Trump plans to visit Springfield, Ohio, the site of his baseless claims about Haitian immigrants

Former President Donald Trump plans to visit Springfield, Ohio, "soon," a source familiar with the planning said.

The town has become the center of a national political fight on immigration, with Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, spreading baseless conspiracy theories that Haitian immigrants in Springfield are eating dogs and other pets.

Though the unfounded claims have circulated online in right-wing circles for weeks, they went mainstream last week when Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris met for a debate in Philadelphia.

“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating — they’re eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what’s happening in our country. And it’s a shame,” Trump said on the debate stage.