FactCheck.org's Weekly Update

In a speech that assailed President Donald Trump for a lack of “moral leadership,” Joe Biden falsely claimed that Trump “asserted that immigrants would, quote, ‘carve you up with a knife.’” Trump said that about MS-13 gang members, not immigrants.

When asked what he was going to do about the “gun problem,” President Donald Trump responded that “we have done much more than most administrations.” Trump has taken some action to strengthen federal gun control, but his administration also has eased gun restrictions.

Prior to departing for El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, on Aug. 7, President Donald Trump rejected the premise that his rhetoric has divided the country, as his critics have claimed. He said “my rhetoric … brings people together.” But that is not how he is perceived by most Americans.

In the aftermath of two deadly mass shootings in Texas and Ohio, U.S. political leaders made a series of statements on gun violence that were unsubstantiated, lacked context or were seemingly contradictory. Here we look at some of those statements and present the facts.

At least 144 people have died in 31 mass killings in the United States since the beginning of the year. Most of them, 141, died of gunshot wounds. The ages of victims ranged from 1 to 83. We mapped the 31 incidents across the U.S.

A viral Facebook post claims that “not one Democrat called for gun control” after a 2017 shooting involving Republicans in Congress. While demands for legislative action were quieter, there were some.

Old pictures of trash strewn in the Arizona desert are circulating on Facebook with the suggestion that they were taken recently and that the media failed to cover it. Neither of those things is true.

A manipulated photo of Ivanka Trump adds a logo that looks like a swastika to her shirt.

A social media post misleadingly claims that Republicans “voted to allow people with pre-existing mental illness to buy firearms.” The measure blocked the Social Security Administration from reporting to the U.S. background check system some disability beneficiaries who are unable to manage their finances. Federal law still prohibits people with certain conditions from buying guns.