'Springfield, Ohio, Finds Itself in a Political Vortex, and It's Somewhat Unruly'
Even certain Republicans in Springfield, Ohio, who support Trump are voicing their frustrations with the former president.
TroibNews 
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — This city has found itself at the epicenter of Donald Trump's immigration debates, where conspiratorial zeal has surged from internet discussions into daily life. Since Tuesday, bomb threats have closed city hall, a middle school, and led to the evacuation of two elementary schools. Even government offices like the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and the Ohio License Bureau suspended operations on Thursday.
With the former president and the state’s own senator promoting unfounded claims that immigrants in this blue-collar area have been abducting and eating pets—an assertion that the state's GOP governor labeled “garbage that was not true”—Springfield's routine has been shattered.
Many residents here supported Trump in both his elections: In 2020, he garnered over 60 percent of the vote in Clark County. However, even some of his staunch Republican backers are voicing their discontent with him, particularly after he championed the falsehood during a debate with Vice President Kamala Harris and has continued to repeat it thereafter.
Amid the chaos fueled by his claims, Mayor Rob Rue has had enough.
“Any political leader that takes the national stage and has the national spotlight needs to understand the gravity of the words that they have for cities like ours, and what they say impacts our city,” Rue told PMG, expressing his weariness and anger. “And we’ve had bomb threats the last two days. We've had personal threats the last two days, and it’s increasing because the national stage is swirling this up. Springfield, Ohio, is caught in a political vortex, and it is a bit out of control. We are a wonderful city — a beautiful town. And for what it's worth, your pets are safe in Springfield, Ohio.”
When asked about voting for Trump, Rue said, “I’m just probably not going to answer that question.” He expressed deep frustration with Trump’s comments and lamented Springfield’s unwanted role as collateral damage in the narrative.
“We have a big-hearted community, and we’re being smeared in a way we don’t deserve,” he added.
For Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, pushing the unfounded claims about migrants eating pets served as an appealing tactic to rally their base on a politically advantageous topic. Yet, some Republicans caution that promoting such anti-immigrant conspiracies could detract from a clearer immigration message. In Springfield, it has demonstrated the repercussions of Trump's rhetoric on even his supporters.
In a statement, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt refrained from reiterating the pet-eating claims but asserted: “President Trump and Senator Vance will continue to shine a light on the very real problems plaguing the residents of Springfield: skyrocketing rents, stressed public health and education services, increased vehicular accidents and public safety concerns due to the community being overwhelmed by a sudden influx of migrants from Kamala Harris’ open border.”
However, on the same day the campaign seemed to distance itself from the unfounded claims, Trump did not acknowledge the bomb threats. "I don't know what happened with the bomb threats,” he told reporters in Las Vegas. “I know that it's been taken over by illegal migrants, and that's a terrible thing that happened. Springfield was this beautiful town, and now they're going through hell. It's a sad thing. Not going to happen with me, I can tell you right now."
Right-leaning influencers and media have flooded the city, eager to validate Trump's and Vance’s allegations. On a street near city hall, Johnathon Held, a self-described reporter and blogger, interviewed locals about the supposed negative impacts of Haitian immigrants. “Trying to figure out if there’s really Haitians eating cats,” he said. “I think that’s what we’re all doing. Haven’t talked to any Haitians yet.”
Local authorities have confirmed that there is no evidence to support claims of immigrants eating pets. Nonetheless, a sort of conspiracy scavenger hunt ensued, with various media outlets and influencers seeking proof. Canada’s Rebel News combed the city for signs of animal abduction, while Indiana state Rep. Jim Lucas posted on social media: “Just arrived in Springfield, let’s do some digging!”
Adding to the frenzy, Chris Rufo, a conservative activist, offered a $5,000 bounty on X for “anyone who can provide my team with hard, verifiable evidence that Haitian migrants are eating cats in Springfield, Ohio. Deadline is Sunday. Go.”
There’s no reason to believe such evidence exists. The intense focus on Springfield captures a recurring theme of the Trump era: political narratives creating collateral damage in local communities. While hypotheses like these have been seen before, including the 2012 Sandy Hook tragedy, they continue to surface. East Palestine, Ohio, encountered similar conspiracy theories following a train derailment earlier this year involving Trump and Democratic Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Earlier, in Grand Rapids, Trump faced backlash regarding a misrepresented anecdote about a woman killed by an undocumented immigrant; her sister asserted that Trump never called her, despite his claims.
On Friday, Trump also targeted Aurora, Colorado, alleging it is “being taken over” by a Venezuelan gang amid a surge of migrants.
Now it’s Springfield’s turn. Bryan Heck, the city manager, attributed the turmoil to "misinformation circulating on social media and further amplified by the political rhetoric in the current, highly charged presidential election cycle."
