edwards that Obama has overtaken Clinton as the candidate who has taken the most money from pharmaceutical and insurance interests. Data collected by the Center for Responsive Politics appear to support the Obama case. Clinton took around $525,000 from employees of insurance companies, compared to $390,000 for Obama. Or does the Edwards campaign have more recent data?
--Michael Dobbs
10.30 p.m.
2005 Energy Bill
Hillary Clinton slammed the 2005 energy bill as the "Dick Cheney lobbyist energy bill," saying that it had "enormous giveaways to oil and gas industry." In fact, according to a paper by the non-partisan Congressional Research Service, the 2005 bill provided for $2.9 billion of tax increases for the gas and oil industry--against $2.6 billion of tax cuts. That resulted in a net tax increase to the industry of "nearly $300 million over 11 years," according to the CRS report.
--Michael Dobbs
10 p.m.
Warren Buffett's tax rate
Obama came up with a surprising stat. Warren Buffett pays tax at a lower rate than his secretary. Buffett's tax rate, mainly on capital gains, is 17.7 per cent. Buffett says that his secretary, who earned $60,000, was taxed at 30 per cent. Glenn Kessler, a former economics reporter, believes this is right if you include social security and medicare. The secretary would pay 23 percent of her income in income taxes and about 7 percent in social security and medicare. [This assumes that she does not have big exemptions.] Buffett, making $46 million, pays only about 1.5 percent of his income on medicare but his social security payments are capped. Anybody got any thoughts on this one?
--Michael Dobbs
Tuesday, January 15, 9.25 p.m.
Edwards and Lobbyists
Little to fact check in the first 20 minutes. All "Kumbaya" and fraternity so far. Clinton rules Robert Johnson's statements about Obama doing strange things "in the neighborhood" as "out of order." Obama regrets saying that Hillary was "likable enough" in the Saint Anselm debate in New Hampshire, saying the comment "didn't come out the way it was supposed to."
Edwards repeats his claim that he has "never taken a dime" from a Washington lobbyist. Depends on how you define Washington "lobbyist." His former campaign manager and occasional contributor, Nick Baldick, was a registered Washington lobbyist at one time, although he tried to get his name off the list.
Update: The Edwards campaign points out that Baldick was not a registered lobbyist when he contributed to the Edwards campaign in 2003 and 2004. His company, Dewey Square, said in 2003 that he had been registered incorrectly. Dewey Square had registered Baldick as a federal lobbyist in 2000, 2001, and 2002.
--Michael Dobbs
Please join me and diplomatic reporter Glenn Kessler for a live fact check of tonight's Democratic debate from Las Vegas, Nevada, on MSNBC beginning at 9 p.m. EDT. Researcher Alice Crites will be digging up facts for us. Readers can help by using the comments or Contact the Fact Checker tools to point out mistakes or exaggerations by the candidates. We are also asking the campaigns to contribute.
This will be our third live fact check. We inaugurated this new feature with the back-to-back Republican and Democratic debates from Saint Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., on January 5. Last week, we fact checked a GOP debate from Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Since this is a live fact check, we will not issue definitive rulings this evening. Our aim is more modest--to flag questionable statements and contribute to a more informed discussion.