Polygraph

Trump seeks to "ban" MS NOW, CNN, and Politico from the White House

All In with Chris Hayes, Checked

Polygraph score
80Holds up
Details
What it claims
3 false9 mixed3 can’t tell29 true
How it argues
Nothing found
How it persuades
Nothing found
What it’s built on
Nothing found
Sources
4 rated low
All In with Chris HayesSep 19, 2026
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All In with Chris HayesTrump seeks to "ban" MS NOW, CNN, and Politico from the White HouseWhole episode, 42:01
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44 claims

What it claims

Claims

  1. 1TrueThere is a measles outbreak in the United States described as the worst in decades.As of 2026-09-19, sources (CDC data showing over 3,800 cases by early October and 2,777 by August 20, plus Reuters, AP, NPR and CBS) show the US was experiencing a large measles outbreak described as its worst in decades (worst year since 1991, largest state outbreak in over 30 years in Pennsylvania). The claim as extracted matches the passage's 'worst U.S. measles outbreak in decades' framing; the 'Trump Administration says no it isn't' rebuttal is not sourced here and does not change the verdict, which is judged against the sources. Subsequent CDC updates (4,588 cases as of Oct 22) are consistent with the claim.6 sources →
  2. 2TrueThere is currently a measles outbreak in the United States.Current data as of August 2026 confirms that the United States is experiencing an ongoing measles outbreak, with thousands of cases reported across multiple states.4 sources →
  3. 3Can’t tellThe Trump Administration claims the current measles outbreak is not the worst in decades.The sources consistently describe the 2026 outbreak as the worst U.S. measles outbreak in decades or since 1991, but none records the Trump Administration saying it is not the worst. The claim's core assertion is the administration's statement, and the only support for it is the claimant's own passage, which cannot corroborate it, so the sources can neither confirm nor refute it as of 2026-09-19.8 sources →
  4. 4MixedThere is a measles outbreak in the United States that is the deadliest in decades.The claim as extracted says there is a US measles outbreak that is the deadliest in decades; the passage says the worst US outbreak in decades, a narrower scope. Sources support that the 2026 US measles situation is the worst in decades and that the Pennsylvania outbreak is described by CNN (via a republished item) as the largest and deadliest in the US in more than 30 years, with five deaths as of Oct 2026, but as of 2026-09-19 the record shows only a few Pennsylvania deaths and no CDC-confirmed 2026 deaths, so 'deadliest' is only partially supported by a single-outlet framing and the CDC record lacks deaths.7 sources →
  5. 5TrueDonald Trump announced he is banning CNN, MS Now, and Politico from the White House.Multiple tier1 sources (Reuters, AP, BBC) and tier2 outlets (Politico, NPR, NBC, CNN) report Trump announced on September 18, 2026 that CNN, MS NOW and Politico were being banned from the White House, and reporters from those outlets were denied access on September 19. As of the claim date of 2026-09-19 the announced ban was in effect; a later federal judge order restored much access, which does not make the claim false as of its date.7 sources →

    ▶ 0:45

  6. 6TrueThe White House Correspondents Association condemned Donald Trump's ban on news organizations.Multiple independent sources (IANS, ANI, Yahoo, AFP, NBC, Politico) report that the White House Correspondents' Association publicly condemned Trump's September 2026 ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico as a First Amendment violation, and the WHCA later joined an amicus brief against it. The claim's wording is a condensed form of the passage's 'condemned Donald Trump'; as extracted it refers to the ban, which is the substance of the WHCA's statements, and the condemnation was in place as of 2026-09-19.8 sources →

    ▶ 1:10

  7. 7TrueFBI insiders told MS Now that Kash Patel was padding arrest statistics to boost his record.MS NOW reported in May 2026 that current and former FBI insiders said Patel was padding arrest statistics to boost his record, and secondary outlets and a senator's letter confirm that reporting. The sources do not establish that Patel actually padded the statistics, and the FBI spokesperson disputed that arrests were being counted improperly, so the verdict covers the attribution, not the underlying allegation.5 sources →

