Arizona GOP puts up 12 billboards spreading baseless rumor of Haitians eating pets in Ohio

Tuesday's first and, so far, only scheduled presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump had a little bit of everything. But perhaps no issue created a bigger buzz than the Republican candidate doubling down on the baseless claim that Haitian immigrants are eating pets in Ohio, a claim that has been emphatically debunked to the point that even VP candidate JD Vance was forced to backtrack on the initial remarks that triggered the outcry.

According to The Springfield News-Sun, the rumor went viral after a post on a local Facebook group in which someone "claimed that their neighbor's daughter's friend" discovered her missing cat being carved up at a Haitian neighbor's home. The post claimed no firsthand knowledge of the incident.

Nevertheless, the rumor has kept on spreading like wildfire, as confirmed by a new series of billboards launched by The Arizona Republican Party on the day of the debate. The campaign, which includes 12 billboards across the Phoenix metro area, depicts kittens in cow costumes with the slogan "Eat less kittens, vote Republican!". The billboards coincide with former President Trump's visit to Tucson on Thursday.

The AZGOP said in a press statement Tuesday morning that it put up the billboards "due to recent shocking reports from Ohio where Haitian migrants have been allegedly caught eating house pets, ducks and other animals off the streets", according to Axios. The party also said the ad were meant to call attention upon the "urgent need for border security and the dangers of unchecked illegal immigration."

Support for the billboards inside the state's party was not, however, unanimous. Former Arizona GOP chair Robert Graham called the billboards a "complete waste of money":

"When you're in election time you're trying to inspire people to vote for your candidate, not make them solve a puzzle. Republicans have a healthy message, or could have — it's jobs, opportunity, prosperity, safety. We believe Republican governing principles are the best. We don't need to put cow suits on the words."