CNN —

Donald Trump wanted to spend this week attacking one of Democratic rival Kamala Harris’ biggest political vulnerabilities. Instead, he spent most of the week falsely claiming that migrants are eating pets in a small town in Ohio and defending his embrace of a far-right agitator whose presence is causing concern among his allies.

Trump’s repeated parroting of unfounded social media rumors about Haitian migrants in Ohio eating pets stole headlines during a trip West, including stops in Arizona and Nevada, late this week. The promotion of the claims overshadowed a series of speeches aimed at the economy and blaming Harris for border security failures.

Trump, in a news conference in California on Friday, promised “large deportations” from Springfield, Ohio — the town that has become a political flashpoint as Republicans, including Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, spread false claims about Haitian immigrants eating pets.

The city of Springfield notes on its website that approximately 12,000 to 15,000 immigrants live in Clark County, and that Haitian immigrants are there legally as part of a parole program that allows citizens and lawful residents to apply to have their family members from Haiti come to the United States.

He also pointed to a Venezuelan gang in Aurora, Colorado. Continuing to use dehumanizing language to describe undocumented immigrants, Trump said “nests of bad people” are being emptied into the United States.

“It’s like an invasion from...

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