    ▶ 2:02

  8. 8MixedA top Department of Justice official warned federal prosecutors they would be fired if they did not bring more election fraud cases.The claim is extracted from an MS NOW report (cited by Democracy Docket, Sidebars, and Alternet) that Aakash Singh, the top lieutenant to the deputy attorney general, warned prosecutors on a conference call they could be fired if they declined to pursue election fraud cases presented by the FBI or DHS; the claim's gist is supported by reporting from two anonymous sources, but DOJ disputed the account and no official record confirms it, and the claim's 'more election fraud cases' wording is a loose paraphrase of 'decline to investigate and pursue' cases.6 sources →

    ▶ 2:22

  9. 9TrueDonald Trump previously banned Associated Press reporters from the Oval Office, Air Force One, and Mar-a-Lago.Multiple sources confirm the White House barred AP reporters from the Oval Office and Air Force One in February 2025, and one source (Yahoo) also reports the cut in access extended to Mar-a-Lago, so the claim holds. The extracted claim matches the passage's scope, and the Mar-a-Lago element is supported by fewer and less authoritative sources than the other two locations.5 sources →

    ▶ 3:39

  10. 10TrueDonald Trump decreed that the Gulf of Mexico should be called the Gulf of America.Multiple primary and tier1 sources confirm that Trump issued Executive Order 14172 on January 20, 2025 directing the Interior Secretary to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, which the Interior Department implemented. The claim's wording 'decreed' accurately describes the executive order, and the extraction faithfully reflects the claimant's passage; the order's limited legal reach (it binds the executive branch, not Congress or foreign governments) is context, not a contradiction of the claim.8 sources →

    ▶ 3:48

  11. 11MixedIran is blocking a fifth of the world's global oil.Sources support that Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, which carries about a fifth of world oil, so the claim's framing is broadly right as of 2026-09-19. However, the claim overstates the volume currently blocked: the sources disagree on how much oil was actually held up, with Rubio's unverified 13-14 million barrels per day passing through and Kpler's figures showing substantial non-Iranian exports, so the 'a fifth' figure is not directly confirmed as current blocked volume. Also, the extracted claim drops the speaker's 'continues to' framing, which is consistent with the September sources.9 sources →

    ▶ 4:55

  12. 12MixedIran is blocking a fifth of the world's global oil supply because of Donald Trump's war.The claim as extracted says Iran is blocking a fifth of world oil supply because of Trump's war; the passage said Iran 'continues to block a fifth of the world's global oil supply, thanks to his war', so the extraction is faithful. Sources from March through early October 2026 show Hormuz (which carries about a fifth of global oil) was effectively closed by Iran after the Feb. 28 US-Israeli strikes, supporting the 'fifth' figure and the war causation, but a late-September-to-October picture is mixed: World Oil reports flows returned to near-prewar levels in early October, and Rubio (Oct 20, unverified) reported 13-14 million barrels/day passing. As of 2026-09-19 sources describe the strait as closed to routine commercial shipping, so the claim was substantially true on its date, but 'a fifth' describes the strait's normal share of oil flows rather than current blocked volume, and the blockage was partial/contested by then.9 sources →

    ▶ 4:55

  13. 13TrueDonald Trump is looking over plans to demolish the Kennedy Center.As of 2026-09-19, multiple tier1 sources (Snopes, which relies on Getty/AFP photos, and Reuters/PolitiFact/USA Today reporting) confirm Trump was photographed viewing a printout reading 'Kennedy Center DEMOLISH' on Air Force One, and Trump refused to rule out demolition, so the claim that he is looking over demolition plans is supported. The claim matches the passage's core assertion; the passage's conditional framing ('if he cannot put his own name back on the building') is a dropped qualifier but does not change the verdict since the claim asserts only the act of reviewing plans.9 sources →

