After trying to orchestrate a reality-TV moment with grieving parents, more craziness in the White House. Daniel Dale has counted all of last week’s lies.
Trump just claimed that America’s relationship with Italy goes back “thousands of years.”
Washington (CNN)
New record: Trump made 129 false claims last week, the most since CNN started counting in July
President Donald Trump averaged 18 false claims per day last week, subjecting his rally crowds, social conservatives, reporters and Twitter followers to an unceasing barrage of dishonesty.
It was not a record for Trump's presidency. He made 240 false claims during a rally-filled week before the 2018 midterms, which we counted at
the Toronto Star.
Both of the last two weeks have featured frequent deception about his dealings with Ukraine and the related whistleblower complaint. This past week, Trump made 28 false claims related to the whistleblower and 24 about his phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. His single most frequent false claim over these two weeks -- 11 times last week and nine times the week before -- was that the whistleblower's highly accurate account of the call was highly inaccurate.
Trump also made 24 false claims last week about the military, turning to dishonesty to sell his controversial decision to remove US troops from northern Syria in advance of a Turkish offensive.
Trump's high total was, in part, a product of how much he spoke. Among other events, he held two campaign rallies (making 34 total false claims), delivered a speech to the Values Voter Summit of social conservatives (24 false claims), and did a Fox News interview (10 false claims).