The GOP Governor for Ohio Mike DeWine has lashed out at J.D. Vance over comments he made regarding Donald Trump‘s claim that Haitian immigrants had been eating cats and dogs.
In his most forceful remarks yet, DeWine told Politico that he grew “more infuriated” as the Republican nominee for Vice President referred to Springfield’s Haitian community as “illegal aliens”.
DeWine said that Vance, who is set to debate Democrat nominee Tim Walz tomorrow, should not “make up stuff” about migrants who have a right to be in the U.S. because they are fleeing conflict or an environmental disaster and therefore enjoy Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
DeWine, who has visited Haiti 20 times with his wife, said that “to say that these people are illegal is just not right, you can’t make up stuff like that.”
The Ohio Governor added that the U.S. “ought to be a country that is capable” of letting people in because of the “great oppression that they are feeling or the danger they are feeling.”
Newsweek has reached out to Donald Trump and J.D Vance’s campaign for comment.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine arrives on the floor during the first day 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. DeWine has shared his fury at the comments circulated by Donald Trump and J.D. Vance over Haitian immigrants in Springfield eating the pets of the local residents.
Carolyn Kaster/AP
The pet-eating controversy was kick-started after a Facebook post by Springfield resident Erika Lee shared unverified suspicions about her neighbor’s missing cat.
There were subsequent bomb threats made via email, claiming that bombs had been planted in the homes of Springfield’s mayor and other city officials.
There are around 10,000 to 20,000 Haitians in Springfield, as estimated by city officials, and data from the Immigration Forum showed that more than 200,000 Haitians in the U.S. were found eligible for TPS.
Earlier this month, DeWine was on ABC News’ This Week for an interview, where he stressed that Haitians in Ohio were legally allowed to stay in the U.S., adding that companies in Springfield had informed him Haitians were “good workers,” and that their work had “helped the economy.”
However DeWine said that the comments about Haitians in his community would not stop him from voting for Trump in the upcoming election because “If you want to continue to be effective you have to do it from inside your own party.”
He told Politico that his goal “has always been to get things done,” and as he has two years and three months left in his role as governor, he stressed that he wanted “to continue” to do so.
At a rally in Long Island on September 18, Trump said that he would visit Springfield, but two sources familiar with the matter have since told Newsweek that Trump is not expected to visit the city in the near future.
DeWine had warned Trump’s visit would have “strained” relations with the local community, because of his “hurtful” rhetoric in relation to the pet eating comments.
The former president has previously endorsed the Ohio Governor as an “outstanding person,” ahead of a Youngtown rally at the start of the month.
Trump’s immigration policies include completing what he calls the “Trump wall,” a barrier dividing the U.S. and Mexico, and mass deportations, pledging to deport at least one million undocumented immigrants if elected.