    ▶ 5:07

  14. 14MixedDonald Trump demolished the East Wing of the White House to build a ballroom, an arch, a coin, and a reflecting pool.The sources strongly support that Trump ordered the East Wing demolished to make way for a ballroom, but they tie the demolition only to the ballroom. The arch, coin, and reflecting pool are described as separate projects (the arch near the Lincoln Memorial, a reflecting pool renovation), and no source says the East Wing was torn down for them. The extracted claim, which says the demolition was to build all four, therefore overstates the passage's ballroom-focused point and widens the scope.7 sources →

    ▶ 5:56

  15. 15MixedDonald Trump previously banned the Pentagon Press Corps.Sources support that the Trump administration's Pentagon press restrictions effectively barred most of the Pentagon press corps, which left the building in October 2025 and was later blocked by a judge. However, sources attribute the ban to the Pentagon and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, not to Trump personally, so the claim overstates Trump's direct role; the extracted claim's personal attribution is not confirmed. The passage's 'he has done it' framing is a broader attribution to the administration, which the sources support.9 sources →

    ▶ 9:24

  16. 16TrueDonald Trump told Leslie Stahl in 2016 that his motivation for discrediting reporters was to undercut public trust in them.Journalist Lesley Stahl publicly said Trump told her in 2016 that he attacked the press to discredit reporters so that negative stories about him would not be believed, which matches the claim's core assertion. The claim is a paraphrase of that account, and no recording exists, so it rests on Stahl's recollection; sources differ on whether the meeting was in July or November 2016, which does not affect the claim.8 sources →

    ▶ 10:18

  17. 17TrueThe Trump administration has pursued intimidation tactics against the Associated Press and the Pentagon Press Corps.Multiple sources document Trump administration actions against the Associated Press (White House access ban over the Gulf of America naming dispute, later litigated) and against the Pentagon press corps (credential policy restricting access, which a federal judge found unconstitutional and later found was being evaded, with the Pentagon violating the order as of April 2026). The claim as extracted matches the passage's substance; the sources cover the 2026-09-19 period and describe these ongoing pressures, though 'intimidation tactics' is an interpretive characterization that the sources (e.g., CPJ, Poynter, AP reporting) support broadly.10 sources →

    ▶ 10:38

  18. 18TrueThe Washington Post reported an undercount of troop casualties in the Iran war.As of 2026-09-19, the Washington Post had reported (Sept 18) that US troop deaths in the Iran war exceeded the Pentagon's public count, citing officials, so the claim that it reported an undercount holds. Hegseth denied the report, and the Pentagon later raised its official toll to 21 in October, which does not change whether the Post reported the undercount.5 sources →

    ▶ 11:03

  19. 19FalseTruck drivers are planning to strike or take action in early October 2026.As of 2026-09-19, the sources do not support a planned early-October truck driver strike. The rumor about an Oct. 1 U.S. trucker strike was dismissed by Snopes as unfounded, and the OOIDA said it had no knowledge of any strike. The Italian and Mexican strikes described in the sources began after the claim date (mid-to-late October) and in different countries, so they do not make the September claim true.10 sources →

    ▶ 13:30

  20. 20Can’t tellA top Justice Department official warned that prosecutors would be fired for not pursuing cases of reported voter fraud.The sources show that MS NOW reported, citing two anonymous people on a conference call, that Aakash Singh warned prosecutors they could be fired for declining voter fraud cases, and the DOJ denies a threat was made. Most other coverage repeats the MS NOW account, so the claim as extracted, which drops the 'reportedly' qualifier, is not independently established.6 sources →

    ▶ 18:30

  21. 21MixedThe Trump administration has fired hundreds of lawyers who worked on the January 6th investigation and prosecution.The sources clearly support that the Trump administration fired lawyers who worked on the January 6 investigation and prosecution, including 15 prosecutors on January 31, 2025, and dozens in the first month per USA Today/Politico. However, no source counts the J6-specific firings in the hundreds: the J6-specific figures are in the dozens, while the hundreds appear only in broader counts covering all DOJ firings and departures (Justice Connection's 230+, CREW's 202 firings across categories). The 'hundreds' magnitude therefore depends on whether the measure is J6-only or all DOJ departments.7 sources →

