NATION/WORLD Thursday, October 17, 2019 East Oregonian A7 AP fact check: Dems fl ub details on climate, guns By HOPE YEN, CALVIN WOODWARD AND SETH BORENSTEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON — A dozen Democrats seeking the presidency tussled in a debate packed with policy, fl ubbing some details in the process. Several gave an iffy explanation of why they’re not swinging behind a bold proposal to make people turn over their assault-style weap- ons. Sloppiness also crept in during robust exchanges over foreign policy, health care, taxes and more. And when climate change briefl y came up, its threat to the planet was exaggerated. How some of their claims from Westerville, Ohio, on Tuesday night stack up with the facts: Climate change Bernie Sanders: “We’re forgetting about the existen- tial threat of climate change.” “Right now the CEOs in the fossil fuel industry know full well that their product is destroying this world and they continue to make huge profi ts.” The facts: Earth’s exis- tence and life on the planet will not end because of cli- mate change, as the Vermont senator asserts. Fossil fuels do not have Earth on a path of destruction. Science says climate change is dramatic and will cause harm, but it won’t wipe out everything and won’t end humanity. “It’s an existential threat for many species. It’s an exis- tential threat for many eco- systems. I don’t think it’s an existential threat for human- ity,” said Princeton Univer- sity climate scientist Michael Oppenheimer. The Earth will still exist and so will humans, but the way we live and the planet will be dramatically different if burning of fossil fuels con- tinues unabated, said Oppen- heimer, a co-author of many of the most dire international science reports on climate change. “Existential” has per- haps lost its literal meaning, as politicians in general and Democrats in particular cast many threats as existential ones even when existence is not on the line. In the debate, for example, Sen. Cory Booker described the closing of two Planned Parenthood clinics in Ohio as an existen- tial threat to abortion rights in America. Syria Joe Biden: “I would not have withdrawn the troops, and I would not have with- drawn the additional 1,000 troops that are in Iraq, which are in retreat now, being fi red on by Assad’s people.” The facts: The former vice president is wrong. There is no evidence that any of the approximately 1,000 Ameri- can troops preparing to evac- uate from Syria have been fi red on by Syrian govern- ment forces led by Presi- dent Bashar Assad. A small Buttigieg was citing the chance for an assault-weap- ons ban as a reason for not supporting the more radical proposal by Democratic pres- idential rival Beto O’Rourke to force gun owners to give up AR-15s and other assault- style weapons. Klobuchar spoke in a similar context. sion in late 2007 also con- tributed to manufacturing’s decline. Warren is basing her claim that trade policy mat- tered more than automation on research from the Upjohn Institute that suggests rel- atively modest productiv- ity gains in manufacturing outside of the computer and electronics sectors, a sign to those researchers that trade policy mattered more for job losses. But there is also a big- ger threat from automation for workers outside factories. These are secretaries, book- keepers and a wide array of professions. Automation can displace these workers and put downward pressure on their wages, forcing them to fi nd other jobs. Jobs AP Photo/John Minchillo Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., left, former Vice President Joe Biden, center, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., raise their hands to speak during a Democratic presidential primary debate hosted by CNN/New York Times at Otterbein University on Tuesday in Westerville, Ohio. group of U.S. troops came under Turkish artillery fi re near the town of Kobani last week, without anyone being injured, but there is no indi- cation that Syrian troops have shot at withdrawing Americans. Also, Biden was address- ing the situation in Syria, not Iraq. Gun control Pete Buttigieg: “On guns, we are this close to an assault weapons ban. That would be huge.” Amy Klochubar: “I just keep thinking of how close we are to fi nally getting something done on this.” The facts: No, the U.S. is not close to enacting an assault-weapons ban, as Buttigieg claimed, nor close on any signifi cant gun con- trol, as Klobuchar had it. Congress is not on the verge of such legislation. Pros- pects for an assault-weapons ban, in particular, are bound to remain slim until the next election at least. Legislation under dis- cussion in the Senate would expand background checks for gun sales, a politically popular idea even with gun owners. But even that bill has stalled because of opposition from the National Rifl e Asso- ciation and on-again, off- again support from Trump. Democrats and some Repub- licans in Congress say they will continue to push for the background checks bill, but movement appears