Every week TODAY'S TMJ4 and PolitiFact Wisconsin hold politicians accountable for what they say and the promises they make. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel does the digging and research and Greg Borowski is here with what we call the Top Four at Four - the most clicked PolitiFact stories from July.
#4 ."Mexico, they took 30% of our automobile business." President Trump
Trump claimed the U.S. has lost 30% of its automobile business to its southern neighbor during a June 12, 2019 speech at Derco Aerospace where he touted the pending United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade.
Experts say there isn't one example of an automaker closing a plant in the U.S. in order to open one in Mexico, much less enough to total 30% of anything. And Mexican-built cars still account for only 15% of sales in the U.S.
PolitiFact Wisconsin Rating: False.
#3 "Trump wants to cut (Medicare) just to pay for tax breaks to billionaires." The claim was made by the Priorities USA Super PAC, which announced it plans to spend at least $300,000 per week on digital ads in Wisconsin.
The "tax breaks" in the ad refer to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, an overhaul of the tax code signed into law by Trump in December 2017, according to a supporting document provided by Priorities USA.
Any large-scale tax cuts reduce revenue and can require cuts elsewhere in the budget, where Medicare is a high-cost piece. But the ad over-reaches in directly linking tax cuts signed into law almost two years ago and Medicare changes that are still in the works.
The cuts do disproportionately benefit the wealthy, but a very small portion of the money actually goes to billionaires.
PolitIfact Wisconsin Rating: Mostly False.
#2 On the campaign trail, Gov. Tony Evers promised a middle class tax cut.
A 10% income tax reduction for individuals making up to $100,000 a year and families making up to $150,000. Evers-O-Meter promise updates.
With Evers' first state budget completed, we took a look back on some of his budget-related promises on the Evers-O-Meter.
Evers wanted to pay for it by rolling back the manufacturers and agricultural tax credit, put in place by Republicans. But Republican lawmakers rejected the proposal in favor of their own plan. That was left intact after Evers issued his vetoes to the budget.
Evers O Meter Rating: Compromise.
#1 At the same time President Donald Trump talks about supporting veterans, "he is deporting service members who have volunteered to serve this country." U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, a Democratic presidential hopeful and major in the Hawaii Army National Guard, touched on both topics when she visited Milwaukee.
Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, people born in other countries can gain U.S. citizenship through military service. Sometimes they can do this without going through the preliminary step of getting a U.S. green card (lawful permanent resident). The exact legal requirements depend on whether the person served during peace or war time.
However, a June 2019 GAO report noted that the federal government had fallen short in efforts to guide immigrants serving in the U.S. military through the process to become naturalized citizens. That said, GAO documents make clear the issue existed before Trump took office -- something that wasn't acknowledged in Gabbard's claim.
PolitiFact Wisconsin Rating : Mostly True.
