Vance criticizes Harris’ approach of calling Springfield, Ohio residents ‘racists’ instead of ‘removing her open border’

Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) said Vice President Harris is more focused on calling residents of Springfield, Ohio, “racists” than “ending her open border.”

While making his rounds on CNN, NBC and CBS’ Sunday morning shows, Vance was confronted about the recent controversy in Springfield, where residents have been pointing to a rise in crime, chaos and car accidents due to the massive influx of roughly 20,000 Haitian immigrants since the COVID-19 pandemic hit a small town of about 58,000 people.

Residents at city council meetings have alleged that Haitians are killing and eating ducks and geese in parks, as well as domestic cats and dogs — unverified allegations that Vance has referenced on social media and that former President Trump repeated during the Philadelphia presidential debate last week.

“I trust my constituents more than I trust the American media, which has shown zero interest in what’s happened in Springfield until we started sharing cat memes on the Internet, which is shameful that the American media has ignored this town,” Vance told NBC’s “Meet the Press” host Kristen Welker. “And that’s the most important part: Kamala Harris’ open border, Kristen, has led to skyrocketing housing costs in Springfield, skyrocketing crime rates, skyrocketing contagious disease rates. They’ve dumped 20,000 migrants into a town of 40,000, and that’s led to a host of social problems.”

Welker cited officials in Springfield and Dayton, Ohio, who said there was “no evidence” that immigrants were eating animals or pets at the park, and highlighted recent threats of violence that forced closure in Springfield. The NBC host also cited Vance’s previous comments from 2016 in which he accused Trump of making “people I care about” afraid.

CRITICS DEMAND NYT APOLOGIZES FOR COLUMN THAT “INCITES VIOLENCE” AND ACCUSES JD VANCE OF “BLOOD AND SOIL NATIONALISM”

“This week in Springfield, buildings were locked down because of bomb threats. Haitian immigrants say they fear for their lives. Aren’t you doing the very thing you once called reprehensible, Senator?” Welker asked.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

“First of all, Kristen, we condemn all acts of violence and all threats of violence. But, Kristen, the reason I changed my mind about Donald Trump is clearly reflected in what’s happening in Springfield, because the media and the Kamala Harris campaign have been calling Springfield residents racist,” Vance said. “They’ve been lying about them. They’ve been saying they’re making up these reports about immigrants eating geese. And they’ve completely ignored the public health disaster that’s unfolding in Springfield at this very moment.”

“Donald Trump is the only person who has brought national attention to Springfield and he’s the only president who’s going to fight for residents, not only for their right to live safely in their communities, but for their right to complain about what’s happening in their own community,” Vance added. “I think it’s a shame that Kamala Harris listened to these complaints and decided to call people racist instead of trying to make their lives better by undoing their open border.”

“We don’t blame Haitian immigrants for coming to Springfield,” he said. “We blame Kamala Harris for opening the southern border of the United States and inviting 20,000 people to stay in a small town in Ohio.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the Harris campaign for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

During a heated exchange on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Vance said he would “fact-check” host Dana Bash for failing to clarify how Haitians were in the United States “legally.”

TRUMP TALKS ABOUT ABC NEWS PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE AND WHAT’S HAPPENING IN SPRINGFIELD, OHIO, IN AN INTERVIEW WITH FOX NEWS

“You said all of these immigrants are in the country legally. They’re in the country through what’s called temporary protected status. That’s when Kamala Harris waved a magic wand of amnesty, taking people and giving them legal status,” Vance said. “That doesn’t mean they’re here legally. That’s a terrible indictment of her amnesty policies that have opened the border even further.”

In June, the Biden-Harris administration announced that about 300,000 Haitians already in the United States would now be eligible for temporary legal status that would allow them to stay in the country and work because the Department of Homeland Security said conditions in the conflict-ravaged Caribbean nation are deemed unsafe for them to return. The decision marks a major expansion of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians who were in the United States on June 3 and will last until Feb. 3, 2026. Anyone arriving after June 3 would not qualify. DHS also extended Temporary Protected Status to about 200,000 Haitians who already had it.

On CBS’s “Face the Nation,” Vance also addressed the issue of temporary protected status when asked by host Margaret Brennan if he would work to secure federal assistance for Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.

“The most important thing we can do to help Governor DeWine and the entire state of Ohio, and frankly, the entire country, Margaret, is to stop Kamala Harris’ open border. And for two years, I’ve been fighting for policies that do exactly that. You have to ask yourself, why have these 20,000 Haitian immigrants been abandoned in a small town in Ohio in just a few short years, Margaret?” Vance said.

“And the answer is that Kamala Harris put in place what’s called a temporary protective order for over 100,000 Haitian immigrants. She basically waved a magic wand and granted amnesty to thousands of people who shouldn’t have been in this country, and now one small town in Ohio is dealing with the consequences,” the senator continued. “And for anyone listening, Margaret, this is what Kamala Harris wants to do to every city in this country. Overwhelm them with migration, stress their municipal budgets, see communicable diseases rise. What’s happening in Springfield will reach every city and town in this country if Kamala Harris’ open border policies are allowed to continue. We have to stop this. American citizens are suffering because of what she’s done.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source of the original article: Vance criticizes Harris’ approach of calling Springfield, Ohio residents ‘racists’ instead of ‘removing her open border’