What Trump Said

“You look at the heroin and a lot of the other drugs, they come from — 90 percent, more than 90 percent — from right across the southern border. And unlike what the Democrats say, they don’t, you don’t bring trucks of drugs through the checkpoints. You bring trucks of drugs by making a right 20 miles, and a left into the country.”

False.

Mr. Trump is right that the majority of heroin comes in through southern border, but contrary to his assertions, most of it comes through ports of entry, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. About 90 percent of heroin was seized at ports of entry from Oct. 1, 2017, to Aug. 30, 2018, compared with about 10 percent in the areas between ports of entry.

What Trump Said

“But look, we have among the highest polls — and actually the highest polls — but among the highest polls ever in the history of the Republican Party.”

False.

Mr. Trump had an 88 percent approval rating among Republicans at Day 737 of his presidency, according to Gallup, compared with 93 percent for President George W. Bush, 95 percent for President George Bush and 92 percent for President Dwight D. Eisenhower at roughly the same point in their presidencies.

What Trump Said

“You know, we’ve created over 500,000 manufacturing jobs, and the previous administration lost 200,000 over eight years and said that was the magic wand.”

This is misleading.

The numbers omit important context. President Barack Obama presided over a net loss of 192,000 manufacturing jobs from January 2009 to January 2017. Under Mr. Trump, the economy has added 473,000 manufacturing jobs so far. But when he took office, Mr. Obama inherited a deep, job-killing recession, while Mr. Trump was sworn in during an economic recovery that began under his predecessor.

What Trump Said

“I got him more money than the military has ever seen before.”

False.

The John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2019, which Mr. Trump signed in August, provided $716 billion for the Pentagon’s basic operations and war spending, as well as for the Energy Department’s national security programs. But that’s not the largest military budget in recent history, let alone all of American history. Even if inflation were not taken into account, Mr. Obama signed a $726 billion National Defense Authorization Act for the 2011 fiscal year.

Adjusted for inflation, Congress authorized more money for the Pentagon every fiscal year from 2007 to 2012, during the peak of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

What Trump Said

“You know it’s interesting, historically, you just never — you rarely put a military person in, which surprises me. When I first got here, I said, ‘What do you mean?’ That’s the natural of all naturals. Actually, you need special approvals to put them in, you know, etc. etc. Normally, a business person goes in — and I mean, you have one exception or two exceptions — but historically, a business person goes in to the secretary of defense.”

False.

The opposite is true. Most secretaries of defense have had previous military experience. Of the 26 men to have held the position since 1947, when the position was created, 19 have served.

The other seven were businessmen: Charles E. Wilson and Neil H. McElroy under Mr. Eisenhower; James R. Schlesinger, the former director of the C.I.A., under President Richard M. Nixon; Harold Brown, a scientist and former secretary of the Air Force, under President Jimmy Carter; Dick Cheney, the future vice president, under President George Bush; William S. Cohen, a former senator, under President Bill Clinton; and Ashton B. Carter, a scientist and former deputy defense secretary.