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Trump Campaign Press Release - Correct The Record: Fact Checking Biden In Michigan

September 09, 2020

Another day, another set of false and misleading claims from Biden

BIDEN: "Military COVID infected: 118,984. Military COVID deaths: 6,114."

FACT: Biden grossly inflated the number of military service members who have died from coronavirus by 87,200%.

  • According to the Pentagon's coronavirus statistics, seven U.S. service members have died from COVID-19, not over 6,000.
    • This is not the first time Biden has grossly exaggerated the number of deaths, after he stated in June that "120 million" Americans had died from coronavirus.
  • Biden also grossly exaggerated the number of coronavirus cases in the military, which are roughly one-third of what he claimed.

BIDEN: "The rate of offshoring by federal contractors — big companies being paid with U.S. taxpayer money — more than doubled under President Trump."

FACT: Biden's claim is cherry picked from a limited data set and ignores the bigger picture; fewer jobs are being shipped overseas under President Trump and more jobs are being returned – a positive trend.

  • The Washington Post gave a similar claim about the same report Biden is citing "two Pinocchios" last year.
  • The number of jobs being off-shored has decreased under President Trump.
    • According to Labor Department data, the average number of jobs being certified for Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) – aid for workers whose jobs have been moved overseas – each year is down 30 percent under the Trump Administration compared to when Biden was Vice President.
  • Meanwhile, the number of jobs being re-shored has increased under President Trump.
  • President Trump has taken several actions recently to crack down on offshoring.
    • In August, President Trump signed an executive order instructing Federal contractors to limit their use of foreign workers.
    • In August, President Trump called for the firing of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) chair for hiring foreign labor, leading to the TVA dropping an outsourcing plan.

BIDEN: "I pay for everything that I call for, everything without raising a penny on a tax on anybody making less than $400,000 a year."

FACT: Biden's $4 trillion tax hike will raise taxes on 82 percent of Americans, including those making under $400,000, but even this historically large tax hike fails to cover the costs of his far-left policies.

BIDEN: "Would you really expect anything different from this guy? From someone who called those of you and those who are serving in uniform who have given their lives to the country losers and suckers."

FACT: At least 14 officials who were on the trip to France with President Trump have gone on the record to refute the anonymous sources and allegations in The Atlantic article:

  • Sarah Sanders, former White House Press Secretary: "The Atlantic story on @realDonaldTrump is total BS. I was actually there and one of the people part of the discussion - this never happened."
  • Hogan Gidley, former White House Deputy Press Secretary: "These are disgusting, grotesque, reprehensible lies. I was there in Paris and the President never said those things."
  • Dan Scavino, White House Deputy Chief Of Staff for Communications: "I was with POTUS in France, with Sarah, and have been at his side throughout it all. Complete lies by 'anonymous sources'..."
  • Jordan Karem, former Personal Aide to President Trump: "This is not even close to being factually accurate. plain and simple, it just never happened."
    • Karem: "Again, this is 100% false. I was next to @POTUS the whole day! The President was greatly disappointed when told we couldn't fly there. He was incredibly eager to honor our Fallen Heroes."
  • Johnny DeStefano, former Counselor to the President: "I was on this trip. The Atlantic bit is not true. Period."
  • John Bolton, former National Security Advisor: "'I didn't hear that,' Mr. Bolton said in an interview. 'I'm not saying he didn't say them later in the day or another time but I was there for that discussion.'"
  • Stephen Miller, White House Senior Adviser: The accusation is a "despicable lie ... The president deeply wanted to attend the memorial event in question and was deeply displeased by the bad weather call."
  • Tony Ornato, White House Deputy Chief of Staff and then-Head of the Secret Service's Presidential Protective Detail has said the story is false.
  • Derek Lyons, Staff Secretary and Counselor to the President: "I was with the President the morning after the scheduled visit. He was extremely disappointed that arrangements could not be made to get him to the site, and that the trip had been cancelled. "
  • Dan Walsh, former White House Deputy Chief Of Staff: "I can attest to the fact that there was a bad weather call in France, and that the helicopters were unable to safely make the flight."
  • Zach Fuentes, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff: "I did not hear POTUS call anyone losers when I told him about the weather."
  • First Lady Melania Trump: "@TheAtlantic story is not true. It has become a very dangerous time when anonymous sources are believed above all else, & no one knows their motivation. This is not journalism - It is activism. And it is a disservice to the people of our great nation."
  • Jamie McCourt, U.S. Ambassador to France and Monaco: "In my presence, POTUS has NEVER denigrated any member of the U.S. military or anyone in service to our country. And he certainly did not that day, either. Let me add, he was devastated to not be able to go to the cemetery at Belleau Wood. In fact, the next day, he attended and spoke at the ceremony in Suresnes in the pouring rain."
  • Major General William Matz (ret.), Secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission: "I was the host of the event discussed by the false and despicable article published in The Atlantic magazine on 3 September. On 10 November 2018, I was at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery awaiting the arrival of President Trump. As a former Army infantryman who has flown on many helicopters, I knew that morning the weather was bad and the ceiling was too low for a safe landing that day. When the President's visit was appropriately canceled due to weather, I received word also that he was upset he would not be able to make the wreath-laying visit and to pay his respect to the 2300 fallen soldiers and Marines interred there. ... Those who know President Trump know that the anonymous smears peddled by The Atlantic have no basis in fact or reality, and do a terrible disservice to journalism and to our veterans, living and deceased."

Additionally, The Atlantic's reporting has been refuted by a White House email and Navy documents that directly show a "bad weather call" was the reason for the canceled presidential trip to Aisne-Marne cemetery in 2018.

BIDEN: "He has a proposal that sounds really good, to do away with the payroll tax for the employee that's going to put more money in your salary, but guess what, by the year 2023, the Social Security Actuary said Social Security would be busted."

FACT: President Trump's payroll tax deferral does not defund social security, and this attack by Biden and his allies has been debunked.

  • The Washington Post's Fact Checker gave this attack by the Biden campaign "Four Pinocchios", saying "there are no planned cuts" to Social Security.
  • President Trump has said he wants to make the payroll tax deferral permanent next year, making this deferral a cut "without in any way, shape, or form hurting Social Security."
    • The President has said he would use the Treasury Department's general fund to reimburse Social Security's trust fund, ensuring zero impact on our nation's seniors.
  • Biden's attack is not only false, it is hypocritical.
    • In 2011, Biden wrote an op-ed touting a bill Obama signed to cut the payroll tax, specifically saying it was "misinformation" to suggest a payroll tax cut hurt Social Security's solvency.
  • President Trump has promised to always protect Social Security, unlike Biden who bragged in the 1990s about his efforts to 'freeze' benefits.

Donald J. Trump, Trump Campaign Press Release - Correct The Record: Fact Checking Biden In Michigan Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/345529

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