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First it was cats and dogs. Then it was ducks.
And now, Donald Trump has dragged another animal into his wild, debunked conspiracy that Haitian migrants are eating pets in Springfield, Ohio: geese.
“A recording of 911 calls show that residents are reporting that the migrants are walking off with the town’s geese,” Trump told a crowd at a Tuscon, Arizona, rally.
“They’re taking the geese. You know where the geese are? In the park, in the lake. And even walking off with their pets.”
The Independent has reached out to Springfield Police Department.
Trump once again offered no evidence to support his claims.
Local authorities had already debunked the lies even before Trump peddled the narrative on the debate stage, with Springfield police saying there is no credible evidence to support the allegations.
Trump’s running mate JD Vance also admitted on Monday – after amplifying the claim himself – that it might not be true.
But that didn’t stop the former president from wildly pushing the false narrative when he faced off against Kamala Harris on stage in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday for their first – and likely only – presidential debate.
A handshake between the candidates marked the beginning and end of a cordial exchange, which quickly descended into Trump bombarding Harris with his typical lines of attack – claiming Minnesota Governor Tim Walz backed abortions after birth and, of course, the baseless Haitian migrants lie.
“They’re eating the dogs. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” he said on Tuesday as Harris’s expression flitted between shock and amusement.
“Extreme,” the vice president quipped in response, as 67 million ABC viewers watched on television.
While on the surface it may seem like another wacky conspiracy theory, some senior Republicans have used the story as a vehicle to push their anti-immigration policies and perpetuate racial stereotypes among (primarily Black) minorities.
The rumors stemmed from a bizarre anecdote posted by Springfield local Erika Lee on a local Facebook group, where she alleged that a cat owner found her dead pet hanging from the tree ready to be skinned, butchered and eaten in a house said to be occupied by Haitian immigrants.
Lee has since told NewsGuard that it was a tale that she heard fourth-hand, coming from a neighbor’s friend’s daughter – whom she had never met.
Kimberly Newton, the neighbor who told Lee the story, also told the outlet that she also doesn’t “actually know” the cat owner and confirmed: “I don’t have any proof.”
Despite the dubious sourcing, the post went viral on September 5 and Vance pushed it to his followers on X.
“Months ago, I raised the issue of Haitian illegal immigrants draining social services and generally causing chaos all over Springfield, Ohio,” the Ohio Senator wrote on X.
“Reports now show that people have had their pets abducted and eaten by people who shouldn’t be in this country.”
A slew of congressional Republicans – from Texas Senator Ted Cruz to Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene – then reposted memes of Trump holding kittens and ducks, hailing him as their protector.
Prior to Trump taking to the debate stage, Vance noted it was possible “all of these rumors will turn out to be false.”
