J.D. Vance Defends His Effort to "Create Stories" About Ohio's Haitians to Promote the Trump Agenda

Toxic propaganda in plain sight

I know I just posted a Sustain What conversation exploring ways to recognize and respond to dangerous propaganda tactics, so apologies for the inbox flow.

But as you likely know by now, I’m convinced that a sustainable information environment is a vital precursor to creating a sustainable environmental and societal environment. And right now things are very broken.

Here’s the fresh development:

Parker Molloy

, who covers media and misinformation through

The Present Age

, just picked up on a remarkable admission to Dana Bash by J.D. Vance on the CNN talk show State of the Union this morning. She pressed Vance to admit the dog- and cat- and geese-eating assertions were fiction. As he’d been doing on social media, he didn’t waffle or dodge; he said unsubstantiated memes and allegations were Team Trump’s way of forcing the major media to focus on “criminal migrants.”

Here’s the key moment via

Aaron Rupar

‘s X thread on the State of the Union segment. (Rupar, who also writes

Public Notice

, does yeoman’s duty deconstructing Team Trump’s media moments and speeches.)

VANCE: The American media totally ignored this stuff until Donald Trump and I started talking about cat memes.

BASH: But it wasn’t just a meme, sir.

VANCE: 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, Dana, because you guys are completely letting Kamala Harris coast. You had one interview with her. You talk about pushing back against me, Dana. You didn't push back against the fact that she cast the deciding vote on the Inflation Reduction Act, which is why a lot of Americans can't afford food and housing. We ought to be talking about public policy.

BASH: You just said that you're creating a story.

VANCE: What's that, Dana?

BASH: You just said that this is a story that you created.

VANCE: Yes.

BASH: So the eating dogs and cats thing is not accurate.

VANCE: We are creating—we are, Dana, it comes from first-hand accounts from my constituents. I say that we're creating a story, meaning we're creating the American media focusing on it. I didn't create 20,000 illegal migrants coming into Springfield thanks to Kamala Harris's policies. Her policies did that, but yes, we created the actual focus that allowed the American media to talk about this story and the suffering caused by Kamala Harris's policies.

Molloy writes:

Vance’s admission is not just an isolated incident of bad behavior. It’s a calculated use of lies to inflame a volatile political situation. This is precisely the kind of tactic Hannah Arendt warned about in The Origins of Totalitarianism: “Mass propaganda discovered that its audience was ready at all times to believe the worst, no matter how absurd.” Vance’s lies fit this mold perfectly. The more outrageous and grotesque the claim — that Haitian immigrants are stealing pets for food — the more effectively it captures attention and stokes fear.

Molloy concludes:

As I’ve written before, the consequences of Vance’s lies should be a permanent stain on his political career. These are not just gaffes or exaggerations. This is propaganda that is putting real people in danger. The media and voters need to take note: JD Vance has shown us exactly who he is, and we should believe him.

Vance’s self-described perfidy comes even as evidence continues to accumulate that there’s no basis to his claims. Read and watch this NBC report: “'It just exploded': Springfield woman claims she never meant to spark false rumors about Haitians.”

Then read this NewsGuard reality check by Sam Howard and Jack Brewster: Triple Hearsay: Original Sources of the Claim that Haitians Eat Pets in Ohio Admit No First-Hand Knowledge.

Accentuate the positive

I haven’t seen nearly enough stories - either in conventional media or social media - going deep on daily life in Springfield and countless other American towns adjusting to large influxes of immigrants. Yes there are big issues, but also wonderful success stories. And of course the vast majority of those arriving and those on the receiving end are seeking better lives in safe caring communities. Here’s one #springfieldstrong example of normalcy hiding behind toxic caricatures.

trustblackwomen_

A post shared by @trustblackwomen_

Pursue “public activation of moral indignation”

I know I’m mostly preaching to the converted here, but if you and I can find ways to converse about decency and reality across a few societal barriers, that might lead to what Renee Hobbs calls “public activation of moral indignation” - the ultimate tonic for hate mongering.

Sadly, as she also said in our chat, this takes time.

Here’s Molloy’s full post:

In a Stunning Admission, J.D. Vance Acknowledges "Creat[ing] Stories" That Fueled Hate in Ohio