The Republican mayor of Springfield, Ohio, the city that has been the target of unfounded claims from former President Donald Trump and his running mate about Haitian immigrants’ eating residents’ pets said Tuesday that a visit from Trump would tax the city's resources.
“It would be an extreme strain on our resources. So it’d be fine with me if they decided not to make that visit,” Mayor Rob Rue said at a news conference at City Hall.
NBC News reported Sunday that Trump planned to visit the city "soon," according to a source familiar with his planning, after he amplified during the presidential debate a baseless claim that had circulated in right-wing spheres online for weeks, saying Haitian immigrants were “eating the dogs” and cats of local residents.
Officials in Springfield have said the allegations are meritless, with city police issuing a statement that said there were “no credible reports” of Haitian immigrants’ harming pets.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, had also “panned the claims as “garbage,” and he visited Springfield Tuesday as the city responds to dozens of bomb threats, deemed hoaxes that have led to temporary closings and evacuations of schools and city buildings.
DeWine said a campaign visit from a presidential candidate is “generally very, very welcomed,” but he acknowledged that it would pose challenges.
“I have to state the reality, though, that resources are really, really stretched here,” he said.
DeWine said he hasn’t spoken to Trump or his running mate, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, and hasn’t heard about the candidates’ potentially visiting Springfield.
In response to a request for comment, Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that there are "very real problems plaguing the residents of Springfield, OH : skyrocketing rent costs, stressed public health and education services, increased vehicular accidents and public safety concerns because a community of 60,000 Ohioans has been overwhelmed by a sudden influx of migrants. President Trump will continue to talk about making America safe again.”
Vance, who has also spread the false claims, told reporters Tuesday that he hasn’t made plans to visit the city.
Asked Tuesday whether he would join Trump on the trip or whether he had his own travel plans, Vance said that a trip hadn’t been formalized and that safety would be a top concern.
“I haven’t made plans to go just in the last few days,” he said. “I know the president would like to go but also hasn’t made any explicit plans."
