Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton faced off one final time in a prime-time debate Wednesday night before voters go to the polls next month.
Attempts at landing big blows in past debates have been fraught with misleading statements and inaccuracies — particularly from Trump, the brash billionaire who has repeatedly spurned the truth in past debates and on the campaign trail.
Here’s CNN’s quick take fact checks of Wednesday’s debate:
Trump: “I did not say” women accusers were not attractive enough
REALITY CHECK: False
Trump slammed several women who accused him of groping or kissing them without their consent, including suggesting they were too unattractive for him to assault. “When you looked at that horrible woman last night, you said, ‘I don’t think so,” Trump said of one woman. “Look at her…I don’t think so,” He said of another.
Trump: Sexual assault and misconduct allegations against me “largely debunked”
REALITY CHECK: False
Nearly a dozen women have accused Trump of groping or kissing them without their consent. The allegations have been neither proven nor debunked.
Clinton: Trump is “first candidate ever to run for president in the last 40-plus years who has not released his tax returns.”
REALITY CHECK: Mostly true
Every major party nominee since the 1976 election has released their tax returns. Gerald Ford, the 1976 Republican nominee, did not release his tax returns. He only released a summary of his tax information. Trump has refused to release his tax returns, citing a federal audit that does not prevent him from doing so.
Clinton: Trump “used undocumented labor to build Trump Tower”
REALITY CHECK: Mostly true
As part of a class-action lawsuit against Trump, undocumented Polish workers alleged Trump hired them to help build Trump Tower. Trump has also been accused of using undocumented labor at other properties of his. He has repeatedly denied the allegations. But Trump was sued on the workers’ behalf. Trump denied knowing the workers were undcoumented since the hiring was made by a contracting company. Trump eventually settled out of court.
Trump: “6 billion dollars was missing from the State Department”
REALITY CHECK: False
The State Department Inspector General said in March 2014 $6 billion of contracts “were incomplete or could not be located.” As some jumped to the conclusion that the sum was missing, the Inspector General said: “Some have concluded based on this that $6 billion is missing. The alert, however, did not draw that conclusion.” It was simply pointing to incomplete paperwork.
Clinton: Trump didn’t apologize for insulting comments
REALITY CHECK: True
Clinton argued that Trump never apologized for attacking the parents of a slain US soldier; for calling a judge “biased against him” because of his Mexican heritage; for mocking a disabled reporter; and for questioning President Barack Obama’s birthplace. Trump never apologized for any of those statements.
Trump: Never called for more countries to have nuclear weapons
REALITY CHECK: False
Trump said last spring that other countries, particularly Japan, should be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons. “Maybe they would in fact be better off if they defend themselves from North Korea,” Trump said in an April interview, adding “including with nukes.”
Clinton: “He said there should be some form of punishment” for abortions
REALITY CHECK: True
Trump said in March that “there has to be some form of punishment” for women who get abortions should the practice be outlawed. Hours later, he reversed course and said only the abortion provider, such as a doctor, should be punished.
Trump: Justice Ginsburg apologized for comments about me
REALITY CHECK: True
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg apologized in July after criticizing Trump as a “faker” and for having “really no consistency about him.” She later said her remarks were “ill-advised.”
Clinton: 33,000 people killed by guns annually
REALITY CHECK: True, but misleading
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were 33,599 people killed by firearms in 2014, the latest year for which the data is available. However, the number includes suicides, unintentional deaths, and incidents with undetermined intent as well as violence-related firearm deaths (homicide and legal intervention). In 2014, 11,409 people were killed in gun violence-related deaths by homicide or legal intervention. The CDC reports 586 unintentional deaths by firearms that year, and they also report 270 deaths where the intent was undetermined.
Trump denies supporting Iraq war
REALITY CHECK: False
“Wrong,” Trump said when Clinton accused him of supporting the Iraq War. But Trump was on the record as supportive of the Iraq War as early as a month before Congress voted to authorize military force in Iraq and even soon after the invasion. He didn’t express his outright opposition to the war until more than a year later, in an August 2004 interview.
