For the reason that starting of his political profession, Donald J. Trump has misled, mischaracterized, dissembled, exaggerated and, at instances, flatly lied. His flawed statements concerning the border, the economic system, the coronavirus pandemic and the 2020 election have shaped the bedrock of his 2024 marketing campaign.
Although his penchant for bending, and sometimes breaking, the reality has been effectively documented, an in depth research of how he does so reveals a form of approach to his dishonesty: a set of recurring rhetorical strikes with which Mr. Trump fuels his reputation amongst his supporters.
Within the week beginning with Mr. Trump’s victory speech in Iowa by way of his win within the New Hampshire main — the contests that put him on the trail to changing into his get together’s nominee for the third consecutive time — The New York Instances analyzed all of his public statements, together with speeches, interviews and social media posts.
His phrases targeted closely on attacking his political rivals, self-aggrandizing and stoking concern to make his case for 2024. In doing so, Mr. Trump usually relied on repeated falsehoods and half-truths. He has but to deviate from this method within the normal election.
Right here’s a take a look at how he does it.
He grossly distorts his opponents’ information and proposals to make them sound unreasonable.
Trump Presidential Marketing campaign through C-span
Atkinson, N.H., rally, Jan. 16, 2024
Whereas Joe Biden is pushing the most important tax hike in American historical past – , he desires to quadruple your taxes.
President Biden has not proposed quadrupling taxes. In reality, he has persistently vowed to not increase taxes on anybody incomes lower than $400,000.
Sean Hannity interview, Jan. 22, 2024
I imply, what he’s doing with power with an all-electric mandate, the place you received’t have the ability to purchase some other type of automobile in a really brief interval of time.
Mr. Biden has not applied an electrical automobile mandate. The administration has introduced guidelines that will restrict tailpipe emissions from automobiles and light-weight vehicles, successfully requiring automakers to promote extra electrical automobiles and hybrids. It doesn’t ban fuel automobiles.
He exaggerates and twists the information to make his document sound higher than it’s.
Newsmax interview, Jan. 21, 2024
And consider it, for 4 years we had no terror downside.
There have been the truth is terrorist assaults in the USA in the course of the Trump administration. In 2017, to call one, a local of Uzbekistan plowed a pickup truck down a motorbike path in Manhattan, killing eight folks. The Justice Division stated the motive force, Sayfullo Saipov, carried out the terrorist assault within the title of ISIS.
Atkinson, N.H., rally, Jan. 16, 2024
We had the very best economic system. We had no inflation.
The economic system wasn’t the “greatest” beneath Mr. Trump. Even setting apart Covid, the common progress fee was decrease beneath Mr. Trump than beneath former Presidents Invoice Clinton and Ronald Reagan. And inflation was low, but it surely wasn’t nonexistent.
Hannity interview, Jan. 18, 2024
We had gasoline at $1.87.
The nationwide common worth of a gallon of gasoline dropped to that worth throughout one week amid the Covid lockdown in 2020, when demand was terribly low. However when Mr. Trump left workplace in January 2021, the nationwide common was $2.42.
He depends on each well-worn and contemporary claims of election rigging to counsel he can lose provided that his opponents cheat.
Portsmouth, N.H., rally, Jan. 17, 2024
The novel-left Democrats rigged the presidential election of 2020, and we’re not going to permit them to rig the presidential election of 2024.
The 2020 election was not rigged. Mr. Trump has uttered lots of of inaccurate claims to help the false declare that it was — mischaracterizing voting processes, citing baseless instances of supposed fraud and sharing conspiracy theories about voting machines.
Atkinson, N.H., rally, Jan. 16, 2024
As , Nikki Haley specifically is relying on the Democrats and liberals to infiltrate your Republican main.
Registered Democrats weren’t in a position to vote within the New Hampshire Republican main. The competition was open to registered Republicans and independents. Any Democrats who switched events or re-registered as independents to vote within the Republican main — and a few did — had to take action earlier than an October 2023 deadline, months earlier than the competition.
Laconia, N.H., rally, Jan. 22, 2024
The Republicans went as much as vote and not one of the machines had been working. This was not good. However after all, they stated, Nicely, this was simply the way in which it goes. You recognize, 1000’s of individuals weren’t allowed to vote. However she, uh, she’s a terrific particular person, and he or she’s going to be a U.S. senator very quickly. Kari Lake.
The declare that “1000’s” of voters had been blocked from casting their ballots in Arizona’s 2022 gubernatorial election — on the expense of Mr. Trump’s most popular candidate, Ms. Lake — is fake. There have been some glitches in Maricopa County, however voters had been largely in a position to forged their votes.
He has turned his prison instances right into a rallying cry, baselessly asserting that he’s being persecuted by his successor.
Fox interview with Bret Baier, Jan. 20, 2024
These are all Biden indictments.
Mr. Trump has not provided any proof for his rivalry that Mr. Biden has orchestrated the prison expenses in opposition to him. Two of his 4 instances had been introduced on the state degree. On the federal degree, Mr. Trump’s prison expenses — in relation to his effort to stay in energy after shedding the 2020 election and, individually, over his retention of categorized paperwork after leaving workplace — are dealt with by a particular counsel and had been put earlier than grand juries.
Atkinson, N.H., rally, Jan. 16, 2024
I’ve been indicted greater than Alphonse Capone.
Mr. Trump has been indicted 4 instances. Mr. Capone was indicted not less than six instances, in response to A. Brad Schwartz, a historian and biographer of the notorious gangster.
He makes unverifiable claims about what the world would have been like had he secured a second time period.
Harmony, N.H., rally, Jan. 19, 2024
We wouldn’t have Russia attacking Ukraine. We wouldn’t have inflation. We wouldn’t have the assault on Israel.
There isn’t a proof that these occasions wouldn’t or couldn’t have occurred had the 2020 election final result been completely different — and it’s unimaginable to show. However specialists say the context surrounding these occasions render his claims extremely questionable.
Atkinson, N.H., rally, Jan. 16, 2024
China had a crash yesterday of their inventory market. You recognize why? As a result of I received Iowa.
There isn’t a proof that China’s inventory market woes had been associated to Mr. Trump’s victory within the Iowa caucuses.
He describes the USA as a nation in ruins.
Laconia, N.H., rally, Jan. 22, 2024
We’re a nation that screens its residents viciously in any respect ports. However if you’re an unlawful alien, you’re allowed to movement by way of our nation with no examine in any respect.
Undocumented immigrants caught crossing the border are processed, whether or not they’re returned to different nations or later launched into the nation awaiting future proceedings.
Manchester, N.H., rally, Jan. 20, 2024
And now we’re a nation that wishes to make our revered and really highly effective Military tanks – the very best anyplace on the earth – all electrical.
There are no plans to make Military tanks all electrical.
Laconia, N.H., rally, Jan. 22, 2024
We’re a third-world nation.
That is, after all, false.
Laconia, N.H., rally, Jan. 22, 2024
We’re now not power unbiased or power dominant as we had been just some brief years in the past.
Vitality manufacturing — together with oil and fuel — has boomed beneath President Biden. Underneath each administrations, the USA has been a internet exporter of petroleum and pure fuel, but it surely nonetheless depends on imports.
Laconia, N.H., rally, Jan. 22, 2024
I don’t know what it’s with Catholics, however the F.B.I. goes after Catholics.
Mr. Trump’s declare is almost certainly primarily based on an F.B.I. subject workplace memo that warned of the potential for extremism amongst adherents of a “radical-traditionalist Catholic” ideology. However the memo was withdrawn and repeatedly condemned by the nation’s prime regulation enforcement officers.