Apparently, the “fact-checkers” will come after a Democrat.
Perhaps they have no choice when the falsehoods are so obvious. After all, the first clue was that a Democrat was complaining about a tax increase.
PolitiFact recently analyzed an assertion by Democratic U.S. Rep. Val Demings of Orlando, who seeks to oust GOP Sen. Marco Rubio this fall.
Demings was responding to Republican Sen. Rick Scott’s “Plan to Save America.”
One part of Scott’s 11-point agenda is to ensure that all Americans “have skin in the game” when it comes to income taxes, as Scott wrote in The Wall Street Journal recently. He said Washington’s policies end up “disconnecting so many Americans from taxation.” “It’s a genius political move. And it is bankrupting us,” he added.
Scott’s idea is to have every American pay income taxes. “Even if it is just a few bucks, everyone needs to know what it is like to pay some taxes.”
That’s a considerable “everyone.” CNBC reported last August that 61 percent of Americans paid no income taxes in 2020.
Many Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, distanced themselves from Scott, believing he was advocating raising taxes, especially on lower-income Americans. Democrats parroted this line, despite the hollow sound made by them opposing a tax increase.
Demings was among them.
She released a campaign ad on social media that accused Rubio of supporting Scott, and a possible tax hike.
“Marco Rubio and Rick Scott are planning to hike taxes on millions of Americans, including seniors and working-class Floridians. It’s time for Marco Rubio to take a hike,” the ad stated. An accompanying video maintained that “Marco Rubio is following his party bosses, like Rick Scott, with his plan to raise taxes on Florida’s working families, retirees, and veterans.”
The video further claimed Rubio was “scared” to stand up to other GOP leaders and for Florida. “Say no to the Rubio-Scott tax hike,” it concluded.
The problem – for Demings – is that her ad is a lie.
Or as PolitiFact described it, “particularly misleading.”
“We found no evidence that Rubio has endorsed Scott’s plan,” the “fact-check” continued after noting the sources cited in Demings’ ad – none of which mentioned Rubio or connected him to a tax hike.
“There is no evidence that Rubio backs such tax hikes,” PolitiFact concluded.
“We rate the claim False.”
It doesn’t change the general anti-Republican bias so frequently found among “fact-checkers,” but give PolitiFact credit for at least looking at this blatant lie.
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DEMing her ayes !