Fact-checkers have scrutinized President Joe Biden’s recent remarks he made while giving a speech in Virginia, taking aim at his remarks about what he has accomplished economically since taking over the Oval Office.
Biden gave a speech at the Steamfitters Local 602 in Springfield on Thursday (January 26), where he made several comments about the economy, causing fact-checkers from the House Ways and Means Committee and CNN to sound the alarm.
CNN reporter Daniel Dale, who conducts political fact-checking for the news outlet, claimed Biden made “false and misleading statements” about the economy’s progress during his Thursday speech.
In his speech, examining Biden’s remarks, Dale claimed the speech was “false, misleading or lacking critical context” but acknowledged some of his comments were accurate.
The first inaccurate claim Dale highlights are Biden’s comments that his administration has “funded 700,000 major construction projects” in the U.S.
The White House has admitted this figure is inaccurate.
Dale elaborates that although Biden has repeated the figure 700,000, the correct figure was 7,000.
The White House edited the transcript from Biden’s speech to reflect the correct number.
The next claim Dale debunks is Biden’s assertion that only “3.5 million people” had their first [Covid-19] vaccination when former President Donald Trump left the Oval Office in January 2021.
The correct figure, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is 19 million who had their first COVID-19 vaccine. 3.5 Million refers to those who had received their second shot.
Biden also claimed billionaires only pay 3 percent income tax; the correct average is 8 percent.
