Republicans amplify Trump’s false claims about immigrants as father of boy killed by Haitian driver asks them to stop – live | US elections 2024

Robert Tait

Donald Trump’s campaign was in damage control mode on Wednesday amid widespread dismay among supporters over a presidential debate performance that saw Kamala Harris repeatedly goad him into going wildly off-message and missing apparent opportunities to tackle her on policy.

Even with Trump insisting to have won the debate “by a lot”, Republicans were virtually unanimous that Trump had come off second best in a series of exchanges that saw the vice-president deliberately bait him on his weak points while he responded with visible anger.

“Let’s make no mistake. Trump had a bad night,” the Fox News analyst Brit Hume said immediately after the debate. “We just heard so many of the old grievances that we all know aren’t winners politically.”

“She was exquisitely well prepared, she laid traps and he chased every rabbit down every hole instead of talking about the things that he should have been talking about,” Chris Christie, the former Republican governor of New Jersey who helped Trump prepare for his 2016 debates with Hillary Clinton, told ABC.

“Trump was unfocused and poorly prepared,” agreed Guy Benson, editor of the conservative website Townhall on X . “[Harris] basically accomplished exactly what she wanted to here. I suspect the polls about the debate will show that she won it.”

Congressional Republicans voiced disappointment over Trump’s inability to discipline himself and press home key policy issues. “I’m just sad,” one House Republican told the Hill. “She knew exactly where to cut to get under his skin. Just overall disappointing that he isn’t being more composed like the first debate. The road just got very narrow. This is not good.”

Frank Luntz, a veteran pollster who has worked for Republican campaigns, told CNBC Donald Trump was in a good position at the start of last night’s debate, but the former president effectively “lost” by focusing on topics voters aren’t interested in – like the unproven story of migrants eating pets in Ohio.

Luntz argued that Trump missed opportunities to sway voters by talking about the issues where he’s strongest, such as inflation, though he also did not believe Kamala Harris won the face-off.

Here’s the full interview:

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris’s campaigns continue to look for an advantage over the other after last night’s debate, which may be the only such event before the election. While Harris’s team says she would be happy to duke it out with the former president again, Trump said he would be “less inclined” to do so. Surprisingly, the candidates crossed paths at a ceremony in New York City to commemorate 9/11, where they shook hands. Meanwhile, Trump’s surrogates are being asked about their unproven claims that Haitian immigrants are eating pets in an Ohio town, with his running mate JD Vance insisting that the story is true. Separately, a father from the town whose son’s death in a car crash has been seized on by conservatives to argue that immigrants are dangerous has called for them to stop using the tragedy for “political gain”.

Here’s what else has happened so far today:

• Arizona Republicans have paid for a billboard in Phoenix that attempts to win over voters by referencing the pet eating claim.

• Inflation was a major topic at last night’s debate, but the latest government data shows price growth slowing to levels last seen at the start of Joe Biden’s term.

• Trump said pop superstar Taylor Swift will “pay the price” for endorsing Harris after the debate last night.

After the debate last night, NBC News asked JD Vance, the Ohio senator who is running alongside Donald Trump, why he kept insisting that Haitian immigrants were eating pets in an Ohio town, despite local officials’ insistence to the contrary.

In response, the senator said he had heard from his constituents that the story was true, and cast doubt on the Springfield, Ohio, town manager’s refutation of the claim. Here’s that moment, from NBC:

Republicans nationwide are leaning into the baseless claim that Haitian migrants in an Ohio town are eating pets, with Arizona GOP buying a billboard in Phoenix that references the conspiracy theory:

Over the past few days, conservatives have fixated on the town of Springfield, Ohio, which is home to a large number of Haitian migrants who they have baselessly claimed pose a danger to the community.

Immigration is a major topic of this election, but in this case, the claims have veered into the outlandish, with Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance, alleging that the Haitians have been eating people’s pets.

Town authorities have said there is no proof of that happening, but a tragedy did occur in the town last year, involving a Haitian driver who caused a car accident that killed an 11-year-old boy, Aiden Clark. Republicans have used his death to bolster their claims against the immigrant community, something his father, Nathan Clark, condemned publicly at a city commission meeting yesterday, the Springfield News-Sun reports.

“I wish that my son, Aiden Clark, was killed by a 60-year-old white man. I bet you never thought anyone would say something so blunt, but if that guy killed my 11-year-old son, the incessant group of hate-spewing people would leave us alone,” Clark said during an open forum at the meeting.

Here’s more:

On Tuesday, Nathan Clark denounced multiple Republican politicians, including vice presidential candidate and U.S. Sen. JD Vance, former President Donald Trump and U.S. Senate candidate Bernie Moreno for statements that Clark said “used his death for political gain.”

“This needs to stop now. They can vomit all the hate they want about illegal immigrants, the border crisis and even untrue claims about fluffy pets being ravaged and eaten by community members,” Clark said. “However, they are not allowed nor have they ever been allowed, to mention Aiden Clark from Springfield, Ohio. I will listen to them one more time to hear their apologies.”

There are an estimated 12,000 to 15,000 Haitian immigrants living in Springfield now according to data from the Clark County Combined Health District and other partners, Springfield Mayor Rob Rue said at a press conference earlier Tuesday.

