The Obama file:
Obama

Barack Obama

Democrat from Illinois

Barack Obama is a U.S. senator from Illinois. He was born in 1961 in Hawaii, where his parents met as students at the University of Hawaii. His father is from Kenya and his mother is from Kansas. He graduated from Columbia University and received his law degree from Harvard Law School. He previously served in the Illinois state Senate and was an instructor at the University of Chicago Law School. He and his wife, Michelle, have two daughters.

Obama's statements by ruling
Click on the ruling to see all of Obama's statements for that ruling.
Recent statements by Barack Obama

Half-True Measures in Barack Obama's health plan could "lower health care costs for the typical family by $2,500 a year."
Wednesday, October 29th, 2008 in in a television ad
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Half-True Obama "changed the rules in Washington. Gone are the free gifts from lobbyists. Gone are the fancy airplane rides for nothing."
Thursday, October 30th, 2008 in a statement by Sen. Claire McCaskill in a TV ad.
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Barely True "For my energy plan, my economic plan, and the other proposals you'll hear tonight, I've offered spending cuts above and beyond their cost."
Wednesday, October 29th, 2008 in
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Mostly true "The race will tighten, just because that's what happens at the end of campaigns. They always have."
Sunday, October 19th, 2008 in a TV interview
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Half-True The accuracy of the Obama tax calculator
Tuesday, October 14th, 2008 in campaign Web site
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Recent Flip-O-Meter rulings for Barack Obama

Half Flip On which team he's rooting for in the World Series.
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No Flip On a timetable to withdraw from Iraq.
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Full Flop On using the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
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Half Flip On offshore drilling.
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Full Flop On public financing of his campaign.
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Recent attacks by Barack Obama

Mostly true "In April, Sen. McCain came out against helping women earn equal pay for equal work."
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Mostly true McCain called for less regulation 21 times just this year.
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Barely True McCain is "selectively editing Joe Biden's words...Biden actually said about Barack Obama: 'They're gonna find out this guy's got steel in his spine.'"
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False "Senator McCain would pay for part of his (health care) plan by making drastic cuts in Medicare — $882-billion worth."
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False "The centerpiece of Senator McCain's education policy is to increase the voucher program in D.C. by 2,000 slots."
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Recent attacks on Barack Obama

Attacker:

 

Truth-O-Meter says:

McCain

John McCain

Barack Obama said "people making less than $250,000 would benefit from his plan" then said "if you're a family making less than $200,000, you'll benefit."

Mostly true

Different statements, different numbers

McCain

John McCain

"Obama says Iran is a 'tiny' country, 'doesn't pose a serious threat.'"

False

'Tiny' ad makes large error

Republican Party of Florida

Republican Party of Florida

"Barack Obama has consistently voted against tougher penalties for criminals."

False

Felony cherry-picking

Palin

Sarah Palin

Obama would "experiment with socialism."

Pants on fire!

The McCain campaign experiments with dishonesty

McCain

John McCain

If parents "don't have health insurance that Senator Obama wants them to have (for their children), they will be fined."

Half-True

Fines are possible, but for uninsured

Recent stories featuring Barack Obama

We'll be back!: The Truth-O-Meter is out of commission for routine maintenance, but we'll bring it back in January to fact-check the White House and other players in Washington.

Your guide to the last-minute attacks: In their final days on the trail, the candidates repeat their favorite talking points. We check them on the Truth-O-Meter.

POLITIFACT ON FIRE!: We mark the final weekend of the campaign by highlighting some of our favorite Pants on Fire ratings from the past year.

Prime-time promises: We check the facts on Obama's 30-minute prime-time ad buy.

Castro on McCain and "the rifle lady": With an eye on Cuban-American voters in Florida, John McCain claims Fidel Castro is no fan.

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PolitiFact is a project of the St. Petersburg Times and Congressional Quarterly to help you find the truth in the presidential campaign. Every day, reporters and researchers from the Times and CQ will analyze the candidates' speeches, TV ads and interviews and determine whether the claims are accurate. >> More

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