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An update from FactCheck.org


** What's the Impeachment Inquiry Evidence?
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House Republicans passed a resolution on Dec. 13 to formalize their impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.

But, as FactCheck.org Deputy Managing Editor Robert Farley writes, Republicans haven’t been able so far to establish that the president was involved in his family’s business dealings, benefited from those deals or that he ever used his position as vice president to assist the companies.

In the days before the vote, Rep. James Comer, chairman of the House oversight committee, and others highlighted three instances of potential wrongdoing that Comer says warrant the expanded powers of a congressional impeachment inquiry to enforce subpoenas.

Rob looked at each of them.

Comer, for example, cited three “direct monthly payments to Joe Biden from Hunter Biden’s business entity” as evidence that Joe Biden profited from a deal Hunter Biden made with a Chinese energy company. But Hunter Biden’s attorney said the payments — which totaled a little over $4,000 — simply reflect Hunter Biden repaying his father, who bought him a truck while Hunter was in the throes of drug and alcohol addiction. That explanation appears to be corroborated by emails obtained from Hunter Biden’s laptop, as reported by the New York Post last year.

Read the full story, "GOP Misleading Claims in Biden Impeachment Investigation ([link removed]) ."
HOW WE KNOW
For her story on vaccines that use live weakened viruses to stimulate an immune response, Staff Writer Catalina Jaramillo consulted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Pink Book ([link removed]) , which is a guide to vaccines and vaccine-preventable diseases. The CDC says it is "the most comprehensive information on routinely used vaccines." Read more ([link removed]) .
FEATURED FACT
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate was 3.7% in November, the 22nd month in a row that the rate was below 4%. That is a long stretch of low unemployment, but not the longest. The rate was below 4% for 27 straight months from late 1967 to early 1970, and for 35 straight months from 1951 to 1953. Read more ([link removed]) .
FUNDRAISING UPDATE
Since 2010, we have asked readers like you to help support our mission to hold politicians accountable, curb social media misinformation, correct distortions of science and provide accurate health information.

This year, you can help by donating to our annual end-of-the-year fundraising drive ([link removed]) , which began this year on Dec. 4. As of Dec. 14, we've received more than 150 donations totaling about $14,000 during our annual appeal.

Thanks for your support and, in some cases, your words of appreciation and encouragement. "Thank you for researching the facts," one donor wrote. "The truth matters!"

If you haven't contributed and would like to do so, you can make a credit card donation through our “Donate” page ([link removed]) , which is maintained by the University of Pennsylvania -- home of FactCheck.org.

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REPLY ALL

Reader: I have seen on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram that reports the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] actually fired on the people at the Nova Oct. 7 music festival via helicopters and as a result killed many of them. I have never heard this on the news, or in the newspapers here in the US.

FactCheck.org Director Eugene Kiely: We wrote about those social media reports in our article “Social Media Posts Misrepresent Video of IDF Aircraft Attack ([link removed]) .” The story is about a video clip on social media that falsely claimed to show Israel Defense Forces helicopters firing on festival-goers on Oct. 7. The clip is actually from a video of IDF aircraft shooting at Hamas militants a day later at sites in the Gaza Strip.

As we wrote in our article, we cannot say whether there were any cases of friendly fire by Israeli forces responding to the Hamas attacks on Oct. 7. But the social media posts that claim the IDF video proves “many” people were killed by the IDF at the music festival are false.


** Wrapping Up
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Here's what else we've got for you this week:
* "Biden Wrongly Touts ‘Record’ Economic Growth, Unemployment ([link removed]) ": When a politician boasts of a “record,” our ears perk up. Is it really a record? In President Joe Biden’s case, when it comes to economic growth and unemployment, it’s simply not.
* "Tucker Carlson Misrepresents Defense Secretary’s Remarks on U.S. Troops, Ukraine Aid ([link removed]) ": Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III reportedly told House members that failure to provide more aid for Ukraine could lead to Russia’s invasion of a NATO ally and a direct U.S. military response in accordance with the NATO treaty. A viral post by Tucker Carlson misleadingly omits Austin’s explanation of why U.S. troops might be required.
* "Vaccine Shedding Is Expected With Some Vaccines and Generally Not Harmful, Contrary to Post ([link removed]) ": People who receive some vaccines that use live weakened viruses to stimulate a strong and lasting immune response sometimes release small amounts of those viruses outside of their bodies. That’s expected, and it doesn’t mean that they put vulnerable populations in “harm’s way,” as a post misleadingly suggests.
* "Meme Makes Misleading Comparison to Cast Doubt on Climate Change ([link removed]) ": The Earth is warming at the fastest rate seen in the last 10,000 years, according to NASA, and the consensus among climate scientists is that human activity is causing the change. But a meme on social media tries to undermine the reality of climate change by misrepresenting the views and media coverage of a climatologist popular among those who believe climate change is a “hoax.”
* "The Army-Navy Football Chant That Wasn’t ([link removed]) ": Army cadets rhythmically cheered to the beat of the military band during the annual Army-Navy football game on Dec. 9. The cheer was captured in a viral video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. Some versions of the video circulating on social media sites have been dubbed over to falsely claim that the cadets were chanting “f— Joe Biden.” They weren’t.

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