Dana Bash Challenges JD Vance on False Claims
This morning, Dana Bash took a strong stance against JD Vance, and it was clear he didn’t like it. He got very upset when she started by quoting the Mayor of Springfield. The Mayor has asked politicians to stop making up stories about Springfield because these stories are putting people in danger. This comes after two local hospitals had to shut down due to bomb threats.
False Claims About Animals
Bash pointed out that there are no reports of animals being harmed according to the local Sheriff’s office. But Vance responded by attacking her for suggesting that he and Trump had incited violence in the community — even though they did.
Unfounded Accusations
In a Sunday interview on CNN’s State of the Union program, Bash noted that local officials “found zero evidence to substantiate” claims that geese were being taken out of parks by Haitian immigrants.
“Also, other evidence that you have talked about, even you’ve retweeted alleged evidence, are unsourced social media videos from a different city, apparently no connection to Haitians,” Bash said.
“So instead of saying things that are wrong and actually causing the hospitals, the schools, the government buildings to be evacuated because of bomb threats, because of the cats and dogs thing, why not actually be constructive in helping to better integrate them into the community?” the CNN host asked.
Vance’s Defensive Response
Vance said the question was “frankly disgusting” and “more appropriate for a democratic propagandist than it is for an American journalist.” He insisted that nothing he said caused the bomb threats in Springfield.
“Senator, this happened after you and President Trump were on the debate stage, said that cats and dogs were being eaten,” Bash pointed out. “After that, they were threatened.”
“You just accused me of inciting violence against the community when all that I’ve done is surface the complaints of my constituents, people who are suffering because of Kamala Harris’s policies,” Vance opined. “Are we not allowed to talk about these problems because some psychopaths are threatening violence?”
Legal Status of Haitian Immigrants
Vance then tried to “fact check” Bash because she said Haitians were in Springfield legally.
“They’re in the country through what’s called temporary protective status,” Bash observed.
Yes, the Haitians are here legally. This is when Vance doubled-down and claimed this isn’t a legal status — merely a loophole that they’ve been granted.
“That is when Kamala Harris waved a magic amnesty wand, taking people and giving them legal status,” Vance complained. “That is not to say that they’re here legally.”
“There are policy disagreements all the time, but the fact is that it is the law,” Bash said. “You were the one who brought this up. The [former] president said it to 60 million people.”
“Dana, would you like to ask me questions and then let me answer them, or would you like to debate me on these topics?” Vance shot back.
“I’m happy to be here to talk about policy, but if you’re going to interrupt me every single time that I open my mouth, then why am I even doing this?” he added.
Local Officials Dispute Vance’s Claims
Yeah, so the Sheriff, the Mayor, and the Governor all say that none of this is happening. But JD Vance still claims “it’s true” because some MAGA supporters called his office and said so. Would he be willing to have them come on the air and tell their stories? That wasn’t made clear.
Other reports indicate that this entire conspiracy theory was cooked up by a pack of White supremacists in Springfield known as the “Blood Tribe.”
Trump Administration’s Role
But one other thing came up about this. Biden and Harris didn’t put those migrants there — the Trump Administration granted them TPS following the Haitian Earthquake in 2017.
President Donald Trump’s administration has extended an immigration designation that benefits about 50,000 Haitians in the United States.
Trump’s Department of Homeland Security will extend the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) offered to Haitian nationals as a result of the 7 magnitude earthquake that devastated the Caribbean nation on Jan. 12, 2010.
Haiti’s current TPS was designated through July 22, 2017.
On May 22, DHS Secretary John Kelly announced he would extend the designation for six more months, from July 23, 2017, through Jan. 22, 2018. Whether TPS will be extended once again in 2018 is uncertain.
So, they aren’t there because of “Harris open border policy” they’re there because of Trump.
Trump did rescind his TPS status in 2019, but not all the migrants had left before the status was renewed and extended by Biden in the wake of the civil collapse and chaos in that country.
Biden Administration’s Actions
The Biden administration is expanding a humanitarian program to allow an estimated 309,000 Haitians in the United States to stay and legally work.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced Friday he is renewing and redesignating Haiti for temporary protected status (TPS).
Under TPS, foreign nationals from a designated country are protected from deportation and allowed to work in the U.S. while the designation remains in place.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a statement that Mayorkas designated Haiti on June 3, extending the nation’s TPS for the maximum 18-month period.
The TPS renewal covers the nearly 165,000 Haitians covered by the previous renewal and redesignation in December of 2022, plus an estimated 309,000 Haitians who had set up residence in the U.S. by June 3 of this year.
Reportedly the Haitian migrants living in Springfield started arriving in 2018.
Trump has since blasted the CBP One Asylum app for “smuggling illegals” — which that app was introduced by his Administration in October of 2020.
Inflation Reduction Act Misconceptions
Oh and JD also said this:
Also, Vance blamed the Inflation Reduction Act — and Kamala being the tie-breaking vote on that — for the high rate of inflation. That bill passed and was signed in 2022, Inflation was already as high as 9% before that time. How did it raise inflation before it existed?
Pennsylvania Governor’s Response
Immediately after talking to Vance, Dana next talked to Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro — who gave her an earful.
Given a chance to respond to the Vance interview, Shapiro paused and then offered, “I mean, Dana, that was bonkers.
“Listen, the [Republican] governor of Ohio, the mayor of that town in Ohio, have said this is all made up. These are all lies, there’s no truth to it,” he continued. “And the United States senator from Ohio just came on your show and blamed his own constituents for his own lies? This guy is so pathetic.”
“But the thing is, it is dangerous,” he continued. “There is a causal connection between the BS that J.D Vance and Donald Trump spew and the safety and security of the American people. When they go out and they lie about this stuff they put their fellow Americans at risk.”
“J.D. Vance should be ashamed of himself, he knows better,” he added. “I mean, this guy, whether he’s on your show or he’s in some sports bar where I mean, by the way, a total pick me in that sports bar the other day. he just doesn’t understand the power of his words, the power of his lies, and those lies are putting and people at risk. This is dangerous stuff,” he told the host. “I know it started because they wanted to just distract the American people from their failed policies and they’re chaos. But this has now taken on a life of its own because of what they incited and people’s lives are at risk because of J.D. Vance. This guy should know better, it’s shameful what he did.”
Yeah, ok. I think our work is done here.