Herad Harold, 40, a father of a 6-year-old and a member of the 20,000 Haitian migrants living in Springfield legally, reflected on Trump's remarks about immigrants supposedly “eating the pets of the people that live there.”
“First of all, what we witnessed clearly was like a false accusation,” Harold stated in a Creole accent. “We have to work hard to make it feel like we are more welcomed — more integration into the community.”
Vance had previously indicated a more sinister reading of Springfield’s situation when he suggested it was “important for journalists to actually get on the ground and cover this stuff for themselves when you have a lot of people saying ‘my pets are being abducted or geese at the city pond are being abducted and slaughtered right in front of us.’”
“This is crazy stuff,” he concluded.
Many of Vance's own constituents in Springfield agreed. “Misinformation,” Brian Frantz, 57, remarked while watching his grandson play football on Friday evening. “I’m not going to say they are eating cats.” Despite his previous support for Trump, he indicated he would vote for him again.
Outside city hall, local TV crews gathered, alongside journalists from diverse outlets, as city officials worked to address the fallout.
Republican Clark County Commission President Melanie Flax-Wilt, who had supported Trump in 2016 and 2020 but now feels uncertain, preferred not to discuss national politics but voiced her frustration. “I'm of the belief that it's our local community that is going to be here dealing with this after all of the national news is gone and everybody's done using Springfield, Ohio, as a poster child for immigration reform,” Flax-Wilt stated. “We're the ones who are going to be stuck figuring out what to do with these challenges that are facing us.”
Sasha Rittenhouse, another Republican county commissioner, noted, “We've seen a lot of, I don't want to say crazy, but unfounded things. It’s a matter of trying to go back and see if there's any validity to any of it.” She added that they have found no reliable evidence supporting the claims. Regarding her voting plans for November, she shared, “I have not decided what I'm doing. I've been a Republican my entire life, and I will leave it at that.”
The ongoing frenzy has led Rittenhouse to conclude that the entire nation, engaged in meme-making and TikTok videos mocking Trump’s comments, has lost sight of the pressing issues at hand. “I don't feel like right now everybody worried about the goose population is getting anything resolved in our community,” she explained.
Furthermore, Springfield is in need of improved resources. “We need translators,” she insisted. “We need more houses. We need more infrastructure. We need more nurses and doctors that can deal with the growing population.”
At Peanut Pond in Snyder Park, a humorous sign read: “Please do not eat the ducks.” Tricia McLaughlin, who advised former Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy during his campaign, commented on the viral nature of the message. “It's just that the framing is incorrect, because if it's based on the cats and dogs, I haven't seen or heard evidence of that."
Flax-Wilt anticipated that the attention on Springfield would persist. “It will be like this now until the end of the election,” she remarked.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
With the former president and the state’s own senator promoting unfounded claims that immigrants in this blue-collar area have been abducting and eating pets—an assertion that the state's GOP governor labeled “garbage that was not true”—Springfield's routine has been shattered.
Many residents here supported Trump in both his elections: In 2020, he garnered over 60 percent of the vote in Clark County. However, even some of his staunch Republican backers are voicing their discontent with him, particularly after he championed the falsehood during a debate with Vice President Kamala Harris and has continued to repeat it thereafter.
Amid the chaos fueled by his claims, Mayor Rob Rue has had enough.
“Any political leader that takes the national stage and has the national spotlight needs to understand the gravity of the words that they have for cities like ours, and what they say impacts our city,” Rue told PMG, expressing his weariness and anger. “And we’ve had bomb threats the last two days. We've had personal threats the last two days, and it’s increasing because the national stage is swirling this up. Springfield, Ohio, is caught in a political vortex, and it is a bit out of control. We are a wonderful city — a beautiful town. And for what it's worth, your pets are safe in Springfield, Ohio.”
When asked about voting for Trump, Rue said, “I’m just probably not going to answer that question.” He expressed deep frustration with Trump’s comments and lamented Springfield’s unwanted role as collateral damage in the narrative.
“We have a big-hearted community, and we’re being smeared in a way we don’t deserve,” he added.
For Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, pushing the unfounded claims about migrants eating pets served as an appealing tactic to rally their base on a politically advantageous topic. Yet, some Republicans caution that promoting such anti-immigrant conspiracies could detract from a clearer immigration message. In Springfield, it has demonstrated the repercussions of Trump's rhetoric on even his supporters.
In a statement, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt refrained from reiterating the pet-eating claims but asserted: “President Trump and Senator Vance will continue to shine a light on the very real problems plaguing the residents of Springfield: skyrocketing rents, stressed public health and education services, increased vehicular accidents and public safety concerns due to the community being overwhelmed by a sudden influx of migrants from Kamala Harris’ open border.”
