Just days after the Republican nominees for president and vice president promoted and doubled-down on false, debunked and racist claims about immigrants in Springfield, Ohio stealing pet cats and dogs and eating them, that town’s city hall and elementary school were forced to evacuate after a bomb threat targeting multiple locations was received Thursday.

“Due to a bomb threat that was issued to multiple facilities throughout Springfield today, City Hall is closed today,” the City of Springfield wrote in a Facebook post, saying it had “received a bomb threat that has prompted an immediate response from local and regional law enforcement. As a precautionary measure, the building has been evacuated, and authorities are currently conducting a thorough investigation. Our primary concern is the safety and well-being of our employees and residents. We are working to address this situation as swiftly as possible.”

The statement adds the bomb threat came via an email at 8:24 AM that was “sent to multiple agencies and media outlets.”

Just one day ago, City Manager Bryan Heck in a video denounced the rhetoric used in the presidential race, while promoting the city’s growth, which has been improved local businesses say, by the influx of immigrants.

READ MORE: Trump Faces Increasing Calls to Participate in Second Debate

“It is disappointing that some of the narratives surrounding our city has been skewed by misinformation circulating on social media and further amplified by political rhetoric in the current highly-charged presidential election cycle, our Springfield community is making notable progress that contributes to its growing appeal among new residents, including immigrants, Heck said. “This development is underpinned by our city’s diverse and robust industrial base that encompasses the technology, automotive, food production and distribution sectors, the growth in our workforce population has supported the expansion of local businesses, contributing to the stabilization of our local economy.”

Donald Trump’s claims during the debate have sparked countless memes and auto-tuned videos mocking the ex-president.

“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs,” ex-president Donald Trump said at Tuesday night’s debate, a false claim that already had been debunked, including by city officials, as ABC News reports. “The people that came in, they’re eating the cats, they’re eating, they’re eating the pets of the people that live there.”

A City of Springfield spokesperson “told ABC News these claims are false, and that there have been ‘no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals in the immigrant community.'”

“Additionally, there have been no verified instances of immigrants engaging in illegal activities such as squatting or littering in front of residents’ homes,” the spokesperson said. “Furthermore, no reports have been made regarding members of the immigrant community deliberately disrupting traffic.”

After being fact-checked in real-time during Tuesday’s debate, Trump doubled-down.

“I’ve seen people on television,” he insisted. “The people on television say, ‘My dog was taken and used for food.’”

Trump’s Republican running mate U.S. Senator JD Vance, who represents Springfield and the entire state of Ohio, also promoted the false claim, and when confronted, also doubled-down.

“In the last several weeks, my office has received many inquiries from actual residents of Springfield who’ve said their neighbors’ pets or local wildlife were abducted by Haitian migrants,” he wrote on X Tuesday, CNN reported. “It’s possible, of course, that all of these rumors will turn out to be false.”

CNN explained, “The unsubstantiated claims appear to be the result of an unwieldy game of telephone that began as a rumor in a local Facebook group before spiraling to reach the highest echelons of conservative media and the Republican Party. They spread widely on X, whose owner, Elon Musk, has embraced the false rumors and posted several memes that promoted them.”

RELATED: No, Haitian Immigrants Aren’t Eating Cats in Ohio

As for the origin of the racist and false dog and cat-eating migrants trope, New York magazine’s Jonathan Chait calls it a “lie,” that “originated from white-supremacist sites online, which relentlessly promote the idea that non-white immigrants are dirty and dangerous. It quickly worked its way from the far right into mainstream conservative channels. Republicans seemed to think the idea gave them a potent meme.”

Chait says Vance is “an important bridge between the GOP and elements of the radical right that have been activated by Trump,” and “played a key role.”

“Before Vance,” NPR reported, “neo-Nazis helped spread the debunked claims.”

“Reports now show that people have had their pets abducted and eaten by people who shouldn’t be in this country,” Vance had tweeted.

Watch MSNBC’s report on the bomb threats below or at this link.

Springfield, Ohio’s city hall was evacuated this morning due to a bomb threat.

This comes two days after former President Donald Trump boosted the baseless rumor that Haitian immigrants there were “eating the pets of the people that live there.” pic.twitter.com/VnCwYE5Zpy

— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) September 12, 2024

READ MORE: Tim Walz Mocks Anti-LGBTQ Book Bans During HRC Speech

Donald Trump is refusing to commit to a second presidential debate despite a series of polls that found viewers say Vice President Kamala Harris won this week’s debate by a huge margin, but some top Republicans and at least one top Trump benefactor are pushing him to participate in a second round. The Harris campaign immediately called on Trump to do a second debate after Tuesday’s apparent rout.

“I don’t know that I want to do another debate,” Trump told Fox News Wednesday.

“So you don’t know if you want to do another debate – it sounds like you’re a no,” host Steve Doocy responded.

“Well, I’d be less inclined to, because we had a great night. We won the debate,” Trump claimed, contrary to CNN’s flash poll and even top GOP pollster Frank Luntz (video), who predicted Trump’s debate performance will cost him the election.

