Presidential Debate

Did Joe Biden say, "if you're going to vote, vote early and vote often"? No, that's not true: During the first 2020 presidential debate, the Democratic nominee encouraged Americans to vote, but he did not use that phrase, which is a well-worn quote that's been around for decades, if not longer. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published…

Do photos show President Donald Trump with a "neural stimulator device" on his scalp under his hair? No, there's no evidence that's true: Even assuming the photographs are real, which we don't, the images are not suggestive of such a device, a neural device expert told Lead Stories. The claim appeared in a post (archived here), published on Facebook on…

Did Joe Biden wear an IV or a wire up his sleeve during the Presidential Debate in Cleveland on September 29, 2020? No, that's not true: viral photos making that assertion or just questioning what is up Biden's sleeve actually show a rosary Biden wears in remembrance of his late son Beau. The rosary has a tiny medallion attached to…

Is it true that Joe Biden was wearing a wire during the first presidential debate with Donald Trump on Sept. 29, 2020? No, that is not true. Not only is there no evidence to back up a claim making the rounds on social media, a blow-up of a moment captured on camera clearly shows that the supposed "wire" was a…

Did Moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News or someone on his team give former Vice President Joe Biden a crib sheet ahead of debate #1 with President Donald Trump? No evidence nor provenance was supplied by the Republican operative who made the claim on an Iowa radio show to substantiate that before it was amplified by several other outlets. The…

Was Ruth Bader Ginsburg "nominated and confirmed 43 days before an election"? No, that's not true: Ginsburg was nominated and confirmed in 42 days (not 43) in 1993 -- which was not an election year. The previous year, 1992, was an election year, in which Bill Clinton won for the first time. Approximately eight months into his first term, he…

Did Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris start school in 1970, proving that she was not bused in Berkeley, California, during the 1960s like she claims? No, that's not true: The Berkeley school district confirmed her elementary school was segregated until 1968 and that Harris was bused to school in 1969 as a kindergartener. The claim appeared in a Facebook…

Did Kamala Harris vow to sign an executive order that would send police to your door to get your guns if you do not surrender them? No, that's not true. Sen. Harris, the presumptive Democratic vice presidential nominee, said when she was running for president that, if Congress did not pass legislation for stronger gun-buyer background checks and a renewal…

Did Kamala Harris call Joe Biden a racist and a rapist? No, that's not true: There's no record nor any other evidence that she's used either word to describe the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. The claim appeared as a meme (archived here) on Facebook on August 13, 2020. With text over a picture of Harris, it read: I just accepted…

Does former Vice President Joe Biden propose a ban on fracking? No, that's not true: Biden's presidential campaign has said he does not support a ban on fracking by the oil and natural gas industry, although the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee does wants to ban all new oil and gas permits -- including those for new fracking -- on federal…