Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine on Sunday denounced claims promoted by former President Donald Trump that Haitian immigrants are eating dogs and cats in Springfield, Ohio, calling them "hurtful" and "not helpful."
"There's a lot of garbage on the internet and this is a piece of garbage that was simply not true, there's no evidence of this at all," DeWine told ABC's "This Week." "These are positive influences on our community in Springfield and any comment about that otherwise I think is hurtful and is not helpful to the city of Springfield and the people of Springfield."
DeWine noted that there is no evidence of the claims spread by Trump, his running mate and Ohio Sen. JD Vance, and others, adding that the mayor of Springfield and the city's police chief have both said there is no evidence of any truth to them.
Related: Wittenberg University cancels events Sunday at Springfield campus in latest Haitian threats
Trump raised the rumors, which had surfaced on social media, in last week's presidential debate with Vice President Kamala Harris. Since then, there have been threats against the Haitian immigrants in the city.
The Ohio governor said the influx of immigrants in Springfield has posed challenges to the city, including taking a toll on resources, but the migrants have also contributed to the local community and economy.
"Springfield is a good city, they are good people, they are welcoming people. We have challenges everyday we are working on those challenges," said DeWine, who splits his time living in the governor's mansion in the Columbus suburb of Bexley and his family's home near Cedarville , about 14 miles south of Springfield.
"What we know is that the Haitians in Springfield are legal. They came to Springfield to work. Ohio is on the move and Springfield has really made a great resurgence with a lot of companies coming in," he added.
More: JD Vance shares social media post about immigrants cooking pets in Dayton, city refutes it
Despite DeWine's firm denouncement of the rumors, he previously said in a March interview with CNN's Dana Bash that he'd still support the Republican nominee in the November election , even after avoiding to endorse Trump.
“I’ve always said that I will support the Republican nominee. I’m a Republican,” DeWine said in the interview. “But my focus this year is going to be on a lot of local races. And it’s going to be particularly focused on the United States Senate.”
Gov. DeWine's connection to Haiti
DeWine's connection to the Caribbean country dates back nearly 27 years.
In 1998, he and his wife Fran began their support of Becky DeWine School in Haiti, which was named in honor of his daughter that died in a car crash in 1993. She was a 22-year-old recent graduate of Wooster College and had planned a career in journalism.
The school was situated in Cite Soleil, one of the worst slums in the Haiti capital of Port Au Prince, and was closed down temporarily in March due to increasing gang violence, DeWine said in a post on X.
The school was run by a charity that the DeWines long supported and the couple even visited the school in 2013 to help congratulate the first graduating class.
In an interview with CBS on Wednesday, DeWine said he and Fran have been to Haiti "a number of times."
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Gov. Mike DeWine shoots down rumor of Springfield migrants, calls it 'piece of garbage'
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