ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA – AUGUST 28: Republican vice presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) speaks at a rally at trucking company, Team Hardinger on August 28, 2024 in Erie, Pennsylvania. Vance was expected to discuss economic and energy policies.
Sen. JD Vance told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday that “I don’t like those comments” when asked about far-right activist Laura Loomer’s remarks about Vice President Kamala Harris last week.
Loomer drew widespread condemnation from Republicans and Democrats alike last week for posting on social media that the White House “will smell like curry & White House speeches will be facilitated via a call center” if Harris wins the presidential election.
“What Laura said about Kamala Harris is not what we should be focused on. We should be focused on the policy and on the issues,” Vance, former President Donald Trump’s running mate, told moderator Kristen Welker.
After fielding questions from Welker about whether the comments offended Vance and his wife, who is Indian American, the Ohio Republican said he doesn’t “look at the internet for every single thing to get offended by.”
The GOP vice presidential nominee added, “I make a mean chicken curry, [but] I don’t think that it’s insulting for anybody to talk about their dietary preferences or what they want to do in the White House.”
Trump came under fire this week for his seemingly close relationship with Loomer, a far-right activist who traveled with the former president on the campaign trail this week, including to 9/11 memorial services on Wednesday.
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In the past, Loomer has espoused conspiracy theories about 9/11. Just this week, she posted, “23 years later, and there’s still a lot of unanswered questions.”
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She has also given voice to conspiracy theories about pop star Taylor Swift and her romantic relationship with football player Travis Kelce, calling it “arranged” and saying the relationship is meant to help Democrats win the upcoming election. Loomer has also questioned the reality behind mass shootings, wondering whether they’ve been staged to help Democrats win votes.
On Friday, Trump told NBC News, “I don’t know that much about it. No, I don’t,” when asked whether he’s familiar with Loomer’s conspiracy theories.
He added, “I know she’s a big fan of the campaign, but I really don’t know.”
Later that day, in a post on Truth Social, he wrote that Loomer “doesn’t work for the Campaign. She’s a private citizen and longtime supporter. I disagree with the statements she made but, like the many millions of people who support me, she is tired of watching the Radical Left Marxists and Fascists violently attack and smear me.”
Also on Sunday, Vance once again espoused an unfounded conspiracy theory about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, eating pets, disputing claims that the allegations are baseless.
“I hear you saying that they’re baseless, but I’m not repeating them because I invented them out of thin air,” Vance said, adding: “I’m repeating them because my constituents are saying these things are happening. ... Clearly, these rumors are out there because constituents are seeing it with their own eyes.”
The senator continued to blast “the American media” for pushing back against his claims, telling Welker, “I trust my constituents more than I do the American media that has shown no interest in what’s happened in Springfield until we started sharing cat memes on the internet.”
During an interview on CNN later Sunday, Vance echoed his remarks to NBC News and added, "If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people then that’s what I’m going to do." Asked for clarification on what he meant, Vance said "I say that we’re creating a story, meaning we’re creating the American media focusing on it."
The debunked claim about Haitian immigrants entered the national spotlight on Tuesday night when Trump referenced the conspiracy theory on the debate stage in Philadelphia following social media posts from the Ohio senator.
“In Springfield, [Ohio], they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating — they’re eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what’s happening in our country. And it’s a shame,” Trump said, referencing a falsehood that had previously circulated online in right-wing circles and was also spread by Loomer.
Still, as the week continued, Trump and Vance doubled down on the conspiracy theory, leading some Haitian residents in Springfield to fear for their lives.
Vance on Friday posted that “a massive rise in communicable diseases, rent prices, car insurance rates, and crime” was hitting Springfield, adding: “Don’t let biased media shame you into not discussing this slow-moving humanitarian crisis in a small Ohio town.”
In a post later that same day, he added, “Nothing justifies violence or the threat of violence levied against Springfield or its residents. We condemn both.”
Officials in Springfield and Ohio’s GOP Gov. Mike DeWine have forcefully pushed back on claims that anyone in the town is eating pets.
“Mayor [Rob] Rue of Springfield says, ‘No, there’s no truth in that.’ They have no evidence of that at all. So, I think we go with what the mayor says. He knows his city,” DeWine told CBS News last week, adding that “this is something that came up on the internet, and the internet can be quite crazy sometimes."
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