Fact Check

North Dakota Names Landfill After Obama.

Did North Dakota name a landfill after President Obama?

Published Nov. 24, 2014

Claim:

Claim:   North Dakota named a landfill after President Obama.


FALSE


Example:   [Collected via e-mail, November 2014]


North Dakota names landfill after Obama... Two democrats voted for it. True???

 

Origins:   On 17 November 2014, the Daily Currant published an article claiming the state of North Dakota had named a landfill after President Obama:


In an overwhelming 35-10 vote, the state Senate advanced a bill naming a 650-acre site currently under construction after the nation's 44th president. Governor Jack Dalrymple is expected to sign the measure into law Tuesday.

When completed, the Barack Obama Memorial Landfill will be the largest waste disposal site in North Dakota, and the 17th largest in the United States. It will be especially rich in toxic waste from the local petroleum and medical industries.

"We wanted to do something to honor the president," says Republican State Senator Doug Perlman, who was the lead sponsor of the bill. "And I think a pile of garbage is a fitting tribute to Obama's presidency."


 

This article, like all articles on the Daily Currant, is a piece of fiction. A disclaimer on the Daily Currant web site clearly states that "our stories are purely fictional." Of course, that disclaimer is not included when the story is shared via email, Facebook, or Twitter.

In addition to the disclaimer, the article is plainly false due to the use of fictitious quotes from imaginary people. Doug Perlman and Allison Mitchell, two politicians quoted in the article, are not senators from North Dakota.

Last updated:   24 November 2014

David Mikkelson founded the site now known as snopes.com back in 1994.