How JD Vance Distanced Himself From Springfield Pet-Eating Conspiracy
Topline
Republican vice presidential nominee Ohio Sen. JD Vance has distanced himself in recent weeks from the debunked viral conspiracy he helped spread that Haitian migrants are eating pets in Springfield, Ohio, pivoting at Tuesday’s vice presidential debate to focus on blaming the migrant influx for increasing housing costs and straining local services.
Key Facts
Vance’s opponent, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, was the first to bring up Springfield at Tuesday’s debate, during a discussion on immigration, slamming Vance for “vilifying” a community of legal migrants, referring to debunked claims Vance made last month that “people have had their pets abducted and eaten.”
In his response, Vance said schools and hospitals are “overwhelmed” and housing is unaffordable and scarce because of the influx of migrants to Springfield, faulting Vice President Kamala Harris’ border policies.
Vance did not mention the claims both he and former President Donald Trump have previously made that Haitian migrants in Springfield are eating the pets of the city’s residents, which the city’s police department said is not true.
The debate moderators pointed out Springfield does have a large number of Haitian migrants, though they are in the country legally because the Biden administration granted them temporary protected status to escape gang violence in Haiti.
Vance protested the moderators’ interjection, claiming the rules stated they would not fact-check the candidates in a moment the Harris campaign quickly mocked.
How Has Vance Changed His Tune About Springfield?
Vance claimed in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Sept. 9 that Haitian migrants—incorrectly claiming they are in the United States “illegally”—are abducting and eating pets in Springfield, citing “reports,” though he did not specify what reports. His post was viewed more than 11 million times. The next day, Vance claimed in another post his office has received “many inquiries” from Springfield residents who “said their neighbors’ pets or local wildlife were abducted by Haitian migrants,” though he acknowledged the claims could be false. In that post, he said a “child was murdered by a Haitian migrant who had no right to be here”—possibly referring to an incident last year in which migrant Hermanio Joseph collided with a school bus in a car accident that killed one child. Joseph was charged with involuntary manslaughter. Trump later repeated the false pet-eating claims in a widely mocked moment in his Sept. 10 debate against Harris: “They’re eating the dogs. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” he said, to which Harris laughed and called his comments “extreme.” On Sept. 13, Vance made two posts on X referencing Springfield, though he did not mention the pet-eating claims in either post. In both posts, he claimed housing prices, communicable diseases and crime rates are rising in Springfield, blaming the increase in migrants to the city. Though Springfield does face a housing affordability problem, reports indicate infectious disease in Springfield declined between 2022 and 2023. Local officials also disputed a claim Vance made that murders increased 81{f8f2f6c3978be4280dba4728e3685952f3615a1d089d426e0671ec3cc6712d50} in Springfield under Biden and Harris—though murders did increase from five to nine from 2021 to 2023, data shows there were more murders in Springfield under Trump’s presidency compared to Biden’s, and prosecutors said zero murders have involved Haitians. Vance has since regularly discussed Springfield at campaign rallies, though he no longer uses the false pet-eating anecdotes—but he does continue to incorrectly label Springfield’s Haitian migrants as “illegal.” On Sept. 17, Vance said in Sparta, Michigan, the migrant influx has “caused an incredible stress” on local services. In a Sept. 18 rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, Vance claimed Springfield residents “won’t even drive” because they fear Haitian migrants on the road. A reporter asked Vance in North Carolina last week if he would change how he spread the false pet-eating rumors, to which Vance said he will “listen to the people that I serve and not a biased media.”
Are Migrants Putting Stress On Springfield’s Local Services?
The influx of about 20,000 Haitian migrants to Springfield over the past several years has put a strain on local hospital services, The New York Times reported, citing a 13-fold increase in Haitian patients at the local clinic between 2021 and 2023. The school district and local clinic have hired Haitian Creole translators, increasing expenditures on translation services. Springfield’s housing authority executive director, Michelle Lee-Hall, told The New York Times housing affordability problems have been aggravated by landlords pivoting to migrants willing to pay higher rent. But the influx of migrants has also helped revitalize a declining manufacturing town, with Haitian migrants opening restaurants and businesses and taking manufacturing jobs.
Key Background
Springfield Police investigations commander Mike Kranz told Forbes in September there have been “no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community.” Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, wrote in a New York Times op-ed he is “saddened by how [Trump and Vance] and others continue to repeat claims that lack evidence and disparage the legal migrants living in Springfield,” calling the community a “refuge for the oppressed” and a “place of opportunity.”
Further Reading
Will JD Vance Repeat False Claims About Haitian Immigrants Eating Pets? Here’s Where Debunked Conspiracy Theory Comes From (Forbes)
How an Ohio Town Landed in the Middle of the Immigration Debate (New York Times)