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Can-do campaign biographies: There’s often more to the story

In this Nov. 11, 2015, photo, Republican Presidential candidate Ben Carson speaks at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. For most presidential candidates, a compelling personal history is an essential item in the campaign tool kit. But, just as tales at the dinner table sometimes get embellished, so do stories on the campaign trail. Carson last week clarified previous claims that he’d been offered a scholarship to West Point, saying that while he’d been told he could get an appointment to the school, he never applied. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) In this Nov. 11, 2015, photo, Republican Presidential candidate Ben Carson speaks at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. For most presidential candidates, a compelling personal history is an essential item in the campaign tool kit. But, just as tales at the dinner table sometimes get embellished, so do stories on the campaign trail. Carson last week clarified previous claims that he’d been offered a scholarship to West Point, saying that while he’d been told he could get an appointment to the school, he never applied. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

By Associated Press November 13, 2015 1 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) – For presidential candidates, a compelling personal history is an essential item in the campaign tool kit.

That’s not to say they tell the story straight.

Republican Ben Carson has amended his claims that West Point offered him a scholarship, saying he’d been told he could get one but didn’t apply. Questions persist about his accounts of being a violent youth.

Marco Rubio, for another, has backed off suggestions that his parents’ journey from Cuba was to flee communism. The size of Donald Trump’s claimed fortune is suspect, and Carly Fiorina’s tale of progressing from an office secretary to a CEO isn’t quite what it seems.

Then there’s Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, who once claimed she landed in Bosnia under sniper fire, only to admit there was no shooting going on.