Rue said a visit from any presidential or vice presidential candidate at this time would tax the city’s safety resources, which have been stretched thin by frequent bomb threats. The city is now receiving outside help from the Ohio State Highway Patrol and other agencies like the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF).
“As a visit from the former president will undoubtedly place additional demands on our safety infrastructure, should he choose to change his plans, it would convey a significant message of peace to the city of Springfield,” Rue said.
DeWine repeated comments from earlier this week when he said as governor, he would always welcome a visit from a presidential candidate. He added that he will support the Republican candidates for president, and that if you want to have impact politically, “you need to be inside one political party or the other.”
In response to a question about whether he is hopeful that Trump will stop making baseless claims about Springfield, DeWine said “Well, I hope he does.”
Asked why he hadn’t reached out directly to Trump and told him to stop, DeWine said, because “I didn’t think it would do any good.”
DeWine declined to call Trump’s statements lies, saying that a lie is when someone knowingly says something they know is not true.
“I don’t know what’s inside his head,” DeWine said.
Trump said at a rally Tuesday that he intended to visit Springfield “in the next two weeks.” Of Springfield, he said that it had been a beautiful town with “no crime” but that “32,000 illegal immigrants” had arrived “in a period of a few weeks.”
Rue said he has urged federal leaders to cease rhetoric against Haitian immigrants and to work toward fostering respect and unity.
“Due to the recent spread of misinformation about our dynamic and strong community, I urge everyone — community members, media outlets, public figures alike — to exercise caution and responsibility when sharing information,” Rue said. “Words, when based on false claims, harm not only individual but entire communities like Springfield.”
Rue continued to call attention to what he said are the most important immigration-related challenges facing Springfield, including housing, healthcare, driving safety and school issues.
“We urge our federal government to put politics aside and focus on developing strategies that not only address ... border security but also create a path forward for the millions of immigrants contributing to our economy and the culture. Our community stands ready to support national efforts, but we need our leaders in Washington to provide clear guidance and collaborate to address these complex issues,” Rue said.
DeWine urged everyone to “lower the rhetoric” and the temperature after two weeks of tension.
“The reason that we’ve taken some of these extraordinary threats is so the citizens of Clark County, Haitian, non-Haitian, whoever they are, can in fact live safely,” DeWine said.
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