Clark said Aiden was not murdered but killed by accident. He said the community is still deeply affected by the accident.

“This tragedy is still all over this community, the state and even the nation, but don’t spin this towards hate,” Clark said. “In order to live like Aiden, you need to accept everyone, choose to shine, make the difference, lead the way and be the inspiration. What many people in this community and state and nation are doing is the opposite of what we should be doing. Sure we have our problems here in Springfield and in the U.S., but does Aiden Clark have anything to do with that?”

The November presidential election will probably be decided by voters in seven states where polls show a close race between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris: North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, Arizona, Georgia and Nevada.

And if you happen to vote in one of those states, we want to hear your thoughts on last night’s debate between the two candidates. Fill out our survey here:

At his debate with Kamala Harris last night, Donald Trump took pains to mention inflation, which rose to levels not seen since the 1980s as the US economy recovered from the Covid-19 pandemic over the past three years.

All signs point to prices for consumer goods being a potent political issue, but economically speaking, they’re on the decline – US government data released this morning shows that the inflation rate has receded to where it was when Biden took office.

Here’s more on that, from the Guardian’s Callum Jones:

1. Trump repeatedly spewed misinformation: Throughout the debate Trump spread misinformation to make his points, repeating already debunked rhetoric on everything from the results of the 2020 election to his involvement in Project 2025 – a conservative-backed plan to change the US government from the inside out.

The former president distanced himself from the January 6 attack on the Capitol, saying he was there only to make a speech, and blamed the then House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, for not beefing up security. He also incorrectly said crime rates had risen in the US when they have in fact fallen.

2. … and was frequently fact-checked by the moderators: ABC’s moderators, David Muir and Linsey Davis, were largely praised for delivering a strong performance. They effectively rerouted discussions back to the questions they had asked on key topics including the economy, immigration, abortion rights and the peaceful transfer of power, and made important clarifying fact-check statements when they were warranted.

3. Harris defended Democrats’ position on reproductive rights: When challenged on his changing take on access to abortion care, Trump made some alarming – and easily refuted – claims that Democrats supported executing babies after they are born. He also took credit for overturning of Roe v Wade, a decision made by the supreme court after he appointed three members to make a 6-3 conservative majority, that was unpopular with the majority of Americans. Trump did clarify his position, though, that he believes in exceptions for rape, incest and threats to the mother’s life.

Harris called his stances “insulting to the women of America”, and countered his statements that he delivered on a promise to bring the issue back to the states by saying “the people of American have voted for freedom”. She highlighted the difficult realities faced by women in states with abortion bans and would-be mothers who would struggle to access IVF care.

4. The candidates both touted their work to improve the economy: Harris was quick to tout her “opportunity economy”, a plan that includes tax reductions for those starting small businesses, relief for new parents and first-time homebuyers, and a crackdown on corporate price-gouging.

Trump, meanwhile, claimed that he oversaw the “best economy”, even with the downturn caused by the Covid pandemic, and accused his opponent of increasing costs on American families. “People can’t go out and buy cereal, or bacon, or anything else,” he said. Inflation did spike under the Biden-Harris administration, but it has fallen just as quickly. As of August, the US inflation rate settled at 2.9%.

5. Trump spouted salacious and sometimes racist claims about immigrants: Throughout the debate, Trump pivoted his talking points to immigration, spouting salacious claims about criminals being welcomed into the country and towns where pets are eaten by incoming immigrants.

While debate moderators attempted to counter the claims, challenging Trump on the validity and also on how he would execute the deportation of millions as he’s promised to do, Harris took the offensive. Highlighting her record as “the only person on the stage who has prosecuted transnational organizations”, she also accused her opponent of calling on the GOP to oppose legislation to bolster the border. “He preferred to run on a problem rather than fixing a problem,” she said.

6. The candidates sparred over Ukraine and how they would handle the war: Harris said that if Trump were currently in office, the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, would have taken Kyiv, saying Putin would “eat you for lunch”. “I believe the reason that Donald Trump says that this war would be over within 24 hours is because he would just give it up,” Harris also said.

When Trump was asked by Muir how he would end the war – and specifically if he wanted Ukraine to win – the former president did not offer a clear answer. “I want the war to stop. I want to save lives that are being lost uselessly. People being killed by the millions,” he said.

7. Harris baited Trump by attacking him where it hurts: As moderators pushed Harris to respond to criticisms she and Biden have faced over border policy, the vice-president expertly derailed her opponent’s rhetoric on what is perhaps his favorite issue to discuss by deriding his performances at rallies.

She invited voters to view the speeches for themselves, saying that attenders can be seen leaving out of exhaustion and boredom, and characterized the events as a platform for Trump’s complaints and not plans that put the American people first.

The jab landed well. An offended and flustered Trump jumped on the chance to defend attendance at his rallies, claiming Harris pays attenders at her own campaign events, and then pivoted to insults that failed to hit their mark. He accused Harris of planning to turn the country into “Venezuela on steroids”, and called the US a “failing nation”, before resurfacing false claims that immigrants were eating people’s pets.

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump shook hands as they attended a memorial service to commemorate the 23rd anniversary of 9/11 in New York City.

Michael Bloomberg, the former New York mayor, appeared to facilitate the handshake between Harris and Trump, according to AP.