Trump doubled down on the statement, first shared by his running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), on social media, at his first and likely only debate against Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday evening, adding that he intended to “find” the people he claimed were abusing the animals.

“A lot of towns don’t want to talk about it because they’re so embarrassed by it. 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,” Trump said at the ABC News debate in Philadelphia. “What they have done to our country by allowing these millions and millions of people to come into our country and looking for — it’s happening in the towns all over the United States. And a lot of towns don’t want to talk.”

ABC News debate co-host David Muir responded that the city manager of Springfield has denied the reports that any animals were being “harmed, injured, or abused” by migrants who had arrived there after entering the country.

“Well, I’ve seen people on television; the people on television say, ‘My dog was taken and used for food,'” said Trump. “We’ll find out.”

Billionaire Elon Musk, owner of X, has also shared the claim on his social media outlet.

This an extraordinary testimonial of how illegal immigration affects the lives of American citizens. https://t.co/9KkwZIcVEU

— JD Vance (@JDVance) September 10, 2024

Immigration topped voter concerns in the Republican presidential primary earlier this year and continues to be a major issue in the general election. The number of border crossings has dropped precipitously in recent months, down from a record high in December, but the GOP still believes it can win the election by tying Harris to the spike.

Recent polling indicates that Trump is losing his lead over Harris on the question of who is the better candidate on immigration following her recent shift toward the middle on the issue and a drop in illegal immigration at the southern border.

Harris’s campaign has walked back her previous opposition to the border wall and suggested this summer that she would support some funding despite Biden’s canceling congressionally funded contracts upon taking office in 2021.

However, on Tuesday, an American Civil Liberties Union questionnaire that Harris filled out in 2019 resurfaced, showing her earlier support for reducing immigrant detention by 50%, stopping federal immigration authorities from working with local police, and providing transgender care for illegal immigrants in detention.

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Harris’s spokesman maintained in an interview on Fox News on Tuesday that while her views may have changed, the questionnaire was “not what she is proposing or running on.”

Trump has made a name for himself as the border security candidate since launching his first run for president in June 2015. At the time of his campaign announcement, Trump infamously threatened the Mexican cartels and, during this cycle, has highlighted instances of migrant crime to campaign on the issue.