How Laura Loomer's presence and a fabricated story about pets in Ohio helped thwart Trump's intended assaults on Harris
This week, Donald Trump intended to focus on exploiting one of Kamala Harris's most significant electoral weaknesses as a Democratic challenger. Rather, he occupied most of the week making up allegations that immigrants are consuming pets in a small Ohio town and defending his friendship with a far-right activist whose presence is alarming his allies.
During a West Coast trip that included visits in Arizona and Nevada late this week, Trump made headlines by repeatedly repeating baseless social media stories about Haitian migrants in Ohio consuming pets. A series of remarks criticizing the economy and holding Harris accountable for shortcomings in border security were overshadowed by the promotion of the claims.
Trump made the vow of "large deportations" from Springfield, Ohio, during a news conference on Friday in California. The town has been a political hot spot as Republicans, including Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, have propagated untrue rumors about Haitian immigrants consuming pets.
According to the city of Springfield's website, there are between 12,000 and 15,000 immigrants residing in Clark County. Of these, Haitian immigrants are lawfully present due to a parole program that permits citizens and lawful permanent residents to petition for the immigration of their family members from Haiti.
He also mentioned an Aurora, Colorado, Venezuelan gang. Reiterating his harsh rhetoric about undocumented immigrants, Trump claimed that “nests of bad people” are pouring into the country.
The largest deportation in our nation's history is about to happen; it seems like an attack from within. And Springfield and Aurora will be our first stop.
He declared, "Ohioans are afraid." "Things will only get worse. Things will go really nasty. We're currently dealing with them just settling in, you know.
At a rally in Las Vegas later on Friday, Trump restated the same points. "They are invading us just like an army would, but in many ways it's harder because they don't have a uniform and you don't know who the hell to pursue," he remarked.
Speaking of Springfield and Aurora once more, Trump went on, "I am your border president." I want to be your border president going forward.
What motivates Trump to attack Harris on immigration
The majority of Republicans consider immigration and border security to be party priorities, and they see Harris, whom they have dubbed President Joe Biden's "border czar," as a prime target for their attacks. This designation results from Biden's request to the vice president in 2021 to spearhead diplomatic efforts with El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to solve the issues that drove those countries' populations to attempt to emigrate to the US.
But Trump's assaults on Harris over immigration at Tuesday's debate went too far, as he made up the untrue accusation that immigrants are consuming dogs and cats in Springfield.
Biden sharply criticized Trump for his remarks.
It's just incorrect. Furthermore, America is not the place. "This has to stop—what he's doing—has to stop," Biden declared on Friday at the White House during a luncheon for Black Excellence.
A bomb threat forced Springfield's municipal hall to close on Thursday. The Springfield City School District said on Friday that two primary schools in Springfield had been evacuated "due to information received from the Springfield Police Division."
In an apparent reference to Trump and Vance, Springfield Mayor Rob Rue asked national candidates on Thursday night to "pay attention to what their words are doing to cities like ours."
Rue declared, "We need help, not hate."
Trump on Friday downplayed their worries.
"No, no. What's occurring at our border poses the true threat, he declared.
On Friday, Pope Francis chastised Trump for his immigration policies and attacked Harris for her advocacy of abortion rights.
"It is horrible, there is wickedness there, to send people away, to abandon them wherever you want, to leave them. Because there is life, removing a child from a mother's womb is an assassination. The pope stated, "We must have clear conversations about these issues.
Trump's running mate, Vance, maintained that the president's remarks sparked a discussion about immigration, despite admitting on X how unfounded the initial rumors were.
"It's possible, of course, that all of these rumors will turn out to be false," Vance said on social media on Tuesday. However, it didn't appear like his main concern was if the claims were true.
"Do not allow the dishonest media to intimidate you into avoiding talking about this gradual humanitarian disaster in a small Ohio town. We ought to discuss it each and every day. It was Kamala Harris. And unless we stop her, she'll keep doing it," he wrote on X on Friday.
Trump refers to Loomer as a "free spirit."
This week's eye-catching incident that has drawn attention to the former president's campaign is not limited to the allegations that pets and other animals are being consumed in Ohio.
Trump has been hanging out with far-right provocateur Laura Loomer, who has posted racist remarks against Harris on social media and disseminated conspiracy theories regarding the September 11, 2001 terrorist assault.
According to a number of individuals close to the outgoing president, Loomer has played a part in some of the obscene conspiracy theories that Trump has promoted since Harris took Biden's position on the ticket. This development has left the GOP nominee feeling more and more uneasy about the political environment he now finds himself in.
Loomer was referred to by Trump on Friday as a “free spirit” and “supporter.”
She is a resilient individual. I'm not sure what she said, but she has strong opinions, and that's not my place. She is an ally," Trump declared.
Alex Floyd, the director of the Democratic National Committee's fast response team, emphasized Trump's association with Loomer and other contentious allies on Friday. A convicted fraudster, he claimed, is surrounded by people who are "as professional as you'd expect."
Pennsylvania Harris campaigns
Late last week, Trump and Harris returned to the campaign trail following a Tuesday night debate in which, according to a CNN survey of debate watchers conducted by SSRS, 63% of viewers believed Harris prevailed against Trump's 37%.
While Harris was campaigning in Pennsylvania, the biggest contestground for the 2024 election with 19 electoral college votes up for play, the former president traveled to the West.
AdImpact data shows that the commonwealth has already spent $175 million on television advertisements, with more than $93 million coming from Democrats and more than $81 million from Republicans. A total of $136 million has been reserved between Saturday and Election Day, with around $77 million coming from Democrats and $59 million from Republicans. That is greater than what has been reserved or spent in any other state.
Harris needs a high turnout in Democratic bastions like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, but she also wants to reduce Trump's margins in as many red areas of the state as she can. Her visit on Friday was concentrated on Cambria and Luzerne, two counties that Trump won in both of his presidential campaigns.
In the end, I firmly believe that we must earn every vote, and that requires interacting with people in their local communities. I'm here for that reason. Harris informed reporters at a Johnstown bookstore on Friday that "we're going to be spending a lot more time in Pennsylvania."
