‘A piece of garbage’: Republican Ohio Gov. condemns Trump-Vance false immigrant pet-eating conspiracy

• Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine rebuked the false conspiracies amplified by Donald Trump and Ohio Sen. JD Vance about Haitian immigrants stealing and eating people's pets in Springfield, Ohio.
• Trump boosted the conspiracies most widely on the debate stage against Vice President Kamala Harris.
• Following the comments from Trump and Vance, Springfield schools have faced bomb threats, forcing evacuations and temporary closures.

Republican Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio on Sunday rebuked the false conspiracy theories that have been amplified by former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, about Haitian immigrants stealing and eating people's pets in Springfield, Ohio.

"This is a piece of garbage that is simply not true. There's no evidence of this at all," DeWine said on ABC's "This Week." "Discussion about Haitians eating dogs is just not helpful. And, again, these people are here legally. They're here legally, and they want to work, and they are, in fact, working."

Trump and Vance have both tripled down on spreading the false rumors, despite growing pleas from Ohio governing officials for them to stop the misinformation. The Springfield mayor has repeatedly said there is no evidence to back the conspiracy.

"This discussion just has to stop," DeWine said. "We need to focus on moving forward and not dogs and cats being eaten. It's just ridiculous."

Trump boosted the conspiracies most widely on the debate stage against Vice President Kamala Harris last Tuesday. And Vance has continued to defend the talking point.

"The American media totally ignored this stuff, until Donald Trump and I started talking about cat memes," Vance said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union." "If I have to create stories so that