US Republicans fuel migrant fears with bogus cat-eating tale

Top US Republicans peddled false claims denigrating immigrants Monday, saying Haitian arrivals are stealing and eating pets -- a conspiracy theory, debunked by authorities, that went viral as Donald Trump stokes fears ahead of November's election.

Trump running mate J.D. Vance and Republican lawmakers, officials and influencers have pushed unfounded rumors out of Springfield, Ohio that have thrust the city's growing Haitian population into the center of the US presidential race.

"Protect our ducks and kittens in Ohio!" Republicans on the US House Judiciary Committee posted on their X account, with an obviously fake image of Trump rescuing a white duck and a striped cat.

"Please vote for Trump so Haitian immigrants don't eat us," Senator Ted Cruz posted over an image of kittens.

Republicans appeared to be using the stories, which have clear racial undertones, to fuel a political attack against Trump's rival Kamala Harris to suggest she has failed to rein in illegal immigration during her three-plus years as US vice president.

Immigration is seen as a critical issue in a nail-biter of an election, and the two candidates square off Tuesday night in their first and potentially only presidential debate.

Some right-wing social media accounts had amplified a news report about a woman in Ohio allegedly eating and killing a pet cat. And while no evidence emerged linking the woman to migrants or the Haitian community, footage of her arrest was widely shared by influencers.

City law enforcement quickly debunked the conspiracy theories. "There have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community," Springfield police said in a statement, adding there have been no verified instances of immigrants engaged in illegal activities like squatting in front of residents' homes.

But the disinformation posts have snowballed, having been viewed millions of times. X owner Elon Musk, who recently endorsed Trump and has 197 million followers on the platform formerly known as Twitter, has reposted some of the images.

Vance, who is from Ohio, took to X to claim that "Haitian illegal immigrants (are) draining social services and generally causing chaos all over Springfield, Ohio.

"Reports now show that people have had their pets abducted and eaten by people who shouldn't be in this country."

Trump himself weighed in Monday, posting on Truth Social: "20,000 Haitian migrants were dumped into the small town of Springfield, Ohio," referring to the large influx of migrants from the impoverished Caribbean nation in recent years.

Social services, schools and housing have been stressed in the city for years, with some pointing to migration as a factor. The issues have been brought up at city functions, including an August 27 Springfield City Commission.

Leading Democrats largely have not addressed the pet theft claims.