    ▶ 19:32

  22. 22TrueThousands of people have left the Department of Justice since the Trump administration took office.As of 2026-09-19, multiple tier1 and tier2 sources show thousands of DOJ employees left the department after Trump returned to office: OPM-based figures cite roughly 10,000 workers lost, 3,300+ attorneys departed, and over 5,000 workers left by some estimates. The extracted claim matches the passage's core assertion (thousands left or were forced out), and the later figures (e.g., 21,244 departures) only reinforce it.7 sources →

    ▶ 19:44

  23. 23TrueThe Supreme Court rejected a Trump administration effort to compel states to turn over voter lists under threat of refusing to deliver mail.Multiple sources report that the Supreme Court on September 14, 2026 refused to let the Trump administration's USPS mail-ballot plan proceed, a plan that would have required states to submit voter lists and barcoded envelopes or risk non-delivery of their ballots. The extracted claim drops the passage's 'within the last week' timeframe; the ruling was about six weeks before the stated current date, so the timing is not as the passage implied, though the core assertion holds.5 sources →

    ▶ 20:07

  24. 24TrueThe Save Act has failed.As of 2026-09-19, the SAVE America Act had not cleared the Senate: NPR reported on June 4, 2026 that it had officially failed in the Senate, and USA Today's September 11 update says it had not become law. The claim is true in the sense of failing to pass the Senate, though the House had passed it in February, and later Senate votes (September 30, after the claim date) do not change the September 19 assessment.4 sources →

    ▶ 20:28

  25. 25TrueRudy Giuliani has been disbarred.Multiple reliable sources report that Giuliani was disbarred in New York (July 2, 2024) and in Washington, D.C. (September 2024), so the claim holds as extracted. A 2021-era Snopes piece saying he had only been suspended predates the disbarment orders and does not contradict them; the passage's 'kicked out of the bar' wording matches the claim.5 sources →

    ▶ 21:46

  26. 26TrueDonald Trump threatened to ban reporters from MSNBC, CNN, and Politico from the White House.Trump announced on September 18, 2026 that he was banning CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House, which supports the claim's core assertion that he threatened to bar reporters from these outlets. MSNBC is the former name of MS NOW (per source 7), so the claim's 'MSNBC' refers to the same outlet named in the passage and the sources, and the claim's 'threatened' framing is consistent with AP's description of a threat that was announced as an immediate ban.6 sources →

    ▶ 22:13

  27. 27FalseDonald Trump has cut the federal deficit by 40 percent in less than two years.The claim that Trump cut the federal deficit by 40 percent in under two years is contradicted by multiple tier1 and tier2 sources: the FY2025 deficit fell only marginally ($1.78T vs $1.817T in FY2024, a shrink of roughly 2%), and the FY2026 deficit rose about 12% to $1.99 trillion, the highest since 2021. The passage's '40' figure is ambiguous, but no source supports any reduction near 40 percent in the deficit.9 sources →

    ▶ 25:44

  28. 28TrueA Fox News poll shows 71% of Americans do not believe Donald Trump has a clear strategy for ending the Iran war.The Fox News poll released September 17, 2026 found 71% of voters say the Trump administration lacks a clear strategy for ending the Iran war, which matches the claim as of its September 19 date. The claim loosely says 'Americans' and 'Trump' where the poll surveyed registered voters and asked about the 'Trump administration,' but these differences are minor and do not change the finding.5 sources →

    ▶ 26:15

  29. 29TrueDonald Trump has called for a ban on CNN, Politico, and MSNBC from the White House.Multiple tier1 and tier2 sources (BBC, Politico, CNN, Washington Examiner) confirm that on September 18-19, 2026 Trump announced via Truth Social that he was banning CNN, MS NOW (formerly MSNBC) and Politico from the White House, so the claim held on 2026-09-19. The claim's wording matches the extracted passage, though the passage named only CNN and Politico, and the sources show MS NOW was included; the later court orders and continued litigation do not make the September claim false, though sources note the ban was not clearly implemented at the time.8 sources →

