By Sam Stone
Our 5th installment of Breaking Battlegrounds Ultimate Kamala Fact Check focuses on the 4th and 5th questions regarding fracking and the events of January 6th, 2021. So far in our fact check, Harris has spun more lies than truth, until now. Every one of Harris’ answers to these two questions is a lie or deception.
Q4) LINSEY DAVIS: Vice President Harris, in your last run for president you said you wanted to ban fracking. Now you don’t. You wanted mandatory government buyback programs for assault weapons. Now your campaign says you don’t. You supported decriminalizing border crossings. Now you’re taking a harder line. I know you say that your values have not changed. So then why have so many of your policy positions changed?
Harris: “So my values have not changed. And I’m going to discuss every one — at least every point that you’ve made. But in particular, let’s talk about fracking because we’re here in Pennsylvania. I made that very clear in 2020. I will not ban fracking.”
FACT CHECK: This is a video of Kamala Harris during the 2020 Primary. Interviewer: “Will you ban fracking day one in office?” Harris response? “There’s no question I am in favor of banning fracking.” As for her values not changing…
Verdict: False X 2. Harris suggesting she opposed fracking in 2020 is an abject lie. And, as this clip shows, the assertion that her values haven’t changed is also a lie, or she’s lying about her newfound values. Pick one.
Harris: “I have not banned fracking as Vice President of the United States. And, in fact, I was the tie-breaking vote on the Inflation Reduction Act, which opened new leases for fracking.”
FACT CHECK: Immediately upon entering office, the Biden/Harris administration used executive orders to suspend all federal oil and gas well leasing. Subsequently, to get Joe Manchin’s support in passing the Inflation Reduction Act, the administration agreed to include removing their suspension, with the caveat that a number of new conditions be placed on well site operations, several of which were deliberately unworkable. Likewise, the administration refused to issue Right of Way access to many of the new well sites, ensuring they could never be put into production. The result is that new oil and gas leases have plummeted under the Biden/Harris administration.
Verdict: Deceptive. No, the Biden/Harris administration didn’t ban fracking – but mostly because, first, a federal judge stopped them from doing so, and then because they needed Joe Manchin’s vote for the Inflation Production Act.
Harris: “We have had the largest increase in domestic oil production in history because of an approach that recognizes that we cannot over rely on foreign oil.”
FACT CHECK: It takes several years (an average of 5.5 years for larger projects) once a lease has been acquired for an oil and gas company to bring a new well online, meaning the increased oil and gas production during the Biden/Harris administration is a result of approvals made during the Trump administration. Thus, Harris taking credit for the increase is deceptive, but it is the second part of her statement that is truly laughable. The Biden/Harris administration, after helping create a war in Ukraine that destabilized global energy markets, made appeals to Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and other nations to increase their production to offset the loss of Russian natural gas in Europe rather than promoting U.S. energy production and export.
Verdict: Deceptive and False. Also of note: the rest of Harris’ answer to the question about her changing values included no explanations for her flip-flopping, just a bunch of buzzword salad.
Q5) DAVID MUIR: Linsey, thank you. We have an election in just 56 days. I want to talk about the peaceful transfer of power, which of course we all know was a cornerstone of our democracy and the role of a president in a moment of crisis. Mr. President, on January 6th you told your supporters to march to the Capitol. You said you would be right there with them. The country and the world saw what played out at the Capitol that day. The officers coming under attack. Aides in the West Wing say you watched it unfold on television off the Oval Office. You did send out tweets, but it was more than two hours before you sent out that video message telling your supporters to go home. Is there anything you regret about what you did on that day?
This question was followed by an aggressive back and forth between Trump and Muir before Muir turned the question to Harris:
Harris: “I was at the Capitol on January 6th. I was the Vice President-Elect. I was also an acting senator. I was there. And on that day, the president of the United States incited a violent mob to attack our nation’s Capitol, to desecrate our nation’s Capitol. On that day, 140 law enforcement officers were injured. And some died.
FACT CHECK: No officers died on January 6th, however, there are reports of injuries to officers (most very minor, and including things like dehydration) the reported number of which increased from 80 shortly after the event, to 114 a year later, to 140 a year after that.
Verdict: False. The more sensational claim of officer deaths is entirely false. The claims of injuries is at least partially true, however, given the changing numbers and politized nature of the Capitol and DC police departments, claims of officer injuries which increased with every new media opportunity can no longer be taken at face value.
Harris: “Let’s remember Charlottesville, where there was a mob of people carrying tiki torches, spewing antisemitic hate, and what did the president then at the time say? There were fine people on each side.”
FACT CHECK: This has been thoroughly and repeatedly debunked, including recently by Snopes.
Verdict: False. Abjectly false, also designed to create racial hatred.
Harris: “Let’s remember that when it came to the Proud Boys, a militia, the president said, the former president said, “Stand back and stand by.”
FACT CHECK: Trump did tell the Proud Boys (who are not a militia) to “stand back and stand by”, specifically asking them to deescalate their rhetoric around the election. Media narratives on the left have twisted this to try to mean the opposite.
Verdict: False
Harris: “And be clear on that point. Donald Trump the candidate has said in this election there will be a bloodbath, if this — and the outcome of this election is not to his liking.”
FACT CHECK: Trump was speaking to auto workers and talking about the future economic outcome of the industry if (at that time) Biden were to be re-elected. It was not, in any way, a threat.
Verdict: False and inflammatory
Running Kamala Harris “Truth Tally”
25 lies
5 deceptive answers
14 truths, 6 of the deceptive variety
ABC Moderator Fact Check Scorecard: Lies 1 – Truth 1
Note: the opinions expressed herein are those of Sam Stone only and not his co-host Chuck Warren or Breaking Battlegrounds’ staff.
