Fact-Checking Frenzy: Unpacking the Biggest Whoppers from the Trump-Harris Debate
Fact-Checking the Trump-Harris Debate
In their first debate, former President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger, Kamala Harris, faced off on Tuesday evening, in a heated debate that exposed the differences in views and positions between the candidates on important issues that grip American public opinion.
Harris’ “Marxist” Father
Trump began the debate by accusing Harris of being a “Marxist,” noting that “his father is a Marxist professor of economics, and he taught him well.”
However, this claim is disputed by three of Professor Donald Harris’ former students, who are now economists themselves. They confirmed that they disagreed that Harris’ father was a Marxist.
Donald Harris taught at Stanford for nearly three decades until his retirement in 1998, and while there he studied the economic philosophy of Karl Marx, among other thinkers, his students recalled.
$85 Billion Worth of Taliban and Military Equipment
As they discussed the American withdrawal from Afghanistan, Trump said that the Taliban had inherited $85 billion worth of American military equipment that had been left behind by American forces during their hasty withdrawal.
However, this claim is wrong. The Taliban had already seized American-made military equipment when they took power in 2021, but that the $85 billion figure was highly exaggerated.
The figure provided by Trump approximated the total aid allocated to the Afghan army and police during the two-decade war at about $83 billion.
According to a 2022 Defense Department report, the Taliban took control of most of the US-funded equipment, worth an estimated $7 billion, that had been in the possession of the previous Afghan government since its fall, and whose status was unknown.
American Forces on the Battlefield
During the debate, Harris claimed that there was no member of the US military on active duty in a combat zone, saying that “to date, not a single member of the US military is on active duty in a combat zone, any battlefield around the world, for the first time this year.”
However, this claim is not true. Although Congress has not officially declared war for several years, American forces are present on the battlefield in several countries.
According to the same source, several members of the American forces are working in places like Iraq and Syria, where they work with local forces in the fight against terrorist organizations.
Harris Wants to Confiscate Your Weapons
The former president charged that Harris “wants to confiscate the arms” of Americans.
However, this claim is false and has been repeatedly denied after it was previously circulated on the Internet.
Harris favors legislation to <a href="https://www.newsdirectory3.com/fact-checking-frenzy-unpacking-the-biggest-whoppers-from-the-trump-harris-debate-2/” title=”The Trump and Harris Debate…Most Prominent "False" Statements on Both Sides”>increase gun ownership protections, and that his proposals include imposing stricter regulations on the sale and acquisition of weapons.
“Obamacare”
Trump claims he saved Obamacare, despite his earlier promise to repeal it.
However, this claim is misleading for several reasons. Trump’s plan to repeal it failed because Republicans in Congress did not get enough votes for it in 2017, and not because of a decision to preserve it.
The Trump administration took steps to weaken the law, including signing an executive order early in his term to repeal it, then shortening the registration period and reducing funding for advertising and registration guides.
Number of Jobs Added
In the debate, Harris said the Biden administration has added more than 800,000 new jobs to the American economy.
While the claim is close to the truth, it requires some explanation. Through July 2024, the US economy had actually added 765,000 jobs since February 2021.
Most of these jobs (746,000) were added in 2021 and 2022, with slower growth in 2023 and early 2024.
“Domestic Abuse by Immigrants”
Trump also spoke strongly while addressing an unsubstantiated conspiracy theory that Haitian immigrants ate citizens’ pets in Ohio.
However, this claim is false. Unsubstantiated rumors have been circulating on social media for days claiming that Haitian immigrants are kidnapping and eating pets in Ohio.
The state police denied these allegations in a statement on Monday. “There are no credible reports or specific allegations of animal harm,” he said.