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** The Debt Limit Debate Heats Up
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The deadline for Congress to raise the debt limit and avoid a U.S. default is getting closer, but there is still no agreement on a plan to make sure the country can continue to pay its bills after early June.

Republicans and Democrats are now feuding over a House-passed bill -- the Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023 -- that would temporarily suspend or raise the debt limit in exchange for dramatically reducing discretionary spending over the next decade.

As staff writer D’Angelo Gore writes, some Democrats, including White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, claimed the legislation will lead to "a series of deeply devastating and unpopular cuts to things like veterans’ health benefits." But Republicans, such as House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, said Democrats are "shamelessly lying" because "there are absolutely NO cuts to veterans benefits" or the Department of Veterans Affairs in the legislation.

No, the bill doesn't mention spending cuts for military veterans -- but it doesn't include an exemption for them either.

D'Angelo explains that which programs would get cut would be determined later, when the House and Senate negotiate the annual appropriations bills that fund the government. And that's only if the Limit, Save, Grow Act were to become law, which is unlikely since it does not have the support of Senate Democrats or President Joe Biden.

For a full breakdown, read "Republicans Push Back on Democratic Claims of Veterans’ Health Care Cuts in GOP Debt Limit Bill ([link removed]) ."
HOW WE KNOW
Have a question about a bill? We frequently do, and our go-to source is Congress.gov ([link removed]) -- a Library of Congress site that provides the status and legislative history of current and past bills. It includes information such as the bill's text, co-sponsors, amendments, cost estimates and actions taken. It also provides links to roll call votes, committee reports and transcripts of floor debates.
FEATURED FACT
On July 1, a new law takes effect in Kansas that will ban transgender girls and women from participating in female sports from elementary school through college in public schools and private schools that compete against public schools. Currently, there are only three transgender girls known to be playing sports in Kansas out of 41,000 girls competing in high school athletics. Read more ([link removed]) .
WORTHY OF NOTE
After Robert F. Kennedy Jr., announced he would run for president, Washington Monthly published a political column ([link removed]) that referred to some of our fact-checking articles on Kennedy's vaccine misinformation.

In his article, Washington Monthly political writer Bill Scher quoted HBO talk show host Bill Maher as telling his viewers that Kennedy is "not a nut." The magazine followed Maher's quote with this:

Nuttiness may be subjective, but truthfulness is not. Kennedy and his anti-vaccine organization Children’s Health Defense have been repeatedly busted for false and misleading tactics by FactCheck.org.

Scher mentioned our article debunking ([link removed]) the group's suggestion that some tetanus vaccines would render women infertile as part of a population-control plot, and he cited another story ([link removed]) on a video hosted by the group that rehashed claims about vaccine safety to stoke fears about COVID-19 vaccines in the Black community.

You can read our fact-checking file on Kennedy and his anti-vaccine organization here ([link removed]) .
REPLY ALL

Reader: Is this true?

[Attached was an undated social media post ([link removed]) that said, "Wants everyone to know........ Looks like the first 10,000 'refugees' will be arriving in the U.S. from Syria. They will be given modern housing with utilities and free food. They will know a life they could have never dreamed of in their homeland. Last night 33,000 American veterans slept on the streets, and some of them died. If you think this is BS and needs to be reversed, LIKE & SHARE THIS!!!!"]

FactCheck.org Director Eugene Kiely: This is old news. It refers to an effort by the Obama administration to accept 10,000 refugees from Syria in 2016, because of a civil war in that country that had displaced millions of people. In 2015, we wrote about the situation in Syria and the U.S. response.

In September 2015, we wrote:

In a press briefing, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said that President Obama will direct his administration to make preparations to accept at least 10,000 refugees from Syria in fiscal year 2016.

For more information, read our Ask FactCheck “Resettling Syrian Refugees ([link removed]) ,” and our article "Facts about Syrian Refugees ([link removed]) ."

In August 2016, the New York Times wrote a story ([link removed]) saying that the U.S. had reached its goal of admitting 10,000 Syrian refugees and providing a map of where they resettled.

As for homeless veterans, we wrote about that issue most recently in 2021 when there were bogus claims circulating on social media that the Biden administration had provided “zero dollars to our homeless veterans.” We wrote, in part:

Biden’s American Rescue Plan, which he introduced on Inauguration Day and signed into law on March 11, does provide funding for health services, training and housing for veterans. In a press release issued on March 12, the Department of Veterans Affairs outlined the types of assistance directed to veterans in the plan.

It includes “$14.5 billion for COVID-19 related health care, including information technology and facility requirements, ensuring access for 9.2 million enrolled Veterans who may have delayed care or have more complex health care needs as a result of the pandemic, as well as resources for Veterans currently receiving housing support and an estimated 37,000 homeless Veterans.”

The plan sets aside “$750 million for both construction grants ($500 million) and payments ($250 million) to State Homes to greatly improve the living conditions of our most vulnerable Veterans who reside in these facilities.”

For more information, read “Bogus Claims About Biden’s Treatment of Homeless Veterans ([link removed]) .”


** Wrapping Up
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Here's what else we've got for you this week:
* "Online Claims Misrepresent Washington Bill Aimed at Runaway Transgender Youth ([link removed]) ": In an Ask FactCheck, we answer the question: Does a proposed law in Washington state say that the government can take children away from parents who don’t agree to gender transition surgery?
* "Khanna Voted For — and Against — Raising Debt Limit During Trump Era ([link removed]) ": Rep. Ro Khanna voted against a budget bill in 2018 that raised the federal debt limit. Yet, in an interview, Khanna claimed he set aside his partisan differences with then-President Donald Trump and "voted to pay our bills."
* "Kansas School Sports Act Doesn’t Require ‘Genital Inspections,’ Contrary to Online Posts ([link removed]) ": Kansas passed a bill allowing only “biologically female” students to play on girls’ and women’s athletic teams from elementary through college. Social media posts misleadingly claim the bill will allow “forced genital inspections” of students. The bill doesn’t mention genital inspections, and it leaves the implementation of policies up to schools’ governing bodies.
* "Posts Misrepresent U.N. Panel’s Guidance on Consensual Sex Between Adolescents ([link removed]) ": An international judicial panel working with the United Nations’ AIDS agency issued recommendations in March on laws related to sexual conduct, including consensual sex between adolescents. Social media posts misrepresented the recommendations, with one falsely claiming, “UN wants to decriminalize sex between minors and adults.”

Y lo que publicamos en español ([link removed]) (English versions are accessible in each story):
* "El calentamiento global por sobre 1,5 °C es peligroso, pero no es un punto sin retorno, como afirma Biden ([link removed]) ": Es cada vez más posible que el planeta alcance 1,5 grados Celsius, o 2,7 grados Fahrenheit, de calentamiento, probablemente en las próximas dos décadas. Pero si bien un aumento de temperatura a ese nivel trae una serie de efectos peligrosos, los científicos dicen que no es un punto sin retorno, y no significa que “estamos acabados”, como el presidente Joe Biden ha afirmado.
* "El uso de mascarillas tiene efectos mínimos en el sistema respiratorio y no causa COVID persistente ([link removed]) ": El COVID persistente es un conjunto de problemas de salud causados por el COVID-19 que permanecen o aparecen tras la infección inicial. Es inverosímil que las mascarillas causen COVID persistente, contrariamente a lo que se afirma en internet. El uso de mascarillas puede causar molestias temporalmente, pero los efectos fisiológicos no son biológicamente significativos.

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