Republican Minnesota Rep. and Majority Whip Tom Emmer sparred with CNN host Kate Bolduan on Monday over the unproven allegations that illegal Haitian migrants are eating pets in Springfield, Ohio.

Republican vice presidential candidate and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance stated on Sunday that he will continue posting memes of Republican nominee Donald Trump saving pets in Springfield in order to continue drawing attention to the migrant crisis. Emmer defended Vance’s remark, accusing Bolduan of wanting to ignore the Biden-Harris administration’s role in the current migrant crisis.

“Listen Kate, if you don’t want to talk about the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, Venezuelan program that was created by Kamala Harris and Joe Biden, that brought tens of thousands of migrants to this country—” Emmer said.

“You can talk about this policy without creating stories,” Bolduan pushed back. “The governor [Mike DeWine] of the state of Ohio calls it a piece of garbage. There are two colleges that are shut down, going remote today because of concerns of the environment it has created around this. Does a digging in on the incorrect, not misinformation story create a problem for you guys down [the] ballot? There is nothing wrong, as we’ve seen in recent politics, with saying ‘I made a mistake, I have an evolving position,’ truly. But digging in on this, when it’s like transparently seems no one locally wants this to continue. Seems [like] a problem for you guys.”

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Emmer accused the “mainstream media” of refusing to address what has caused the migrant crises in U.S. communities, which he argued led to the unproven reports and the cat memes.

“What’s a problem is the mainstream media refuses to report what caused this problem,” Emmer said. “You’ve had thousands of people dropped in this country. By the way, you say it’s technically legal? Then why did they pause it? Because they had so much fraud in the system. The American people need to know that the Biden-Harris administration did, but here, let me finish, Kate.”

“But we talk policy all the time, but this one, just get passed the wrong and then move onto the policy,” Bolduan said.

Emmer then argued the media should talk about the Biden-Harris administration’s alleged lawlessness and Vice President Kamala Harris’ responsibility for allowing thousands of illegal immigrants into the country “improperly.” He referenced the Biden administration’s program known as the Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans (CNHV) to allow “safe and orderly pathways to the U.S.” for over 30,000 nationals from those four countries.

Bolduan repeatedly asked the majority whip if he would publicly denounce the pet claims if they are proven false.

“I take your hope, but will you answer that? Yes or no? … congressman, the inability to answer yes or no on the simple question kind of takes away the heft of wanting to talk about the policy,” Bolduan said.

“Well I’d love it if you talked about the actual policy created by the Biden administration,” Emmer said. “Again, you need to start reporting on what caused this problem.”

Allegations emerged that Haitian migrants are eating cats in Springfield after a viral social media post claimed a migrant hung a dead cat from a branch and carved it up for a meal. The rumors gained further traction when Springfield resident Anthony Harris alleged at a local commission meeting in August that Haitians are beheading and eating ducks located in the local parks.

Police bodycam footage showed 27-year-old Alexis Telia Ferrell eating a cat in front of her neighbors in Canton, Ohio, further sparking rumors that migrants in the state are eating cats and other pets. Authorities arrested her on Aug. 16 for eating the animal “in a residential area in front of multiple people,” according to Fox 12.

Vance said on Tuesday that his senatorial office has received multiple inquiries from Springfield residents indicating that migrants are stealing and eating their neighbors’ pets. The Ohio senator acknowledged that the reports may not be true, but called on the Trump cat memes to continue in order to draw attention to the migrant crisis.

Residents of Springfield told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the surge in migrants in their community has led to an increase in crime, traffic accidents, housing crises and even public sex acts. The residents did not hesitate to blame the Biden-Harris administration for the ongoing crisis.

(Featured Image Media Credit: Screenshot/CNN)