'Mandatory volunteerism'? Not in this bill

Some conservative pundits have said the GIVE Act, now named after Sen. Edward Kennedy, would lead to mandatory volunteerism. But the bill didn't do that.

By Robert Farley :: Published on Tuesday, March 31st, 2009 at 7:32 p.m.

'Light switch tax' isn't what Republicans claim

The Republicans contend Obama's cap-and-trade policy would impose a $3,128 tax per family. But it's not a tax and it wouldn't cost that much.

By Alexander Lane :: Published on Monday, March 30th, 2009 at 6:08 p.m.

A budget proposal, but without numbers

The GOP budget proposal doesn't include estimates of revenues or expenses.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Friday, March 27th, 2009 at 5:49 p.m.

Congress takes the ball on Obama's playoff promise

Obama promised to "throw his weight around" for a college football playoff system, but it's Congress that is playing offense.

By Robert Farley :: Published on Thursday, March 26th, 2009 at 6:44 p.m.

The truth about Obama's first budget

Numbers have been flying fast and furious in response to Obama's first budget proposal. We took a look at some of the more popular claims to see which ones add up.

By Bill Adair, Robert Farley :: Published on Wednesday, March 25th, 2009 at 7:34 p.m.

Tale of tumbleweed farmer earns Pants on Fire

A Republican congresswoman alleges that Obama's budget would eliminate two sacred deductions for familes that earn more than $250,000. But we find she's way off.

By Robert Farley :: Published on Tuesday, March 24th, 2009 at 6:19 p.m.

Obama tax breaks give new juice for plug-in hybrids

Obama promised tax credits to encourage people to buy plug-in vehicles when they come on the market. We rate it a Promise Kept.

By Robert Farley :: Published on Monday, March 23rd, 2009 at 4:56 p.m.

Progress Report: Obama's Top 10 Promises

Seven of the 10 are at least In the Works, including our latest update on green jobs.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Friday, March 20th, 2009 at 6:24 p.m.

Mileage and the Model T

Obama says the Model T got better mileage than today's SUV. Maybe so, but is that the best way to think about fuel efficiency?

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Thursday, March 19th, 2009 at 5:32 p.m.

Mad Money: The AIG edition

Members of Congress are outraged over bonuses for AIG. We check their facts.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Wednesday, March 18th, 2009 at 5:39 p.m.

Obama's lobbyist rule: Promise Broken

We examine Obama's policy to prevent the "revolving door" for lobbyists and find that he's broken his promise. The policy has a big loophole.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Tuesday, March 17th, 2009 at 1:39 p.m.

Boehner has said no to earmarks

We find the House Republican leader can rightfully claim a pure record on earmarks.

By Robert Farley :: Published on Monday, March 16th, 2009 at 6:38 p.m.

The kids are alright

Obama claims U.S. eighth graders are slipping at math. But we find they're actually improving.

By Alexander Lane :: Published on Friday, March 13th, 2009 at 3:42 p.m.

(Fill in the Blank) to Nowhere still possible

Sen. Charles Schumer says Bridge to Nowhere, the poster child for earmark waste, could not happen in today's system. We say it could.

By Robert Farley :: Published on Thursday, March 12th, 2009 at 6:49 p.m.

Chief bean-counter off by lots of beans

Obama budget chief Peter Orszag claimed earmarks are down 75 percent. He's way off.

By Robert Farley :: Published on Wednesday, March 11th, 2009 at 6:09 p.m.

Lack of windfall stalls windfall tax

We examine a couple of promises on energy. One makes Obama's budget plan, another doesn't.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Tuesday, March 10th, 2009 at 6:32 p.m.

Obama's score at halftime: 17 promises kept, 2 broken

Halfway through 100 days, he has made considerable progress on many campaign promises. But now come the tough ones.

By Bill Adair :: Published on Monday, March 9th, 2009 at 5:03 p.m.

Biden: 'I did the math'

The vice president insists he's got the right figures comparing CEO and worker pay. We don't find anything wrong with his math, but he's missing a few qualifiers.

By Robert Farley :: Published on Friday, March 6th, 2009 at 5:27 p.m.

Another wrong tune about Obama's health plan

We find Sen. Tom Coburn is wrong with his claim that under Obama's health plan, all care will be run by the government.

By Angie Drobnic Holan :: Published on Thursday, March 5th, 2009 at 5:53 p.m.

McConnell's fuzzy math doesn't compute

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell says the Democrats spent more in a month than the combined cost of Hurricane Katrina and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We crunch the numbers and find that's wrong.

By Alexander Lane :: Published on Wednesday, March 4th, 2009 at 5:28 p.m.

Obama's promise to go after earmarks 'line by line'

We add a new promise about earmarks to our database and rate it Compromise.

By Bill Adair :: Published on Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009 at 3:49 p.m.

The continuing kerfuffle over earmarks

We explore whether the Democratic figure for earmarks is unrealistically low and what exactly President Obama promised during the campaign. 

By Bill Adair :: Published on Monday, March 2nd, 2009 at 7:08 p.m.