During , Republican candidate Donald Trump made an unfounded claim that Haitian immigrants in the town of Springfield, Ohio, were eating people's pet cats and dogs.
His debate opponent, , openly laughed at the claim, which was dismissed as false by local authorities. Debate moderator David Muir also pushed back on the claim, acknowledging it had been debunked.
A White House spokesperson has as "filth" and said they were endangering people's lives.
Former US president Donald Trump's claim that immigrants were eating dogs and cats in Springfield, Ohio, brought incredulous laughter from his presidential debate opponent Kamala Harris. Source: Getty / Anadolu
Some Republicans are pointing the finger at Laura Loomer, a conservative activist who aired the theory to her 1.2 million followers on social media platform X just a day earlier.
Donald Trump's perplexing claim
Trump has declared a "monumental victory" over Harris in their first, and likely only, live presidential debate on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning Australian time).
But the former US president is now being widely criticised for promoting several falsehoods — from the economy to immigration and abortion.
Perhaps the most perplexing was his claim illegal immigrants in Springfield are: "eating the dogs, they're eating the cats, they're eating the pets of the people who live there".
The rumour had been circulating on the internet and was promoted by Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance (his post on X has attracted more than 11 million views) and Loomer before Trump repeated it in the debate.
Who is Laura Loomer?
Loomer — a 31-year-old, self-described "investigative journalist" — has recently joined Trump's entourage.
Last year, she shared a video on X that claimed the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001 were an "inside job".
In the video, Loomer claimed the attacks were related to then-US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld's announcement of $2.3 trillion in "lost" government funds on 10 September 2001.
The post misrepresented Rumsfeld's remarks, which were about a challenge in tracking funds due to outdated technology, and the day before September 11 was not the first time the problem had been discussed.
Loomer has since changed her position and told CNN in an interview published on Thursday that the attacks were carried out by "Islamic terrorists".
Loomer is also a promoter of centred on the belief that Trump is fighting the 'deep state'.
Loomer and the former president have made similar ugly and unfounded attacks on Harris in recent months.
Loomer posted an unfounded allegation on X that Harris had worn earphones disguised as earrings during the debate, claims that Trump repeated at a Las Vegas rally on Friday.
In another X post this week, Loomer said the White House "will smell like curry" if Harris — who has Indian heritage — was elected.
Far-right Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene condemned the post as "racist" on Wednesday, in a sign of division among Trump loyalists.
The post followed during a contentious interview at the country's largest annual gathering of Black American journalists in early August.
"She was Indian all the way, and all of a sudden she made a turn and became a Black person," Trump said.
Is Loomer behind the pet-eating lie?
, scrutiny has turned to the speculated role of Loomer.
Given she had shared baseless claims about Haitian migrants on social media, some now believe she parroted the claims while travelling alongside the former president on his private plane to the presidential debate in Philadelphia.
US news website Semafor has since quoted an unnamed person close to the Trump campaign as saying they are "100 per cent" concerned about Loomer's influence on Trump.
In a social media post on Friday, Loomer said the Republicans attacking her were jealous that they were not with Trump on his plane.
Earlier this year, Trump proposed giving Loomer an official role in his campaign, but staffers resisted the idea.
Laura Loomer joined Donald Trump at a New York fire station in lower Manhattan to commemorate September 11, despite promoting a false conspiracy that it was "an inside job". Source: AAP / Matt Rourke
In a statement released on Friday, Trump said he disagreed with some of Loomer's past statements but still welcomed her support. He also clarified that, while Loomer travelled on his plane for much of the week, she doesn't work for his campaign.
Earlier in the day, Trump was asked about Loomer during a press conference at his Southern California golf club.
"She is a strong person, she's got strong opinions," Trump said, calling her a "free spirit".
With additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press.
