'You chose to lead with lies': J.D. Vance called out for spreading 'wildly racist' claim

Donald Trump's vice presidential pick came under fire on Saturday after spreading what observers and analysts called a "lie" about Haitian immigrants.

Sen. JD Vance (R-OH), who has already been criticized for claiming immigrants from Haiti are eating the cats and dogs belonging to local residents in his home state, on Friday stated that his turn from hating Trump to being his running mate stems from problems such as immigration in Springfield, Ohio.

"If you were to ask what caused me to change my tune about President Trump from 2016 to 2020, I could give you a few reasons. But what we're seeing in Springfield really drives it home," Vance said. "Yes, they are here legally because Kamala Harris granted Temporary Protective Status to 100,000 Haitians. But Kamala Harris waving the magic amnesty wand is not a justification for the presence of 20,000 newcomers in Springfield. It is an indictment of her despicable open border."

ALSO READ: 'I want Vance to apologize': We went to Springfield and found community hurt — and divided

On Saturday, journalist Zaid Jilani, who has covered Vance in the past, called him out.

"Springfield was declining for years until they saw an increase in jobs and growth driven by people moving in. That’s means more wealth, healthier budgets, etc.," Jilani said. "Are there no upsides to immigration in your view? What about Usha's parents, should they have stayed in India?"

Vance replied, saying, "Dude, I've always liked you, so maybe this should be a longer conversation. But come on. 'Are there no upsides to immigration?' is a radically different question from 'Should we drop 20,000 people from a radically different culture in a small Ohio town in a matter of a few years?'"

Award-winning journalist Josh Marshall replied, "The best way to show you’re a good faith player on this issue is not to start the conversation by gleefully mainstreaming false and yes wildly racist claims that migrants are stealing and eating people’s pets. You can code switch to your Yale voice, as a friend just put it, to talk [about] Medicaid rolls. But the good faith player ship has very clearly sailed."

Former Trump campaign aide A.J. Delgado also chimed in:

"Hi JD, I was an immigration-skeptic and Trump's #1-fan back when you still had your Trump is Hitler tattoo on your a--. So, don't act like everyone criticizing you thinks everything about immigration is swell. I don't. Of course there are downsides. The problem is, rather than have an honest conversation about those downsides and how to mitigate them (in order to increase upsides), you chose to lead with LIES claiming that 20K people had been 'dropped into Springfield' (a lie -- they ended up there, of their own volition, due to Springfield needing workers bc meth'd-out locals wouldn't cut it)."