    ▶ 26:42

  30. 30TrueSarah Huckabee Sanders stated that Donald Trump is the most accessible president to the media of all time.Multiple outlets quote Sanders on September 18, 2026, saying Trump has been "more accessible and easier to talk to than any president in history," which matches the claim's "most accessible president to the media of all time" in substance. The claim's wording is a paraphrase, as the claimant's own passage says, and the sources do not contradict it.7 sources →

    ▶ 30:19

  31. 31TrueDonald Trump stated that the New York Times and the Washington Post are fake news.On 2026-09-19 (the claim date, 2026-09-18 in the original remarks), Trump said in an Oval Office exchange that 'The New York Times is fake news. Washington Post is fake news,' as confirmed by Reuters-linked BBC, Politico-tier and CNN transcript sources, and multiple outlets quoting the same remarks. The claim's wording ('stated that... are fake news') matches the passage and no source contradicts it; the remarks were made on Sept 18 rather than the 19th, a minor date detail that does not alter the core assertion.8 sources →

    ▶ 31:59

  32. 32TrueDonald Trump stated that he will likely stop displaying the New York Times and Washington Post in the White House.The claim is a fair extraction of Trump's September 18, 2026 remarks: he said 'we're probably not going to display the paper anymore in the White House, those papers' about the New York Times and Washington Post, and multiple outlets (NYT video transcript, HuffPost, Raw Story, LehighValleyLive) report the same words. The 'will likely' wording slightly firms up his hedged 'we'll see' and 'probably not,' but the core assertion matches; he also said they had not yet been thrown out, which the claim does not contradict, and the claim was accurate as of 2026-09-19.6 sources →

    ▶ 32:08

  33. 33TruePeople are dying of measles-related causes in Pennsylvania.As of 2026-09-19, Pennsylvania health officials had confirmed multiple measles-associated deaths (the PA DOH reported four by September 15, and the fifth death was reported later), so the claim that people are dying of measles-related causes in Pennsylvania was true on that date. Later reporting (October 2026) shows the count rising to five and then six, so the situation has since worsened, but the claim as extracted holds.4 sources →

    ▶ 34:41

  34. 34TrueThere was a report of a flesh-eating parasite infestation of animals in the Southwest.As of 2026-09-19, multiple sources (CDC/FDA coverage, Vet Candy, Drovers, CNN) document New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite, infesting animals in Texas and New Mexico in the Southwest, with the parasite's return reported in June and cases continuing through September; the claim's 'report' of such an infestation was therefore true on that date. Later developments (the Arizona dog case confirmed Oct. 28) do not affect the verdict, and the extraction faithfully reflects the passage's 'just another report' framing.8 sources →

    ▶ 34:48

  35. 35TrueFour people have died of measles in Pennsylvania: two infants, an 18-year-old, and a 40-year-old woman.As of 2026-09-19, the Pennsylvania Department of Health and multiple outlets reported four measles-associated deaths: two unvaccinated infants in Lancaster County, a 40-year-old woman in Jefferson County, and an 18-year-old in Mifflin County, matching the claim. A later Lancaster County coroner statement (reported Sept 21) that one infant died of a lacerated spleen rather than measles postdates the claim date, so it does not make the claim false as of 2026-09-19, though it is a dispute about causation that the summary should note.5 sources →

    ▶ 36:20

  36. 36MixedRobert F. Kennedy Jr. instructed the CDC not to count the four measles deaths in Pennsylvania.Sources report that Kennedy pushed the CDC to exclude Pennsylvania measles deaths, but the instruction is attributed to reports and Gov. Shapiro's accusation rather than a primary record. The Hill describes the exclusion as covering two Lancaster County deaths, not all four, and Kennedy's role is 'reportedly' rather than documented. The claim as extracted (instructed not to count the four deaths, as of 2026-09-19) is only partly supported. Later coverage shows the CDC counted one death on Sept. 23 and the dispute continued.5 sources →

