Can you believe it . Rachel maddow on bravo. Never thought i would see the day. For all of our colleagues across the networks of nbc news, thanks for staying up late with me. Ill see you at The End of tomorrow. Today started with bomb shell news. Last monday, Jd Vances Team contacted officials in Springfield Ohio to Fact Check claims on haitian immigrants eating pets. Springfield City Manager told vances people pointblank there was no verifyable evidence of immigrants eating pets. The claims were baseless, but still, Jd Vance repeated them online. And the next day, trump used one of the biggest platforms in the world, an american president ial debate, to push the claims again. Claims the campaign knew were lies. The new reporting from the Wall Street Journal should be devastating to the trump campaign. But the stunning thing is they probably wont care. Because trump and Vances Invocation of springfield was never about the truth to begin with. Springfield is less important to them as an Wall Place than actual people and more important to them as a symbol. Look at that, you can see the four states that border springfield, ohio, nevada nevada, maine, and kentucky. The simpsons famously takes place in springfield. Not any particular springfield, but springfield. It is meant to be a stand in for every Town Usa. In the real world, there is a springfield in 34 states. So springfield really could be just about anywhere. Active participation is the basis of good citizenship. Dont you kids realize the habit you forms here at home are the ones you will take with you into your Community Life . You might also know springfield as the setting of the 1950s Sitcom Father knows best. And that springfield is also placeless. It is any Town Usa. The conservative Eisenhower Ideal of an american town with white Picket Fences and white nuclear families with 2. 5 children. This is the springfield that matters to Donald Trump and Jd Vance. The springfield of some retro grade american imagination. A symbol that has nothing to do with the reality of Springfield Ohio. The actual story of Springfield Ohio, first settled by irish immigrants. German immigrants and blacker americans headed north as part of the great migration. The real story of springfield, ohio is a story of immigration and integration. Donald trump and Jd Vance dont want to tell that american story. The story of expansion and growth. They want the tv springfield. Where nothing ever changes and nothing looks the same. Trump and vance want to use the example of that springfield to stoke Fear And Paranoia about change. Specifically that haitian immigrants 15,000 of them are descending on every Town Usa and they are ruining it. Springfield has become a symbol of trump as his Running Mate. A cautionary tale of immigrants and people who dont look like you or speak the same language and what they might do to your america. What matters is way in which springfield can be perverted to make the case that outsiders are poisoning the blood of this country. That they are vermin and they are destroying the country from the inside out. If i have to create stories so The American media pays attention to the suffering of The American people, then thats what im going to do. That is why you will never ever hear Jd Vance or Donald Trump back down from their claim about springfield, ohio. Because to them, springfield isnt really in ohio. It is a symbol of the maga world view. How we need to deport illegal aliens. The majority of the haitians are here legally. My question for you is, if you become the Vice President under a trump administration, what will you guys do about the migrants that are already there . Since they did arrive legally . Well if Kamala Harris waves the wand illegally and says these people are now here legally, im still going to call them an illegal alien. Tonight, Donald Trump held a rally at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island in New York. Long island is an incredibly different community from the actual town of springfield in ohio but the symbolism of Springfield Trump and vance are using works here too. Long island is experiencing demographic change. There are lots of immigrants including haitian immigrants and more recently, there is a large influx of migrants from central and south america. The reality here is Long Island is the product of generation after generation of immigration and by integration. Rather than lean into the reality of americas past, Trump And Vance are using their lies to gen up Fear And Paranoia to bring people to their dark and dystopian vision of americas future. How about in springfield, ohio, they had 32,000, this is a little beautiful town. No crime. No problem. 32,000 illegal immigrants come into the town. So the mayor of springfield and i think he is a very nice person. But instead of saying we are getting them all out, he says simply, we are hiring teachers to teach them english. Can you believe it . We are hiring interpreters so when they go to school and take the place of our children in school, we have an interpreter, each one will have a private interpreter. What the hell is wrong with our country . No. No. We are getting them out of our country. They came in illegally. They are destroying our country. We are getting them out. They will be brought back to the country from which they came. There are not 32,000 illegal immigrants in springfield, ohio. There are about 15,000 legal haitian immigrants. But when trump lies like this, it isnt actually about springfield. It is about his plan for all of america. They are coming from congo, africa, The Middle East, asia, a lot of it coming from asia. And whats happening to our country is we are just destroying the fabric of life in our country. And we are not going to take it any longer. And you got to get rid of these people. Give me a shot. You will have a safe New York within three months. Three months. Trumps campaign was told over a week ago by Springfield City officials that the lies they were spreading were not true. Today, three Grocery Stores in springfield had to be evacuated because of Bomb Threats. That comes on top of the dozens of other Bomb Threats the town has received in the past week. But Donald Trump is still pushing this stuff. And now, The American right has descended upon springfield with proud boys marching in the streets and the Klu Klux Klan Distributing antihaitian flyers. Vivek ramaswamy is headed to springfield for what he is calling a town hall. Trump says hi plans to visit the ohio town. And as much as this story should have ended Last Monday when trumps team was told their claims were lies, well. It seems trumps