The Poynter Institute

English Español

Stand up for the facts!

Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy.
We need your help.

I would like to contribute

Lesson of 2014: Check the facts behind Mexico border claims

Texas

By W. Gardner Selby December 23, 2014

Thousands of border crossings resulted in dramatic claims about the Texas-Mexico border in 2014.

And these fact checks landed among our 10 most-read stories of 2014:

* Ted Cruz incorrectly said Barack Obama has promised amnesty to illegal immigrants

* Pants on Fire: Duncan Hunter makes unconfirmed claim Border Patrol caught at least 10 ISIS fighters

* Rick Perry claim about 3,000 homicides by illegal immigrants not supported by stat

Sign up for PolitiFact texts

These three border[-related fact checks all landed among our 10 most-read stories of 2014:

* Ted Cruz incorrectly said Barack Obama has promised amnesty to illegal immigrants

* Pants on Fire: Duncan Hunter makes unconfirmed claim Border Patrol caught at least

* Rick Perry claim about 3,000 homicides by illegal immigrants not supported by stat

stated on October 25, 2018 in a TV ad:

Says Ken Paxton "shut down the world’s largest human trafficking marketplace."

barely-true

barely-true

stated on October 22, 2018 in a rally for Republican candidates in Houston:

Says Beto O’Rourke "voted to shield MS-13 gang members from deportation."

barely-true

barely-true

stated on October 16, 2018 in a debate televised from San Antonio:

Says "only one other senator from either party over the last 25 years" has "a worse record on bipartisanship" than Ted Cruz.

true

true

Alexander Strenger

stated on October 1, 2018 in response cited in an interactive voter guide:

Says 60 percent of Austin’s "waterways are found to be contaminated with fecal matter and deemed unsafe to swim."

half-true

half-true

stated on September 29, 2018 in an Austin rally:

Says that in Texas, "you can be too gay to adopt" a foster child "who needs a loving home."

half-true

half-true

stated on September 21, 2018 in a debate at Southern Methodist University:

Says Beto O’Rourke described police as "modern-day Jim Crow."

barely-true

barely-true

stated on September 21, 2018 in a debate at Southern Methodist University:

Says he "did not try to leave the scene of the accident" that led to his arrest for driving while intoxicated.

barely-true

barely-true

stated on September 12, 2018 in a TV ad:

Says Beto O’Rourke voted "against body armor for Texas sheriffs patrolling the border."

false

false

stated on August 26, 2018 in an interview on Fox & Friends:

Says Texas has "had over 600,000 crimes committed by illegals since 2011. Over 1,200 homicides."

pants-fire

pants-fire

stated on August 30, 2018 in a TV ad:

Says Texas "high school graduation rates are at all-time highs."

true

true

stated on September 4, 2018 in a video:

Says Beto O’Rourke said he’s grateful that people are burning or desecrating the American flag.

false

false

stated on August 28, 2018 in an online video ad:

Says Beto O’Rourke "voted against" Hurricane Harvey "tax relief."

mostly-true

mostly-true

stated on August 21, 2018 in an interview on Spectrum Cable's "Capital Tonight":

Says U.S. Rep. John Carter "hasn’t held a town hall in five years."

mostly-true

mostly-true

stated on July 26, 2018 in an ad in the Houston Defender:

Says "black Americans have 10 times less wealth than white Americans."

mostly-true

mostly-true

Silvestre Reyes

stated on May 22, 2012 in a TV ad:

Says Beto O’Rourke "has a criminal record that includes DWI and burglary arrests."

true

true

Instagram posts
stated on August 27, 2024 in an Instagram post:

California S.B. 1174 eliminates the requirement for voter ID at polling places.

By Sofia Ahmed • August 30, 2024
X posts
stated on August 29, 2024 in X posts:

President Joe Biden “did a campaign ad at the graves in Arlington in 2020.”

By Loreben Tuquero • August 30, 2024
X posts
stated on August 16, 2024 in a video:

Video shows “Kamala Harris describing how she can ruin lives with the 'swipe of a pen.’"

By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • August 30, 2024
Facebook posts
stated on August 25, 2024 in a post:

Kamala Harris’ “plan to tax unrecognized Capital Gains mean(s) if your house goes up in value you will have to pay that Tax Even if you don’t sell your House!”

By Sara Swann • August 30, 2024
Facebook posts
stated on August 25, 2024 in a Facebook post:

“There’s no such thing as menopause.”

By Madison Czopek • August 30, 2024
Instagram posts
stated on August 27, 2024 in an Instagram post:

“Hollywood actor Kurt Russell just said: ‘It is now proven, beyond a shadow of a doubt that Kamala Harris and Joe Biden CHEATED in the 2020 election with mail-in ballots.’”

By Caleb McCullough • August 30, 2024
Kamala Harris
stated on August 22, 2024 in her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention:

Former President Donald Trump "intends to enact what, in effect, is a national sales tax ... that would raise prices on middle-class families by almost $4,000 a year."

By Louis Jacobson • August 30, 2024
Viral image
stated on August 27, 2024 in a Facebook post:

“Kurt Russell forms a new non-woke actors alliance with Roseanne Barr and Tim Allen.”

By Ciara O'Rourke • August 30, 2024
Viral image
stated on August 23, 2024 in an X post:

Photo of former President Donald Trump after an assassination attempt was generated by artificial intelligence.

By Ciara O'Rourke • August 30, 2024
X posts
stated on August 28, 2024 in an X post:

C-SPAN captions for a JD Vance speech said, “Single person clapping.”

By Ciara O'Rourke • August 30, 2024