unlikely during an impeachment inquiry and general dysfunc- tion in Congress. And Sen- ate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has made it clear he won’t move forward on gun legislation without Trump’s strong support. Elizabeth Warren: “The data show that we’ve had a lot of problems with losing jobs, but the principal rea- son has been bad trade pol- icy. The principal reason has been a bunch of corporations, giant multinational corpora- tions who’ve been calling the shots on trade.” The facts: Economists mostly blame those job losses on automation and robots, not trade deals. So the Massachusetts sen- ator is off. Let’s start by acknowl- edging that the U.S. economy has been adding jobs, just that the nature of those jobs has changed as factory work and other occupations have become less prevalent. Trade with China has contributed to shuttered factories and the loss of roughly 2 million jobs, according to research pub- lished in 2014. But the primary culprit that accounted for 88% of factory job losses between 2000 and 2010 was automa- tion, according to researchers at Ball State University. Job fi gures show that the outbreak of the Great Reces- Health care Warren: Buttigieg’s Medi- care buy-in option is “Medi- care for all who can afford it.” The facts: Warren ignored the fact that Buttigieg would provide subsidies to help people pay premiums for the plan. She was jabbing at Butt- igieg’s proposal to create an optional health insurance plan based on Medicare. Individual Americans could join it, even those covered by employer plans. Buttigieg calls it “Medi- care for all who want it.” His plan tracks with Biden’s health care proposal. Biden would also provide subsidies for those who pick his “public option.” Trump dismisses U.S. stakes in Syria: ‘Let them fi ght’ By ROBERT BURNS Associated Press WASHINGTON — Washing his hands of Amer- ica’s presence in Syria, Presi- dent Donald Trump declared Wednesday the U.S. has no stake in supporting the Kurd- ish fi ghters who died by the thousands as U.S. part- ners against Islamic State extremists. Condemnation of his stance was quick and severe, not only from Democrats but from Republicans who have been staunch Trump support- ers on virtually all issues. The House, bitterly divided over the Trump impeachment inquiry, banded together for an overwhelming 354-60 denunciation of the U.S. troop withdrawal. Many lawmakers expressed worry that it may lead to revival of IS as well as Russian presence and infl u- ence in the area — in addition to slaughter of many Kurds. At the White House, Trump said the U.S. has no business in the region — and not to worry about the Kurd- ish fi ghters. “They know how to fi ght,” he said. “And by the way, they’re no angels.” Trump said he is fulfi ll- ing a campaign promise to bring U.S. troops home from “endless wars” in the Middle East — casting aside criticism that a sudden U.S. withdrawal from Syria not only betrays the Kurdish fi ghters but stains U.S. credibility around the world and opens an import- ant region to Russia, which is moving in. “We have a situation where Turkey is taking land from Syria. Syria’s not happy about it. Let them work it out,” Trump said. “They have a problem at a border. It’s not our border. We shouldn’t be losing lives over it.” Trump said he was sending Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Ankara to urge the Turks to halt their week- long offensive into northeast- ern Syria. But his remarks, fi rst to reporters in the Oval Offi ce and later at a news con- ference with his Italian coun- terpart, suggested he sees lit- tle at stake for America. “Syria may have some help with Russia, and that’s fi ne,” he said. “They’ve got a lot of sand over there. So, there’s a lot of sand that they can play with.” He added, “Let them fi ght their own wars.” More than once, Trump suggested the United States has little at stake in the Mid- dle East because it is geo- graphically distant — a notion shared by some prior to Sept. 11, 2001, when al-Qaida mil- itants used Afghanistan as a base from which to attack the U.S. That attack set off a series of armed confl icts, including in Iraq, that Trump considers a waste of Ameri- can lives and treasure. The current withdrawal is the worst decision of Trump’s presidency, said South Car- olina Sen. Lindsey Graham, who meets often with the president and is one of his strongest and most important supporters in Congress. “To those who think the Mideast doesn’t matter to America, remember 9/11 — we had that same attitude on 9/10/2001.” Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Ken- tucky said he strongly dis- agreed with Trump and had told the president so. But he asked, “What tools do we have” to back up that disagreement? Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., told reporters he didn’t know what could be done to undo the harm he felt was resulting. “There are some mistakes that are not easy to reverse. And there are some that are irreversible,” said Rubio, who was a Trump rival for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016. Turkish troops and Turk- ish-backed Syrian fi ght- ers launched their offensive against Kurdish forces in northern Syria a week ago, two days after Trump sud- denly announced he was with- drawing the U.S. from the area. