We cover frequently here that the journalism adjuncts of the fact-checkers are a deeply partisan tool for the news outlets. Just consider this: If journalists were doing their jobs properly, this side service of detail verification would not be needed. Instead, these lower-tier confirmation squads are elevated as the final arbiters of the facts, and going forward all references using them are to be regarded as ironclad.
This, at least, is the selling job by the outlets. In truth, we usually see interpretational analysis, subjective importing of unrelated aspects, and arbitrary decisions on what will be graded. Displaying these tactics, and more, is CNN’s resident viscount of verite, Daniel Dale. The mousy Canadian has made a name for himself by disregarding his title; he has long boasted the heading “Presidential fact-checker,” all while choosing to largely avoid peering too ardently into the comments by the man wandering about the White House.
We are all quite familiar with President Biden’s creative delivery of the facts, yet Mr. Dale has shown a strong desire to not do his job. He has been seen avoiding correcting anything said by President Silveralert for months at a time. When Biden sat for a CNN interview just weeks ago, he unfurled a number of blatant falsehoods, yet Dale was nowhere to be found, too busy was he in the days prior and after railing about Donald Trump. Which brings us to Thursday’s debate.
Many excitable minds referenced Dale fact-checking both men in real-time, with his tally coming in that Trump told lies over Biden’s “misrepresentations” at a rate of at least 3/1. When he appeared on the air to deliver his findings he was not without melodrama. Trump, he reported, made a “staggering number of false claims” - 30, by his count - yet Biden was tabbed as making only nine, some of which were soft-pedaled as being “misstatements.” Dale then lapsed into the standard practice of his trade - employing interpretational measurements.
While no one is suggesting that Trump is the paragon of truth, for Dale to pathetically pretend Biden is far more proper and the beacon of rectitude is simply hilarious. But Dale first manages to discredit himself on some of the determined “lies” from Donald Trump.
He wanted to quibble over the funding in Ukraine, where Trump said we gave more aid than Europe. The U.S. has given more than any country, but in the totality of European aid, it is close. Dale stated Trump was well off in saying we gave $200 billion, citing a study in April saying the figure is $110 billion. Yet in April Congress approved a new $65 billion outlay - something a fact-checker should be aware is the case.
He also debated that Trump taking credit for the Veterans Choice legislation is a lie, as Obama signed that. Trump referred to his instituting the new law after that was sunsetted, and his plan expanded on the VA program. Dale says there is “zero evidence” Biden got money from China, ignorant of a Congressional investigation finding money from China that was made to Hunter found its way to Biden in the form of a check from his brother.
But the real comedy is in the way Daniel manages to only find nine errors from President Biden in the entire night. He had to recast many claims and even tried to avoid some real howlers, beginning with how he addressed Joe once again trotting out the long-disproven “very fine people.” Dale tabulates this as a lie on Trump’s part, amazingly enough. Despite transcripts clearly showing Trump denouncing white supremacists in that very same speech, Dale contests this is inaccurate and declares Trump in the wrong.
The president repeated the canard that Trump told people to inject bleach to ward off Covid, but CNN Truth Detector describes it as an exaggeration, not a lie. See, according to D.D. “He dangerously expressed interest in scientists studying the idea of disinfectant injections to treat Covid. This is the press who at the time were insisting that we listen ardently to scientists. Now it was “dangerous” to listen to some of the scientists, to excuse away the press stating Trump wanted people to shoot Clorox into their veins.
Biden also resorted to the tired “suckers and losers” claim, that Trump had used that phrase to disparage fallen soldiers. This was based on a long-disproven piece in The Atlantic by Jeffery Goldberg, who could only cite anonymous sources quoting Trump. Several people who were actually in attendance that day have disputed the claim, but since the Atlantic said it, Biden is given a bit of a pass on the matter.
Dale was all over Trump on abortion, but he backed Biden’s lie that Democrats do not favor late-term abortion; he fell back on the tired Democrat spin that hardly any abortions take place in the 3rd trimester, which does not dispute their position.
Biden blames Trump for immigrants in cages, that tired narrative that has long been shown as more than false. The practice began, as all know, during the Obama-Biden years, so Foggy Joe is more than aware that this is false; it borders on pathological.
He said Trump once declared “Hitler has done some good things.” This is not only a baseless lie, it has even been disputed by Snopes. Daniel ignores the falsehood from Biden that when it came to Iranian aggressions, Trump “did nothing” in response. Trump took out two of the highest leaders in that country’s terror campaign.
Also going unaddressed by the fact-impacted Dale: Biden says Trump wants to pull out of NATO, that the U.S. has 1,000 trillionaires, and he once again brought out the bald-faced lie that his son Beau died in Iraq. He declared Trump told Putin to do whatever he wanted, while the Russian leader made no moves during the Trump years and invaded Ukraine a year after Biden took office. And Dale simply buys into Biden saying he did not raise taxes on those making less than $400K.
Overall you are looking at something much closer to parity between the amount of fabrications from these two candidates. The bigger issue is the case of Daniel Dale showing a sharp problem with accuracy, whether it is recasting the truth or committing the lie by omission. This is, yet again, a case of an avowed fact-checker displaying an aversion to the facts.
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