Stacey Abrams on her 2018 election loss, then vs. now In 2018, Stacey Abrams lost a bitter election to become Georgia's governor to Brian Kemp, then the state's secretary of state, and refused to concede after suggesting that Kemp used his position to manipulate his way to victory. Now, Abrams is in a rematch with Kemp, fending off questions from reporters that she's little different from former president Donald Trump, who has falsely claimed election fraud led to his defeat by Joe Biden. In recent weeks she's subtly adjusted language to argue that, unlike Trump, she "never denied the election" and "never denied that I lost." But in the years before 2022, a review of numerous interviews shows, Abrams also used language denying the outcome of the election that she now appears to be trying to play down. For instance, Abrams at various times has said the election was "stolen" and even that "I won." She suggested that election laws were "rigged" and that it was "not a free or fair election." She also claimed that voter suppression was to blame for her loss, even though she admitted she could not "empirically" prove that. Abrams made these claims while often leaving herself a rhetorical exit. But in the post-Jan. 6 period, what once might have appeared at the time as a savvy appeal to voters who felt disenfranchised could be viewed in a less charitable light — serving to undermine people's faith in election outcomes. Abrams played up claims the election was stolen until such tactics became politically untenable. Enjoy this newsletter? Forward it to someone else who'd like it! If this email was forwarded to you, sign up here. Did you hear something fact-checkable? Send it here; we'll check it out. It's an election year, and Democrats are once again talking Social Security When an election campaign enters its final weeks, year after year, both political parties rely on familiar themes to attack their opponents. For Republicans, it's crime and immigration. For Democrats, it's Social Security and Medicare. So a recent tweet by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) caught our attention: "Republicans plan to end Social Security and Medicare if they take back the Senate." Murray's tweet is a succinct example of what we called "Mediscare" attacks — an effort to warn seniors that Republicans will take away their hard-earned benefits. Don't worry, seniors: There is no such plan. Murray's staff said the tweet was based on statements made by two Republican senators — statements rejected by many of their colleagues. Moreover, in both cases, the senators insisted that they were not trying to eliminate the programs but instead bolster their financial underpinnings. Whether such actions would reduce benefits is open to debate, but it's not the same as ending the programs. This is yet another example in which Democrats strain to conjure up a nonexistent GOP plan regarding Social Security and Medicare. Murray earned Four Pinocchios. You can reach us via email, Twitter (@GlennKesslerWP and @AdriUsero) or Facebook. Read about our process and rating scale here, and sign up for the newsletter here. Scroll down for this week's Pinocchio roundup. | 
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