Top Republican politicians in the United States continue to repeat debunked rumors about Haitian immigrants eating pets in an Ohio town.
Republican Senator J.D. Vance, Donald Trump's running mate, has defended amplifying false stories about immigrants stealing and eating pets in the United States, saying in an interview that political ends justify the means.
During several television appearances on Sunday, Vance was questioned about unfounded claims he and Trump made about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, as part of a broader attack on the immigration policies of Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris.
Trump promoted the false story during his first — and possibly only — debate with Harris last week, which was watched by 67 million viewers. Local officials have repeatedly said they have not received any evidence to support the rumors.
But Vance remained defiant Sunday, saying in an interview with CBS News that he had received “verifiable and corroborative” accounts from residents of the Ohio community, without providing additional evidence of the alleged incidents.
“Anyone who has dealt with a large influx of immigrants knows that there are sometimes cultural practices that seem very distant from the minds of many Americans. Aren't we allowed to talk about this in the United States of America?” he said.
In another conversation on CNN, Vance was asked to “positively say” that there is no evidence to support stories about Haitian immigrants eating pets.
Vance again responded that he was only responding to voters' concerns.
“If I have to come up with stories that will make the American media pay real attention to the suffering of the American people, that’s what I’m going to do… because you’re allowing Kamala Harris to get completely sidetracked,” Vance responded, before backtracking.
“I say we create a story, and that means we create American media that focuses on it,” Vance said.
For his part, Trump on Saturday again referred to the city of Springfield, Ohio, during a speech near Los Angeles, where he vowed to deport Haitian immigrants from the community if he is elected in the Nov. 5 election.
Trump and his Republican allies have also been involved in spreading cat-related memes to further the anti-immigration narrative.
Trump tweets 'I hate Taylor Swift'
For years, experts on political violence have warned that the Trump campaign’s aggressive rhetoric and reckless approach to misinformation would inflame social tensions and raise the specter of violence.
Just two days after the debate, hospitals, schools and government buildings in Springfield, Ohio, were forced to close amid a series of bomb threats that pointed to an influx of immigrants in the community.
US President Joe Biden described the attacks on Friday as “totally wrong.”
“What he's doing has to stop. It has to stop,” Biden said.
Critics also pointed to the Trump campaign's approach as further evidence that American election seasons are increasingly dominated by transient cultural spectacles aimed at stirring up partisan anger, while marginalizing meaningful policy discussion.
In the latest example, Trump responded Sunday to pop star Taylor Swift’s recent endorsement of Harris, a major political boon for the Democratic nominee, as Swift has hundreds of millions of ardent fans around the world.
In a short post, Trump wrote in all caps on his Truth Social account: “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT.”
