Podcast · heathercoxrichardson.substack.com
Letters from an American
Heather Cox Richardson
Heather Cox Richardson's narrated newsletter about the history behind today's politics. heathercoxrichardson.substack.com
18 claims · Clear filters
True70% confidence5 sourcesSep 13, 2026Donald Trump told reporters in Ireland that he won three times.Said by AMultiple sources report Trump saying in Ireland that he 'won three times' and 'didn't win twice,' so the act of saying it is documented. The claim is about what he said, not whether it is true; FactCheck.org separately rates his 2020 'won three times' assertion as baseless, and sources differ slightly on whether the remark was made to reporters on September 12 or 13.Reported in the post, not stated as its own.True93% confidence6 sourcesSep 13, 2026Donald Trump traveled to Ireland for the Irish Open at his golf club in Dunbeg.Said by AMultiple independent sources confirm that Trump traveled to Ireland on September 12-13, 2026, to attend the Irish Open at his Trump International Golf Links in Doonbeg, Co. Clare. The claim spells the town "Dunbeg" rather than "Doonbeg," a spelling variant for the same course, and the claim's wording matches the passage.True85% confidence6 sourcesSep 13, 2026Judge J. Michael Luttig published a warning that Republicans could refuse to seat elected Democrats after the midterm elections.Multiple sources confirm that Judge J. Michael Luttig published a New Republic op-ed warning that House Republicans could refuse to seat elected Democrats in the January 2027 session after the midterms. The claim's wording matches the passage, and no source contradicts it.True60% confidence5 sourcesSep 13, 2026Speaker Mike Johnson has the power to replace the current House clerk with a loyalist who could refuse to list Democrats on the roll of those elected to the 120th Congress.The sources support that the Speaker has the power to remove the House clerk: the CRS footnote says the Clerk may be removed by the House or the Speaker, and Luttig's account, repeated by Truthdig and Alternet, cites Rule II, Clause 1 for unilateral removal. The 'could refuse to list Democrats' element describes a hypothetical scenario that no source reports as having happened, and the 2026 coverage frames it as a warning, not an event. The claim is judged on the power, which is supported, and the refusal is treated as a capacity, not a checkable act; as of 2026-09-13 no replacement had occurred.True55% confidence5 sourcesSep 13, 2026Donald Trump's plan to use the US Postal Service to screen mailed-in votes is being tested in Florida.Sources show USPS screening of Florida mail-ballot materials under Trump's mail-voting plan: Leon County's envelope was rejected for spacing, and USPS backed down. The Portside post also reports a Florida test run, and the plan was blocked by courts, so the 'being tested' framing rests on thin, mostly unrated coverage.True65% confidence9 sourcesSep 13, 2026The Department of Justice under Donald Trump is threatening election workers to force them to put Trump's election changes into effect.Multiple tier-1 and tier-2 sources report that a federal judge found the DOJ and DHS were threatening state and local election officials with criminal prosecution to force them to set aside or stop processing ballots tied to the administration's noncitizen-voting demands, and ordered the threats stopped. The sources describe October 2026 conduct, not September, so the September 13 posting date is inferred rather than directly documented; the 'election changes' wording is a loose paraphrase of those ballot and roll demands.