(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) A Democrat lawmaker and the Biden administration have rushed to counter growing allegations that Haitian nationals are targeting pets for consumption in Ohio.
Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., appeared visibly shaken during a congressional hearing as he displayed AI-generated photos of President Donald Trump hugging animals.
The photos were intended as a jest, implying that Trump would protect pets from those accused of targeting them. (More on this below).
Similarly, White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby called the accusations “dangerous” because of their potential incitement to violence, later adding, “It needs to stop.”
“What’s deeply concerning to us is you’ve got now elected officials in the Republican Party pushing yet another conspiracy theory that’s just seeking to divide people based on lies and — let’s be honest — based on an element of racism,” Kirby said, according to several outlets.
Kirby’s remarks followed growing concerns in Springfield, Ohio, that some Haitian nationals may be snatching pets for consumption.
While several media outlets have dismissed the accusations as false, a resident raised the alarm during a public hearing and at least two people have filed police reports citing similar complaints.
This has prompted some Republicans to flood social media with AI-generated photos joking about Trump pledging to protect animals from individuals seeking to eat them.
Swalwell displayed one of the photos shared by the Republican-run X page of the House Judiciary Committee.
“What in the hell is this?” Swalwell said, highlighting the mee. “The chairman tweets ‘Protect our ducks and kittens in Ohio’ because he goes down some crazy rabbit hole, completely debunked that aliens are eating pets? My God. Are you okay, Mr. Chairman?”
The accusations have prompted Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost to take action, aiming to block the Biden-Harris administration from facilitating the entry of illegal aliens into local communities.
In the Dominican Republic, Haiti’s neighboring country, some Haitian nationals have been accused of killing cats for consumption.
A video reported by Noticias SIN, a local news channel, shows neighbors confronting a Haitian man who admitted to killing a cat with a wooden stick to cook it.
In 2023, former Dominican presidential candidate Abel Martínez also accused Haitians of “eating cats and snakes” to save money.
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Unrelated to these allegations, the Biden administration’s current defense of Haitians contrasts sharply with comments made by Biden in 1994 about Haiti.
“If Haiti — a God-awful thing to say — just quietly sunk into the Caribbean, or rose up 300 feet, it wouldn’t matter a whole lot in terms of our interests,” Biden said in response to criticism about not assisting Haiti as much as he did Bosnia.
