Strategy: Is This the Real Reason Trump and Vance Are Telling the Cats and Dogs Lies?

During his presidential debate on Tuesday, September 10, with Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, Donald Trump promoted the debunked conspiracy theory that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are kidnapping and eating residents’ cats and dogs.

Bomb threats followed the debate in Springfield, and Haitians living in the area fear for their safety.

However, Trump and his running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), have refused to apologize for promoting a debunked lie and have once again blamed Harris for the tensions in Ohio — which journalist Marc A. Caputo, in a biting article published by the conservative website The Bulwark on Sept. 15, described as a blatant example of Trump and Vance’s “cynical” campaign strategy.

READ MORE: Trump Has ‘Reached His Final Destination’ and ‘He Knows He’s Going Down’: George Conway

“Donald Trump’s campaign is not unhappy about being widely condemned for spreading the urban legend about Haitian migrants eating cats and dogs in Springfield, Ohio,” Caputo explained. “If the national media is talking about immigration, they’re winning, they reason. The mastermind behind the cynical, xenophobic strategy, Trump’s running mate J.D. Vance, acknowledged in interviews with Sunday’s show that he had spread the unsubstantiated pet-eating rumors to force a conversation about the downsides of Vice President Kamala Harris’ immigration policies.”

During a September 15 appearance on CNN, Vance told host Dana Bash, “If I have to create stories so that the American media will actually pay attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what I’m going to do. Because you’re giving Kamala Harris complete freedom.”

Caputo notes that the Ohio senator’s appearances on CNN, NBC News and CBS News “highlight the tightrope act Vance is performing as Trump’s chief deputy.”

A Trump adviser, who reportedly asked not to be named, said the Ohio controversy is helping Trump’s campaign by shifting attention from immigration to abortion.

READ MORE: Trump’s hate is no joke

The adviser argued: “If we talk about abortion, we lose. If we talk about immigration, we win… We will take the hit to prove the bigger point.”

READ MORE: ‘The smallest man who ever lived’: Trump criticized over ‘dangerous’ Taylor Swift post

Read the full article by Marc A. Caputo for The Bulwark via this link.