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said he wants to create a 20-mile-deep “safe zone” in Syria. Ankara has long argued the Kurdish fi ghters are DON’T BE LATE! This deal expires soon SAVE $15 NOW $29.95 Save with Frontier Internet Bundles Pay one price for two great services: high-speed Internet Serious speed! by the U.S. military in car- rying out his instructions to withdraw all 1,000 troops in northeastern Syria. He referred to the approxi- mately two dozen soldiers who evacuated from Tur- key’s initial attack zone last week, but cast that as mean- ing the U.S. has “largely” completed its pullout. nothing more than an exten- sion of the Kurdistan Work- ers Party, or PKK, which has waged a guerrilla campaign inside Turkey since the 1980s and which Turkey, as well as the U.S. and European Union, designate as a terror- ist organization. Trump mischaracterized the progress made thus far $44.95 plus tax & shipping | offer expires 11/17/19 and a full-featured home phone Bundle and save today Simply Broadband Max BROADBAND ULTRA + PHONE + SECURE 19 67 99 Per Month Per Month With Qualifying Phone Service 12 Mbps + Free Wi-Fi Router + 2 Year Price Lock Protect Your Identity, Devices & Files 6 Mbps + Free Wi-Fi Router + 1 Year Price Lock Call today and pay less » 144-page hardcover book » Historic photos of Umatilla County » Ships Nov. 22, 2019 — a great holiday gift idea! 97 855-972-6641 You can’t get BS from a buffalo. *Internet access service and charges not included. Frontier does not warrant that the service will be error-free or uninterrupted. Nest products: Additional $9 shipping fee per Nest device. Nest products must be purchased with new Internet service or eligible Frontier Secure services. Taxes, governmental and Frontier-imposed surcharges, minimum system requirements and other terms and conditions apply. Nest®, Nest Learning Thermostat™, Nest Protect™, Nest Cam™ and the Nest logo are trademarks or service marks of Nest Labs, Inc. ©2017 Frontier Communications Corporation Pre-order online and save with flat-rate shipping Umatilla.PictorialBook.com Imagine The Difference You Can Make DONATE YOUR CAR 1-844-533-9173 FREE TOWING TAX DEDUCTIBLE Help Prevent Blindness Get A Vision Screening Annually Ask About A FREE 3 Day Vacation Voucher To Over 20 Destinations!!! BETTER TV FOR LESS! Promo Terms and con ditions Code: DIS apply. Call for H100 details . Add High Speed Internet for 12 months 190 Channels America’s Top 120 CALL TODAY - For $100 Gift Card /mo. Pre-order by mail now (discount expires 11/17/19). Select an option: ☐ Ship my order to me ☐ I’ll pick up my order $29.95 plus $6.95 shipping and handling per book. $29.95 per book. Order will be shipped to the address below Pick up order at the East Oregonian off ice after 11/22/19. (211 SE Byers Ave., Pendleton) after 11/18/19. Quantity: ___ x $36.90 = $______ total Quantity: ___ x $29.95 = $______ total Payment method: ☐ Check/Money Order Credit card orders can be placed online: Umatilla.PictorialBook.com Subject to availability. Restrictions apply. Internet not provided by DISH and will be billed separately. 1-866-373-9175 Se Habla Español Call 7 days a week 8am - 11pm EST Offer ends 11/13/19. Savings with 2 year price guarantee with AT120 starting at $59.99 compared to everyday price. All offers require credit qualification, 2 year commitment with early termination fee and eAutoPay. Prices include Hopper Duo for qualifying customers. Hopper, Hopper w/ Sling or Hopper 3 $5/mo. more. Upfront fees may apply based on credit qualification. Fees apply for additionalTV’s: Hopper $15/mo., Joey $5/mo., Super Joey $10/mo. Name Send form and payment to: East Oregonian 211 SE Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or call 800-522-0255 Address NO MORE GUTTER CLEANING, OR YOUR MONEY BACK – GUARANTEED! 0 % 15 %OFF AND! FINANCING* SENIOR & MILITARY DISCOUNTS City State Phone E-mail Zip *Contact us for additional details FREE ESTIMATES! 1-855-536-8838 Promo Number: 285 Mon-Thurs: 8am-11pm, Fri-Sat: 8am-5pm. Sun: 2pm-8pm EST CSLB# 1035795 DOPL #10783658-5501 License# 7656 License# 50145 License# 41354 License# 99338 License# 128344 License# 218294 License# 603 233 977 License# 2102212986 License# 2106212946 License# 2705132153A License# LEAFFNW822JZ License# WV056912 License# WC-29998-H17 Nassau HIC License# H01067000 Registration# 176447 Registration# HIC.0649905 Registration# C127229 Registration# C127230 Registration# 366920918 Registration# PC6475 Regis- tration# IR731804 Registration# 13VH09953900 Registration# PA069383 Suffolk HIC License# 52229-H From the archives of the Athena Public Library, City of Echo, Milton-Freewater Area Historical Society, Pendleton Round-up, Tamástslikt Cultural Institute and Umatilla County Historical Society