JD Vance Not Backing Down on False Claims That Immigrants Eat Pets

Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance has continued to spread false and debunked allegations that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are stealing and eating their neighbors’ pets.

In response to a question from NBC News’ Yamiche Alcindor after Tuesday night’s debate, the Ohio senator said the small migrant community is responsible for several problems facing the working-class Clark County town, including missing animals, even though police and city officials say there is no evidence to support that.

Springfield City Manager Bryan Heck told ABC News that there were “no credible reports or specific allegations that pets have been harmed, abused or mistreated by individuals within the immigrant community.”

Heck’s statement, however, was not enough to stop Vance from repeating his claims.

“The city manager has said there is no verifiable evidence. Many residents on the ground have said there is,” Vance told Alcindor. “That simply means the city manager is not fully aware of what is happening on the ground. I have heard from many constituents in my riding that they have seen these things with their own eyes, that they have seen these abductions with their own eyes, that they have seen geese being taken from local parks and slaughtered in front of their eyes.”

Earlier Tuesday, a White House national security spokesman blasted Vance’s comments, adding that “this type of misinformation is dangerous because there will be people who believe it, no matter how ridiculous and stupid it is.”

That didn’t stop former President Donald Trump from embracing the racist lie, bringing it up during the debate against Vice President Kamala Harris, and amplifying it on this Truth Social account as well.

“In Springfield, they eat the dogs,” Trump said. “The people who came, they eat the cats. They eat the pets of the people who live there. And that’s what’s happening in our country. And it’s a disgrace.”

ABC’s David Muir, one of the debate moderators, repeatedly fact-checked Trump’s claims, citing Heck’s statement.

“People on TV are saying my dog ​​was kidnapped and used for food. Maybe he said that and maybe that’s a good thing for a city manager to say,” Trump responded.