There was plenty said by President Donald Trump in his visit to New Hampshire on Friday. We took a closer look at 20 of the claims he made during his speech.
Polling numbers
In the first five minutes of the event, Trump claimed that poll numbers had swung in his favor, “like no one has ever seen before,” and that he was leading prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Real Clear Politics’ aggregation of national polls, Biden’s lead has remained steady even as Trump has gained ground amongst undecided voters over the past six weeks. However, he has not led Biden at any point over the past year.
In the Real Clear Politics’ aggregation of major battleground state polls, Biden still also leads, but Trump has gained ground since hitting a nadir in June.
Trump also said that Texas was not close. He has held a lead in Texas for most of the last year, but according to Real Clear Politics’ aggregation of polls, it has been consistently close to the margin of error.
Joe Biden on the Second Amendment
Biden says he wants to respect the Second Amendment, but also believes it is limited. He wants to ban high-capacity magazines, regulate existing machine-guns under the National Firearms Act, require background checks for all gun sales and end the online sale of firearms and ammunition.
He has touted his efforts to tout the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act in 1993, which established five-day waiting periods for handgun purchases.
Ending Foreign Wars
This year, the Trump Administration and the Taliban reached an agreement for troop withdrawals from Afghanistan tied to cessation of conflict in the country, although it appears that the withdrawals will occur regardless of external events. The withdrawal of American troops from Syria was announced in December 2019. In Iraq, troop numbers are expected to decrease to about 3,500 over the next few months.
Democrats and Flag Burning
Trump indicated that the Democratic Party supports flag burning. In the 2020 Democratic Party Platform, the word “flag” is used three times: supporting domestically-registered cargo ships, support of removing the Confederate battle flag from public properties, and encouraging “red flag” laws that temporarily allow courts to seize firearms from those who are a danger to themselves or others.
Biggest Tax Cut in U.S. History
Trump claimed that he oversaw the largest tax cut in American history in 2017, but that was actually the eighth largest tax cut in history by GDP, actually smaller than two overseen by President Obama.
However, it was the largest corporate tax cut in U.S. History.
Everyone that’s needed a ventilator has gotten one
In April, U.S. hospitals reported shortages of ventilators, with some hospitals in New York needing to share ventilators for patients in March.
COVID-19 Mortality Rate
Trump claimed that the mortality rate has dropped by 80 percent since April.
According to the CDC, the week of April 18 saw 17,035 deaths nationwide. The week of Aug. 22 saw 967, a 94 percent drop. However, the CDC says these counts are provisional and subject to change.
Other sources have provided different rates. The New York Times day-by-date death tally as well as the Washington Post’s indicates that the U.S. is now at just under half of the peak death rate seen in early April, but five times higher than the lowest tally in early July.
New Hampshire Manufacturing Job Loss
Trump claimed that New Hampshire has lost 1 in 4 manufacturing jobs since the creation of NAFTA, a claim supported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
China wants Biden
Trump’s claim that the People’s Republic of China is silently rooting for the Biden campaign could depend on the interpretation of a recent U.S. intelligence report released earlier this month.
In that report, China and Iran are not looking to support Biden, but oppose Trump, not because of his policies, but what they see as his unpredictability.
Chinese business leaders also express concerns about both candidates.
300 miles of new walls on the Mexican border, and who paid for it
Just under 200 miles of new walls had been constructed as of May, but most of this was replacement of existing walls. U.S. Customs and Border Protection indicates that 275 new miles of wall have been built, but does not provide immediate details on whether miles of wall are new or replacement walls, only providing a map of new and existing walls in place and currently under construction.
In regards to Trump’s claim that the Mexican government is paying for the wall, Trump has said that Mexico will indirectly pay for the wall through the U.S./Mexico/Canada Free Trade Agreement (USMCA), but White House spokespeople have said that U.S. taxpayers will ultimately pay for walls.
Money from the Department of Defense budget was also used to build the wall, something the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has found unconstitutional.
No More Same-Day Voter Registration/Busing Voters to New Hampshire
Trump’s claim that same day voter registration cannot be done in New Hampshire is false, with registration available on election day or at the last meeting of a town or city’s Supervisors of the Checklist, which occurs one to two weeks before election day.
The New Hampshire Secretary of State’s Office and New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office conducted an investigation of the 6,033 voters that filed affidavits in 2016 and did not report any suspicions of voters casting ballots under falsified New Hampshire domiciles.
Supporting Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Here, Trump is likely referring to the FUTURE Act, which he signed into law last December. That bill included $255 million in STEM funding for colleges that serve minorities, including $85 million specifically allocated for Historically Black College and Universities.
Criticism over Using White House as RNC Backdrop
Trump criticized those who criticized him for using the White House as a backdrop on the final night of the Republican National Convention.
Those criticisms came from alleged violations of the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from engaging in political activities in a matter that would make their activities to represent the federal government.
While presidents are not subject to the Hatch Act, it remains unclear if any of Trump’s aides violated the Hatch Act or if it is enforceable.
New England having the highest energy rates in the U.S.
As a regional average, New England has the highest energy rates in the continental U.S., ahead of Alaska and Hawaii, with some experts attributing this in part to a lack of energy-producing natural resources in the area.
Paycheck Protection Program saving 200,000 New Hampshire jobs
Signed into law in April by Trump, a statement from the U.S. Small Business Administration indicated that the Paycheck Protection Program has saved approximately 123,000 jobs in New Hampshire.
No reference of law enforcement at the DNC
A roundtable discussion on national policing standards occurred on the first night of the DNC
Biden Plan Raising Everyone’s Taxes
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget gathered four separate analyses of the Biden tax plan would raise approximately $3.35 trillion and $3.67 trillion, including increases in some areas and decreases in other areas such as credits for parents seeking childcare and first-time home buyers.
VA Choice
Trump touted VA Choice, a large component of a bill signed by Trump in 2018 aiming to help provide more healthcare choices for veterans. The New York Times reported this year that VA Choice has been a success in terms of urgent care, but has seen a lack of doctors in other areas.
In March, the Associated Press reported that veterans have been turned away from seeing doctors due to the COVID-19 pandemic even though those doctors are available. Although Trump expanded on it, Veterans Choice was signed into law by President Obama in 2014.
Record Second Quarter Job Numbers
Biden’s Healthcare Plan
Trump accused Biden of wanting to eliminate private healthcare. According to the Biden campaign website, Biden looks to provide tax credits for healthcare coverage, provide the option of Medicare coverage for everyone, and engage various other reforms.
Medical Price Transparency
Trump sought to remind everyone in the audience that he wants credit for new medical price transparency measures set to begin next year.
Taking effect on Jan. 1, 2021, the Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) will require hospitals to post prices for services they have privately negotiated with insurance companies as well as other costs for services.
The American Hospital Association lost a court challenge to this new initiative earlier this year.
