Senator Vance admitted “creating stories” about Haitian migrants eating cats at Springfield so the media would focus attention on his native Ohio, while also claiming he received “first hand” accounts from constituents. 

During an appearance on CNN today, Mr. Vance seemingly admitted that the Haitians-eating-cats story was created online — but then changed his tune moments later. 

“The American media totally ignored this stuff until Donald Trump and I started talking about cat memes. If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what I’m going to do,” Mr. Vance told Dana Bash.

When Ms. Bash pushed back on the Ohio senator for saying that he just admitted the cat stories were “created,” Mr. Vance said that the tall tales come from “firsthand accounts from my constituents.”

“I say that we’re creating a story, meaning we’re creating the American media focusing on it. I didn’t create 20,000 illegal migrants coming into Springfield thanks to Kamala Harris’ policies. Her policies did that. But yes, we created the actual focus that allowed the American media to talk about this story and the suffering caused by Kamala Harris’ policies,” Mr. Vance said. 

The rumors about Haitians eating cats in Ohio — which have resulted in bomb threats to local schools and hospitals — started with a local woman who thought her neighbor’s cat had been stolen and eaten by Haitian neighbors, though that woman later disavowed her role in spreading the rumor. “It just exploded into something I didn’t mean to happen,” Erika Lee, the woman who helped start the gossip, told NBC News. 

Mr. Vance, for his part, helped spread the lie about Haitian migrants via his X account. While he admitted that he has no evidence of Haitians taking and eating Springfield cats, he claims that the rise of communicable diseases, rising housing prices, and the lack of social services for native-born Americans are evidence enough to deride the migrants. 

The lies about the Haitian migrants have spurred a wave of threats to local government buildings and schools. On Thursday and Friday, two Springfield elementary schools had to be closed due to bomb threats, and on Saturday, two hospitals were forced to go into lockdown. 

In an X post on Tuesday — days after the rumors began spreading online — Mr. Vance said that his constituents had called him about the issue, and that while he had no evidence, people should keep posting online about it. 

“In the last several weeks, my office has received many inquiries from actual residents of Springfield who’ve said their neighbors’ pets or local wildlife were abducted by Haitian migrants. It’s possible, of course, that all of these rumors will turn out to be false,” the vice presidential candidate wrote. 

“Do you know what’s confirmed? That a child was murdered by a Haitian migrant who had no right to be here,” he wrote.  

The governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine, disavowed the lies about the Haitians migrants at Springfield in an interview, saying that there was no evidence to support claims that they were stealing or eating pets. 

“I think it’s unfortunate that this came up. Let me tell you what we do know … the Haitians who are in Springfield are legal. They came to Springfield to work,” the governor told ABC News on Sunday. 

One factory owner at Springfield told a reporter that he wished he had more Haitians in his town to help support his small business. He said the migrants show up on time for work, they are dedicated, and they do not slack off. 

“I wish I had 30 more. Our Haitian associates come to work every day. They don’t have a drug problem. They’ll stay at their machine. They’ll achieve their numbers. They’re here to work,” the factory owner, Jamie McGregor, told PBS News Hour.