Truth in American Politics: Assessing Partisan Differences in Factual Accuracy.

Abstract

In this paper, I will be exploring the above questions and attempting to uncover some clarity on these issues. I will be trying to determine how central ideology is to the process of lawmaking and if there is a difference between Democrats and Republicans. In order to do so I will be looking at think tanks which are one of the central tools that legislators use to form their legislative agendas. Think tanks are organizations that conduct research on a variety of topics and then present public policy solutions that are based on their findings. Ideally, a think tank’s work is grounded in facts. The policy proposals that originate from the organization are based solidly in the work that has been produced by experts in the field. While some think tanks surely are structured in this way, there are others that are not. Some think tanks are driven by ideology, with individuals who have little expertise researching topics only to confirm pre-existing ideas. (from Introduction)