House DFL Ads Fail Independent Fact Checks

ST. PAUL, MN — Minnesota Democrats are under fire after a second independent fact-check found their political mailers to contain false and deliberately misleading information. 

 

Mailers funded by the Minnesota House DFL Caucus, led by minority leader Melissa Hortman, have inaccurately claimed that Republican legislators "voted to give legislators a 45% pay raise." The mailers have appeared in nearly a dozen competitive House races throughout the state.

 

Over the past week, two separate news organizations — WCCO and KSTP — have scrutinized contents of the mailers and delivered decisive verdicts. 

 

WCCO's "Reality Check" called the ads "deliberately deceptive", "not true" and pointed out that "Republican leaders tried to stop the pay hike but ran into legal obstacles."

 

KSTP's "Truth Test" called the pay raise claim "false". It also rated "false" a claim that Republicans "voted to give big businesses a $1.3 billion tax break." They concluded: "The DFL campaign mailers include major claims that are demonstrably false, misleading and give little, if any, context. They get an "F" on the 5 Eyewitness News "Truth Test."

 

"Minnesota Democrats are so desperate to win, they're willing to lie to Minnesotans to get elected and cover up their extreme agenda of massive tax increases and a government health care system that eliminates health care plans Minnesotans rely on," said House Speaker Kurt Daudt. "Fortunately, Minnesotans are smarter than this — these dishonest ads will backfire and we will prevail in November because our agenda of lowering health care costs and reducing taxes resonates with voters."

 

KSTP also pointed out an ironic twist in the pay raise issue: "In an ironic twist, it was Democratic lawmakers who supported the bill that put the constitutional amendment regarding legislative pay raises on the ballot. House Democrats decided to go that route after the DFL-controlled Senate narrowly approved a bill to directly increase legislative pay without any support from Republicans."