    ▶ 36:31

  37. 37Can’t tellBrandy Zdrozny has been banned from Children's Health Defense events.The sources do not show Brandy Zadrozny (the NBC reporter) being banned from Children's Health Defense events; the claimant's own passage asserts a ban for reporting, but that statement is not evidence. The only ban in the sources concerns CHD's own Instagram/Facebook accounts in August 2022, which is a different referent, and no source addresses a personal ban on the reporter as of 2026-09-19.5 sources →

    ▶ 36:49

  38. 38MixedCheryl Hines donated funds from a book sale at a fundraiser to Children's Health Defense.Sources support that book sales at a CHD conference event had proceeds directed to Children's Health Defense, but they attribute the donation to publisher and CHD board member Tony Lyons, not to Hines personally. Sources also differ on scope: MS NOW reports all of that night's book-sale profits going to CHD, while the Yahoo/Brand-related piece says only part of the proceeds would be contributed.5 sources →

    ▶ 37:10

  39. 39FalseThe Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) does not respond to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.The claim that HHS does not respond to FOIA requests is contradicted by HHS's own FY2026 Chief FOIA Officer Report, which reports FY2025 request volumes and a backlog share, meaning requests are received and processed. The speaker's complaint about slow or missing answers is not the same as no response, and the sources show HHS as of 2026-09-19 operating a FOIA process with measurable backlog-reduction goals.3 sources →

    ▶ 37:28

  40. 40TruePresident Donald Trump issued an executive order suggesting the MMR vaccine should be broken into three shots.The claim as extracted is that Trump issued an executive order suggesting the MMR vaccine be broken into three shots; the White House fact sheet and multiple AP, Politico and FactCheck.org reports confirm the signed order recommends separating MMR into three single-disease shots given at separate visits. The original passage said the order was released 'a couple weeks back' and the extraction dropped nothing material, though the order's date was Aug. 10, 2026 per the sources.6 sources →

    ▶ 39:51

  41. 41TrueThe Environmental Protection Agency released a report stating that chemtrails are not real.The EPA publicly stated that chemtrails are not real in July 2025 through newly launched webpages on contrails and geoengineering, which the sources describe as a debunking rather than a formal report. The claim's word 'report' is a label difference from 'webpages', and the core assertion is supported.4 sources →

    ▶ 41:07

  42. 42TrueRobert F. Kennedy, Jr. is the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.As of 2026-09-19, multiple sources (AP, HHS press release, Reuters) identify Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the claim's wording matches the passage's 'Health Secretary' reference, so the extraction is faithful. Sources dated after the claim date (October 2026) confirm he still held the post, so no change occurred before or after the claim date.3 sources →

    ▶ 41:15

  43. 43TrueThe price of diesel is at an all-time high.As of 2026-09-19, U.S. diesel prices were at an all-time high. Reuters and NBC reported records on Sept. 11, J.P. Morgan cited an AAA record of $6.23 on Sept. 14, and Cleveland.com reported a record $6.39 on Sept. 17, with later sources showing the peak came around Sept. 21-22 at about $6.52-$6.53. The claim's wording matches the passage's 'record high prices' and the extraction is faithful; the prices have since fallen about 18 cents from the peak by Oct. 26, which does not change the Sept. 19 verdict.9 sources →

    ▶ 4:48

  44. 44TrueA Fox News poll shows 61% of Americans say rising gas prices have become a major problem for themselves and their families.The Fox News poll (conducted Sept. 11-14, 2026, released Sept. 16-17) found 61% of registered voters say gas prices are a major problem for their household, matching the claim as extracted; the claim's 'Americans' is a minor scope difference from 'voters' and does not change the figure. As of the 2026-09-19 claim date, the poll result was already published, and multiple outlets (AP, PBS, Fox News, Cleveland.com, Newsweek) report the same 61% figure.7 sources →

    ▶ 26:25

Sources

Fact-checkers 47Primary records 22Most reliable outlets 8Reliable outlets 44Less reliable outlets 3Unrated 130Rated low 5

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