“We had a terrible a terrible network,” Trump complained. “I think they were terrible. They should be embarrassed. I mean, they kept correcting me, and what I said was largely right, or I hope it was right, but what they said was absolutely wrong.”

READ MORE: JD Vance Dismisses Taylor Swift’s Harris Endorsement: Voters Won’t Be Influenced by ‘Disconnected Billionaire’

How strong was the Vice President’s performance?

“Harris’s margin was bigger than 20 other polls CNN has conducted after [other presidential] debates, dating back to 1984,” The Washington Post reports. “Harris was also deemed the winner of the debate by 31 percent of Trump supporters — similar to the 30 percent of Biden supporters who said Trump won the June 27 debate.”

U.S. Senator Rick Scott (R-FL), a top Trump surrogate facing his own tight re-election race, is urging Trump to go another round, while suggesting he doesn’t have much choice.

“I think it would be an opportunity,” Senator Scott said, The Hill reports. “If I was in Trump’s position, I would.”

U.S. Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) also supports Trump debating Harris again.

READ MORE: MAGA World Threatens to Boycott ABC After Trump’s Disastrous Debate Performance

“I believe we missed a lot of opportunities last night,” Senator Tillis told reporters Wednesday.

“It makes a lot more sense to, instead of talking about cats and dogs, talk about 1.5 million got-aways,” he said, referring to immigrants crossing the border. “That’s a lot more frightening to me, and it’s a real threat.”

Billionaire Elon Musk, a top Trump supporter who co-founded a pro-Trump Super PAC and has a “fast-evolving political friendship” with the ex-president, according to The New York Times, also wants Trump to do another debate.

Responding to a post on his social media platform X announcing the Harris campaign wants a second debate, Musk wrote: “Excellent, a second debate would be great.”

But hours after his Fox News telephone interview Wednesday, Trump compared himself to a prizefighter, claimed he had won the debate and asked, “why would I do a Rematch?”

And Wednesday, Trump falsely told reporters the polls show him winning the debate. He added, “when you win, you don’t necessarily have to do it a second time.”

"Are we going to do rematch? I just don't know, we'll think about it," Donald Trump discusses the possibility of a second debate with Kamala Harris.

"Right now, we have to determine whether or not we even want to do it." pic.twitter.com/hYoHxlvx6h

— NBC Politics (@NBCPolitics) September 11, 2024

Senator JD Vance (R-OH) dismissed Taylor Swift’s endorsement of the Kamala Harris/Tim Walz campaign, saying that it wouldn’t sway voters because they wouldn’t be “influenced by a billionaire celebrity.”

Vance appeared Wednesday afternoon on Fox News’ The Story With Martha MacCallum. MacCallum brought up Swift’s endorsement in her interview with the vice presidential candidate.

“But it was interesting last night, that Taylor Swift gave her endorsement of Harris and and Walz right after [the debate]. She has 283 million followers on Instagram, and I’m sure that someone brought your attention that she signed it ‘Childless Cat Lady.’ This is a phrase that you are going to hear in your in your dreams and your nightmares, probably for many years to come. How do you speak to women voters, who, obviously, care about what she thinks?,” MacCallum said.

READ MORE: Trump Refuses Debate ‘Rematch’, Says Harris ‘Was Beaten Badly’

“Well, look, we admire Taylor Swift’s music. But I don’t think most Americans—whether they like her music, are fans of hers or not—are going to be influenced by a billionaire celebrity, who, I think, is fundamentally disconnected from the interests and the problems of most Americans. Look, when grocery prices go up by 20%, it hurts most Americans. It doesn’t hurt Taylor Swift. When housing prices become unaffordable, it doesn’t affect Taylor Swift or any other billionaire. It does affect middle class Americans all over our country,” Vance replied.

JD Vance on Fox News: We admire Taylor Swift's music, but I don't think most Americans are gonna be influenced by a billionaire celebrity who I think is fundamentally disconnected from the interests and the problems of most Americans pic.twitter.com/h2OqPNvnq9

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 11, 2024

Swift announced her endorsement of the Harris campaign last night shortly after the debate on Instagram. Alongside a photo by Inez & Vinoodh of her cuddling a fluffy cat, she urged fans to research the candidates. She also called out former President Donald Trump and his fans sharing AI-generated pictures appearing to show Swift endorsing him.

“Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site. It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation. It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth,” Swift wrote.

“I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them. I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos. I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades,” she continued.

She did indeed sign the caption “Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady,” in reference to a comment Vance made in 2021 that the country was run by “childless cat ladies” like Harris who “want to make the rest of the country miserable too.” The quote was resurfaced shortly after Vance was named Trump’s running mate. Vance says the remark was “sarcastic” and “willfully misinterpreted” by Democrats, according to The Hill. Harris has two stepchildren.

As for Swift’s net worth, she is indeed a billionaire with $1.1 billion, according to Forbes. The same outlet places Trump’s net worth at $7.5 billion. The majority of that is due to Trump Media, the parent company of Truth Social. However, Trump Media has been losing money recently, causing Trump to fall off Bloomberg’s list of the top 500 wealthiest people.