“I don’t like those comments,” Ohio GOP Sen. JD Vance told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” Sunday when asked about comments made by far-right activist Laura Loomer about Vice President Kamala Harris earlier this week.
Loomer was widely criticized by Republicans and Democrats earlier this week for tweeting that if Harris wins the presidency, the White House will “smell like curry and White House speeches will be facilitated through a call center.”
“What Laura said about Kamala Harris is not what we should be focusing on. We should be focusing on the politics and the issues,” Vance, a running mate of former President Donald Trump, told moderator Kristen Welker.
After Welker fielded questions about whether the comments were offensive to Vance and his Indian-American wife, Vance said he “doesn’t look at the internet to be offended by anything.”
The GOP vice presidential candidate added, “I’m cooking chicken curry, [but] “I don’t think it’s offensive for someone to talk about their dietary choices or what they want to do in the White House.”
Trump caught fire This week because of his apparently close relationship with Loomer, an extreme right-winger who traveled with the former president on the campaign trail this week, including Wednesday’s 9/11 commemorations.
There was Loomer in the past advocated conspiracy theories around 9/11. Just this week, he tweeted, “23 years later and so many unanswered questions.”
He also weighed in on conspiracy theories about pop star Taylor Swift and her romance with football player Travis Kelce, calling it “arranged” and saying the relationship was meant to help Democrats win the upcoming election. Loomer also questioned the reality behind mass shootings and wondered if they were staged to help Democrats win votes.
On Friday, Trump he said NBC News “I don’t know much about it. No, no,” when asked if Loomer was familiar with conspiracy theories.
He added: “I know he’s a big fan of the campaign, but I really don’t know.”
Later that day, in a post on TruthSocial, he said Loomer “doesn’t work for the campaign. He is a private citizen and longtime supporter. “I don’t agree with his statements, but like millions of people who support me, he is tired of watching radical left Marxists and fascists violently attack and smear me.”
Also on Sunday, Vance again defended the baseless conspiracy theory that Haitian immigrants ate pets in Springfield, Ohio, and disputed claims that the claims were baseless.
“I hear you say they’re baseless, but I’m not repeating them because I made them up out of thin air,” Vance said in an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” adding, “I’m repeating them. Because my constituents say such things happen… It is clear that these rumors are out there, because the voters see it with their own eyes.
The senator went on to criticize the “American media” for dismissing her claims, telling moderator Kristen Welker, “I trust my constituents more than the American media, which didn’t care about what happened in Springfield until they started sharing cat memes on the internet.”
The debunked claim involving Haitian immigrants was thrust into the national spotlight Tuesday night after the Ohio senator’s social media posts prompted Trump to invoke the conspiracy theory on the debate stage in Philadelphia.
“In Springfield, [Ohio]they eat dogs. People entering. They eat cats. They eat food – they eat the pets of the people who live there. And this is what is happening in our country. It’s a shame,” Trump said, referring to the pre-existing lie circulated online in right-wing circles and also distributed by Loomer.
Still, as the week wore on, Trump and Vance doubled down on the conspiracy theory, leading some Haitians in Springfield. fearing for their lives.
On Friday, Vance tweeted that “massive increases in infectious disease, rent prices, car insurance rates and crime” had hit Springfield, adding, “Don’t let the biased media shame you into not discussing this slow-moving humanitarian crisis in small Ohio town.”
In a tweet later that day, he added: “Nothing justifies violence or the threat of violence against Springfield or its residents. We condemn both of them.”
Officials in Springfield and Ohio GOP Gov. Mike DeWine have pushed back on claims that everyone in the city eats pets.
“Mayor of the municipality [Rob] “No, there’s no truth in that,” says Rue of Springfield. They have no proof of this. So I think we’re going with what the mayor said. He knows his town,” DeWine told CBS News last weekadded, “It’s something that comes up on the internet, and the internet can be pretty crazy sometimes.”