However, on the same day the campaign seemed to distance itself from the unfounded claims, Trump did not acknowledge the bomb threats. "I don't know what happened with the bomb threats,” he told reporters in Las Vegas. “I know that it's been taken over by illegal migrants, and that's a terrible thing that happened. Springfield was this beautiful town, and now they're going through hell. It's a sad thing. Not going to happen with me, I can tell you right now."
Right-leaning influencers and media have flooded the city, eager to validate Trump's and Vance’s allegations. On a street near city hall, Johnathon Held, a self-described reporter and blogger, interviewed locals about the supposed negative impacts of Haitian immigrants. “Trying to figure out if there’s really Haitians eating cats,” he said. “I think that’s what we’re all doing. Haven’t talked to any Haitians yet.”
Local authorities have confirmed that there is no evidence to support claims of immigrants eating pets. Nonetheless, a sort of conspiracy scavenger hunt ensued, with various media outlets and influencers seeking proof. Canada’s Rebel News combed the city for signs of animal abduction, while Indiana state Rep. Jim Lucas posted on social media: “Just arrived in Springfield, let’s do some digging!”
Adding to the frenzy, Chris Rufo, a conservative activist, offered a $5,000 bounty on X for “anyone who can provide my team with hard, verifiable evidence that Haitian migrants are eating cats in Springfield, Ohio. Deadline is Sunday. Go.”
There’s no reason to believe such evidence exists. The intense focus on Springfield captures a recurring theme of the Trump era: political narratives creating collateral damage in local communities. While hypotheses like these have been seen before, including the 2012 Sandy Hook tragedy, they continue to surface. East Palestine, Ohio, encountered similar conspiracy theories following a train derailment earlier this year involving Trump and Democratic Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Earlier, in Grand Rapids, Trump faced backlash regarding a misrepresented anecdote about a woman killed by an undocumented immigrant; her sister asserted that Trump never called her, despite his claims.
On Friday, Trump also targeted Aurora, Colorado, alleging it is “being taken over” by a Venezuelan gang amid a surge of migrants.
Now it’s Springfield’s turn. Bryan Heck, the city manager, attributed the turmoil to "misinformation circulating on social media and further amplified by the political rhetoric in the current, highly charged presidential election cycle."
Herad Harold, 40, a father of a 6-year-old and a member of the 20,000 Haitian migrants living in Springfield legally, reflected on Trump's remarks about immigrants supposedly “eating the pets of the people that live there.”
“First of all, what we witnessed clearly was like a false accusation,” Harold stated in a Creole accent. “We have to work hard to make it feel like we are more welcomed — more integration into the community.”
Vance had previously indicated a more sinister reading of Springfield’s situation when he suggested it was “important for journalists to actually get on the ground and cover this stuff for themselves when you have a lot of people saying ‘my pets are being abducted or geese at the city pond are being abducted and slaughtered right in front of us.’”
“This is crazy stuff,” he concluded.
Many of Vance's own constituents in Springfield agreed. “Misinformation,” Brian Frantz, 57, remarked while watching his grandson play football on Friday evening. “I’m not going to say they are eating cats.” Despite his previous support for Trump, he indicated he would vote for him again.
Outside city hall, local TV crews gathered, alongside journalists from diverse outlets, as city officials worked to address the fallout.
Republican Clark County Commission President Melanie Flax-Wilt, who had supported Trump in 2016 and 2020 but now feels uncertain, preferred not to discuss national politics but voiced her frustration. “I'm of the belief that it's our local community that is going to be here dealing with this after all of the national news is gone and everybody's done using Springfield, Ohio, as a poster child for immigration reform,” Flax-Wilt stated. “We're the ones who are going to be stuck figuring out what to do with these challenges that are facing us.”
Sasha Rittenhouse, another Republican county commissioner, noted, “We've seen a lot of, I don't want to say crazy, but unfounded things. It’s a matter of trying to go back and see if there's any validity to any of it.” She added that they have found no reliable evidence supporting the claims. Regarding her voting plans for November, she shared, “I have not decided what I'm doing. I've been a Republican my entire life, and I will leave it at that.”
The ongoing frenzy has led Rittenhouse to conclude that the entire nation, engaged in meme-making and TikTok videos mocking Trump’s comments, has lost sight of the pressing issues at hand. “I don't feel like right now everybody worried about the goose population is getting anything resolved in our community,” she explained.
Furthermore, Springfield is in need of improved resources. “We need translators,” she insisted. “We need more houses. We need more infrastructure. We need more nurses and doctors that can deal with the growing population.”
At Peanut Pond in Snyder Park, a humorous sign read: “Please do not eat the ducks.” Tricia McLaughlin, who advised former Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy during his campaign, commented on the viral nature of the message. “It's just that the framing is incorrect, because if it's based on the cats and dogs, I haven't seen or heard evidence of that."
Flax-Wilt anticipated that the attention on Springfield would persist. “It will be like this now until the end of the election,” she remarked.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
