Facts Matter: Trump's MAGA hats are made in USA
Red "Make America Great Again" hats have been popular with supporters of Donald Trump since he began campaigning, and they continue to be an identifier of those backing the president.
While there have been false claims the hats were manufactured in a country outside the United States since they hit the market, Trump's recent discussion about increasing tariffs on China has increased assertions the hats are produced in that country, according to The Associated Press. Inaccurate Facebook posts show the baseball-style caps with a "Made in China" label.
Trump's campaign website, which sells the MAGA hats, as well as T-shirts, swimsuits, straws and dog collars, states, "All of our products are 100% proudly produced in the USA."
Brian Kennedy, president of Cali Fame of Los Angeles, the company that makes the caps, told the AP that the items are produced entirely in Carson, California.
Some other online retailers offer knock-off MAGA hats that are made in China and are labeled as such, the AP said.
A different website, the Trump Store, offering "apparel and gear for a pure luxury golf experience," sells wineglasses manufactured in Austria and apparel labeled "decorated in the U.S.," according to the AP.
Mueller followed the rules
Former special counsel Robert Mueller testified last month on Capitol Hill facing questions from members of two House committees.
During the testimony, Texas Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe claimed Mueller violated the tradition of prosecutors by writing about crimes that were not charged.
"You didn't follow the special counsel regulations," said Ratcliffe, a childhood resident of Mount Prospect and Palatine whom Trump nominated for director of national intelligence within days of the Mueller questioning. Ratcliffe on Friday withdrew from consideration for the job.
"It clearly says write a confidential report about decisions reached. Nowhere in here does it say write a report about decisions that were not reached," Ratcliffe added.
But according to PolitiFact.com, Mueller followed the rules to the letter.
Federal regulations have the special counsel filing a report with the attorney general explaining prosecution or declination decisions reached, PolitiFact said.
"Mueller was offering evidence that could be used if the attorney general did in fact decide to charge him," Ric Simmons, from the Ohio State University College of Law, told PolitiFact. "Not only is that not barred, it is precisely the kind of evidence that Mueller would be expected to bring to give proper advice to the attorney general."
Ratcliffe confused the content of the report with the publication of it, PolitiFact said. Special prosecutors are required to explain in the report the decision to not prosecute. Which information should be made public is up to the attorney general.
Sasha Obama was not arrested for shoplifting
A false report published online claims Sasha Obama, daughter of former President Barack Obama, was arrested for shoplifting, according to Snopes.com.
The article was published by the satirical website ObamaWatcher.com, a subsidiary of the America's Last Line of Defense network, which says it offers "parody, satire and tomfoolery," Snopes said.
According to the fake article, police arrested members of a million-dollar shoplifting ring operating at a fancy shopping mall outside Chicago, Snopes said. The story claims Sasha Obama was included in the initial account but her involvement was later removed from the record and the media didn't report it.
It appears the article's author was just using random names of Chicago suburbs, since the story said Skokie police have no record Sasha Obama has even been to Rosemont.
A fake mug shot included with the article was actually taken from a 2015 photo of Sasha as she returned to the White House after a vacation, Snopes said.
• Bob Oswald is a veteran Chicago-area journalist and former news editor of the Elgin Courier-News. Contact him at boboswald33@gmail.com.