VERIFYING 4 claims from the first Republican presidential primary debate

Former President Donald Trump, who is running for president again in 2024, skipped the presidential primary debate and has said he will not attend others, either.

During the primary debate on Wednesday, candidates discussed issues including the economy, abortion policies, crime and super political action committees (PACs).

VERIFY fact-checked these 4 claims from the debate. 

THE CLAIM

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis: “Crime is at a 50-year low in Florida.”

THE SOURCES

THE ANSWER

Florida’s crime rate fell to a 50-year low in 2021, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. But the state’s crime data is incomplete.

WHAT WE FOUND

While data show that Florida’s crime rate is at a 50-year low, as DeSantis claimed, his statement “rests on patchy, incomplete” data, according to The Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization covering criminal justice issues. 

The Marshall Project says about half of the law enforcement agencies that police more than 40% of Florida’s population are missing from figures that the FDLE used for its estimation. 

Experts told The Marshall Project that this means it’s difficult to compare Florida’s current crime data with that of previous years. 

THE CLAIM

Former Vice President Mike Pence: “70% of Americans support a 15-week ban on abortion.”

THE SOURCES

THE ANSWER

The results of one 2022 survey support Pence’s claim, but responses in other polls show different results. 

WHAT WE FOUND

Pence is likely referring to the results of one 2022 survey that support his claim.

Twenty-three percent of people said their state should allow abortion up to 15 weeks, 12% of people responded with up to six weeks, and 37% of people said their state should only allow abortions in cases of rape and incest. These numbers add up to 72%. 

But other polls show varying amounts of support for a 15-week ban on abortions – and those numbers are lower than 70%. 

An AP-NORC poll released in July 2023 found that about half of Americans say abortions should be allowed at 15 weeks into a pregnancy, though 55% of people living in the most restrictive states say abortion should be banned at that point. 

THE CLAIM

Vivek Ramaswamy: “I'm the only person on the stage who isn't bought and paid for,” calling his opponents “super PAC puppets.”

THE SOURCES

THE ANSWER

Vivek Ramaswamy has a super PAC.

WHAT WE FOUND

The American Exceptionalism PAC is classified by the Federal Election Commission as a super PAC, meaning it can take in and spend unlimited amounts of money to support or oppose issues or candidates.

Super PACs cannot donate directly to candidates’ official campaigns or coordinate directly with them.

The American Exceptionalism PAC features Ramaswamy prominently on its website, and its social media posts are dedicated to support of the conservative businessman.

FEC filings show that so far in this election cycle, the PAC has spent nearly $150,000 in support of Ramaswamy.

THE CLAIM

U.S. Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) referred to firing the “87,000 IRS agents.”

THE SOURCES

THE ANSWER

No, the IRS isn’t hiring 87,000 new agents tasked with audits.

WHAT WE FOUND

Lawmakers have previously claimed that $80 billion allocated to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) through the Inflation Reduction Act will allow the agency to hire 87,000 new agents tasked with auditing middle-class Americans. 

The text of the Inflation Reduction Act doesn’t specify a number of new hires for the IRS. The 87,000 number comes from a May 2021 report from the Treasury Department that estimated more funding allocated by President Joe Biden’s administration would allow the IRS to hire nearly 87,000 full-time employees by 2031. 

The IRS said in its strategic operating plan released in April that the agency plans to hire nearly 20,000 new employees by the end of fiscal year 2024. This includes over 7,239 hires in enforcement, as well as nearly 6,500 in taxpayer services and over 3,800 in operations support.