You have likely seen the phrase “alternative facts” circling around the internet and news stories since President Orange Foolius took office. Coined by Kellyanne Conway during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press, it describes the flat-out lies Trump and those in his administration have told, starting with the size of his inauguration crowd and extending to things such as his claim that the CIA gave him a standing ovation after his speech (they didn’t).
Fortunately for us all, NPR is here to help sift through the bullshit and tell you what’s real and what’s fake in the Orwellian newspeak of the current commander in chief.
From NPR:
The Trump administration’s push-back on easily verifiable facts is unprecedented and shows that the Trump we saw on the campaign trail and in debates—who was freewheeling with facts and assertions and often peddled wildly exaggerated claims—had not changed once he took the oath of office. And it’s only week one.
Among the lies that NPR debunks are Trump’s claims that there were 3 million to 5 million illegal votes cast in November’s election and that he got a standing ovation from the CIA that was bigger than the one Peyton Manning received in the Super Bowl. NPR also tackles his statements regarding just how large his victory over Hillary Clinton was, the size of his inauguration crowd, crime in Chicago and the federal workforce.
As an example, on Jan. 25, Trump told ABC, “No, no, you have to understand; I had a tremendous victory, one of the greatest victories ever. In terms of counties, I think the most ever or just about the most ever. When you look at a map, it’s all red.”
From NPR:
THE FACTS: Trump did have an overwhelming victory, county-wise. But Trump still lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by nearly 3 million votes. And his electoral college victory ranked 46th out of 58 presidential elections.
On Jan. 26, Trump told Fox’s Sean Hannity that he got a standing ovation at the CIA. In fact, he said, the staffers there never sat down. “It was one standing ovation, the whole thing,” he said.
NPR with the receipts:
THE FACTS: Trump never told the CIA officers to sit at the beginning of his speech, and it’s standard protocol without a directive from the president, they wouldn’t have sat down, as Huffington Post’s S.V. Date explains.
And there were about 400 staffers at the speech. There were 71,088 fans who attended the Super Bowl last year where Manning led the Denver Broncos to the championship. So, no—it was not “equal” to the reception Manning got by any measure or standard, and it’s not clear who “they” are that Trump claims made this false claim.
Yes, President Pinocchio’s tall tales and fabrications have been a bit much in this first 10 days of his presidency, but don’t fall for the okey-doke.
Most of what he lies about is easily fact-checked via Google or Snopes.com because he’s just that dumb.
Read more at NPR.