MSNBC’s Morning Joe crew began laughing hysterically on Thursday as Wall Street Journal reporter Valerie Bauerlein recounted her investigation into a missing cat police report used by the Trump campaign as evidence of its Haitian cat-eating conspiracy theory—only to discover that the missing pet, Miss Sassy, was found safe in her owner’s basement.
In a report published Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal detailed how the bizarre rumors engulfed the city of Springfield in Ohio and how the Trump campaign pushed the story to attack political opponents, with former President Donald Trump repeating the line at the ABC-hosted presidential debate, despite having being told by city officials that the claims were untrue. As the misinformation spread, the city has faced bomb threats, causing evacuations and school closures.
In reply to a request for evidence for its repeated claims, an aide of Republican running mate Senator JD Vance (R-OH) forwarded a police report made by a local resident of Springfield who suspected that her Haitian neighbors had kidnapped her pet.
On Morning Joe, Bauerlein recounted the story of her on the ground reporting, visiting the woman who made the police report.
The journalist explained to host Willie Geist how the woman answered her door wearing a MAGA hat and a T-shirt featuring Trump. The woman apologetically explained that the report had been a misunderstanding, that she’d apologized to her Haitian neighbors, and that Miss Sassy had been found alive and well downstairs.
At the mention of Miss Sassy, however, the Morning Joe team laughed. Bauerlein admirably maintained composure and continued to tell her story throughout.
Co-host Joe Scarborough concluded: “All because Miss Sassy was in the basement and not eaten by Haitian immigrants. Literally, literally, that started it. And Donald Trump and JD Vance are centering their campaign, the final stretch of their campaign, on a lie about a cat that got downstairs. Great reporting.”
Watch above on MSNBC.
