Ohio’s GOP Governor Dismisses ‘Crazy’ MAGA Cat Conspiracy Theory Promoted by Trump: ‘No Truth, No Evidence’

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine pushed back on the “crazy” MAGA “internet” conspiracy theory that Haitian immigrants were eating pets in the town of Springfield in Ohio, saying that there was “no truth” and “no evidence” to the claims.

The unfounded rumors, criticized as “anti-Black racism,” were first pushed online by MAGA influencers and worked their way up through to the Trump campaign itself, it has become a political narrative for Republicans who want to attack Vice President Kamala Harris’s policy record on immigration. Former President Donald Trump even amplified the claim on social media by sharing AI-generated images of himself defending cats and ducks.

During the ABC News debate on Tuesday night, Trump launched into a rant alleging that migrants are eating cats and dogs in Ohio. This claim prompted moderator David Muir to fact-check the statement.

Speaking to CBS, DeWine said: “This is something that came up on the internet, and the internet can be quite crazy sometimes. And, look, the mayor and Mayor Rue of Springfield says there’s no truth in that, they have no evidence of that at all. So I think we go with what the mayor says. He knows his city.”

In a press conference on Wednesday, Mayor Rob Rue defended his town’s “positive” and “dynamic community.”

He continued to tell reporters: “It is disappointing that some of the narratives surrounding our city has been skewed by misinformation circulating on social media and further amplified by political rhetoric in the current highly charged presidential election cycle.”

Watch above on CBS.