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Candidates were also at odds on whether to force a shutdown of the government over efforts to cut off funding for Planned Parenthood. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who was a leader of the health-law funding fight that resulted in a 2013 partial government shutdown, said he would do it again—even though many Republicans viewed the 2013 fight as a political loser for their party. The candidates criticized the videos depicting officials at the organization discussing the use of fetal tissue obtained after abortions, but Mr. Kasich said closing the government would be a fruitless effort. “The American people are going to shake their heads and say, ‘What’s the story with these Republicans?’ ” He said he was “sympathetic” to the cause of eliminating the group’s funding but that a government shutdown wouldn’t “work out.” (Hook, O'Connor and Ballhaus, 9/17)

Not every candidate uttered facts that are easily fact checked, but following is a list of 17 suspicious claims. As is our practice, we do not award Pinocchios when we do a roundup of facts in debates. ... “As the brand new first ever pro-life governor of New Jersey since Roe versus Wade, I defunded Planned Parenthood.” —New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) This is a shift in Christie’s rhetoric, tying his decision to veto Planned Parenthood funding to his anti-abortion beliefs. A review of news coverage from 2010 and Christie’s vetoes of funding measures for Planned Parenthood clinics shows that Christie previously explained his veto as a measure to balance the state budget — not as a pro-life measure. (Kessler and Lee, 9/17)

Trump has touted his success as a businessman as his chief qualification for the Oval Office. But he also offered up some medical opinions last night, particularly on the question of vaccines. Trump was asked Wednesday night about having previously raised the notion that childhood vaccines could cause autism. That's a long-discredited theory, but he again left open the possibility that they do. ... Trump was quickly set straight by his fellow candidate Ben Carson, who's a retired pediatric neurosurgeon: "We have extremely well documented proof that there's no autism associated with vaccinations." Trump said all he's really advocating is that vaccines be spaced out over a longer period of time, though the American Academy of Pediatrics says there's no evidence that's necessary. (Horsly, 916)

Whether or not the vaccine “debate” did any damage to Carson, Trump, Paul or the GOP among voters is still unclear. But it was a talking point from a testy night full of politicians pushing back against science and “big government.” Technically, Carson’s answer was in line with the overwhelming scientific consensus that vaccines don’t cause autism. ... But even Carson’s tepid initial response quickly began to unravel. (Miller, 9/17)

Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina delivered an impassioned attack against Planned Parenthood on Wednesday, comparing the women’s health provider to the dangers of Iran. “I dare Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama to watch these tapes,” she said of the 10 undercover videos that have been released by an anti-abortion group this summer. (Ferris, 9/16)

Donald Trump stuck to a position that’s totally unsupported by medical evidence — that a link exists behind autism and vaccines. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other medical authorities have said repeatedly that science has demonstrated there is no link between vaccination and autism. Giving children multiple vaccinations at the same has also been proven to be safe, the CDC said. ... The videos that have stirred up so much trouble for Planned Parenthood don’t show what Fiorina claims. An anti-abortion group, the Center for Medical Progress, has released several videos alleging that the women’s health organization illegally profits from fetal tissue sales. In one video, a former employee of the fetal tissue procurement company StemExpress — which, until recently, worked with Planned Parenthood — alleges that she saw an aborted fetus’ heart beat after a clinician tapped its heart. That video relies solely on the interview and does not include footage to support her claims. The group’s undercover videos do show specimens of fetal tissue in some Planned Parenthood clinics, but at no point do they include footage of an entire aborted fetus. (/16)