story of springfield is only just beginning. Joins me now is denise williams, president of the Springfield Ohio chapter of the naacp. Thank you for being here, we are so eager to hear about how you are grappling with all of this. Lets start there. What is life like in springfield right now . Thank you for having me. Its a mess here, i dont know if i can clearly express the issues we have in here. As you said it earlier in your segment, three Grocery Stores had to close. Because of Bomb Threats. Every day, we are waking up to not one bomb threat. Two, three. The schools have been threatened with Bomb Threats. My grandchildren are not safe. It has been a complete and total nightmare here. What does it mean that Donald Trump wants to come to springfield . What does that mean for life in springfield as far as you see it . As far as i see it, ill tell you the truth, alex. It will make things worse. Im begging you for the government to help us with this. He does not need to come here. The simple fact he has had the truth fed time and time again by our City Manager. By our mayor. To no avail. He and his Running Mate are still pushing this false narrative. I dont know what the angle is with this. But we do not need him here right now. He has put us all in danger. Trust me. The entire community. There are reports the proud boys, the blood describe and Neonazi Group marched in the town. We have reports of the Klu Klux Klan Distributing flyers. You are the head of the Naacp Chapter there. What has that been like for people to see the most vicious poisonous wing of the right descend on springfield . Let me say this. Springfield communities are angry. Those who are not, voting for trump and his lies. We are angry. You know, listen. I cannot send my grandson to the High School right now. For fear. And i really dont want my youngest grandson who is six to go. These guys, you have proud boys, you have all of these Hate Groups marching in the streets. And nothing is being done. Nothing is being said about this. I get the free speech thing. But this is a city of love, compassion. This is a city of hope. We dont understand how and why we made the debate stage. Why these Hate Groups feel impowered to come here. And guess what . They are unmasked. They dont care. They dont care about you. So for trump and Jd Vance to not care about the citizens in this city is disgusting and to continue to push to continue for him to push this false narrative is horrible. I cant find words to put into that. I just cant imagine why he. Im sorry to cut you off. Are neighbors having conversations with neighbors . Are you saying to people who might otherwise be Trump Supporters, hey, these are lies and you know as well as i do these are lies. Are these conversations happening on the ground . Yes they are. But, as long as trump is saying it, it doesnt matter. It has fallen on deaf ears. Still. In our community. Those trump voters, they are not willing to hear what the message is. They are believing everything that he is saying. And they are carrying out his hate. I know, ms. Williams, you were around for the Race Riot ins dayton in the 1960s. Yes. And i wonder if you could compare that moment. Can you compare . I was probably 13, 14 at the time. When this happened. It was my cousin that a group of white guys drove by and shot him while he was on the sidewalk. And i remember my parents telling us to pull the shades down and cut the lights out. And then, the aftermath. I could still smell the scent of fire. You can still hear the gunshots. So back then, the kkk and those guys were mad. Right now, they have been emboldened by trump and his people. I can tell you the atmosphere is the same. As a matter of fact, i predicted this back in january, february, march. We are on the brink of something happening. And we are not prepared. Now here we are. The atmosphere is the same. We have to watch where we go. Because we dont know. Is it our neighbors . Thats part of this group. Because now, they are not disguised. They are coming in. And they dont have the face masks on. So, for me, i cant compare it. I can only say the atmosphere feels the same. Because i lived through that. Denise williams, president of the springfield, Ohio Chapter of the naacp. Ms. Williams, we are sending you our best wishes and thoughts and strength for what is just an appalling chapter in american history. Thanks for your time tonight. Thank you so much for having me, alex. God bless. When we come back, it is not just springfield. What america is seeing right now in springfield is just a taste of what is to come if Donald Trump and Jd Vance take the white house. Well have more with Michelle Goldberg and heather mcgee. Ich Goldberg And Heather mcgee. Lets get started. Bill, wheres your mask . I really tried sleeping with it, everybody. Now i sleep with inspire. Inspire . No mask . 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Why choose a mobile network its the easiest call you can make. Built for places youll probably never be. Instead of for where you are most of the time . Xfinity mobile was designed for where you need it most. Xfinity internet customers, ask how to get a free 5g Phone and a second unlimited line free for a year. Shes going to say on the one hand, were going to let in millions of illegal aliens to make your housing costs higher. On the other hand, if you dare complain about it, you are a racist. Kamala harris, i think that is disgraceful. You ought to have respect enough for your own people to enforce their Border Laws and listen to them. Listen to them when they complain about it. Dont pretend they are bad people. We are not bad people for loving this country. Youre a bad person for doing this to the country in the first place. Jd vance spent half of his rally in North Carolina trying to pretend the racist lies he has been spreading about springfield, ohio were actually part of a conversation he has been trying to have about affording housing. To be clear, that was never the case. Up until basically today, the focus of the republican ticket has been on whether haitian migrants are eating cats and dogs. Which is not at all an invitation to a conversation many people would like to have about the Housing Prices in america. It is not clear that Jd Vance wants to talk about affordable housing as much as he would like to propagate lies about black and brown people. Just like his Running Mate. Joining me now is Michelle Goldberg and heather mcgee. Im so eager to talk to you about what is happening here. We spent the last segment of the show talking to someone on the ground in springfield about the absolute fear this community is living in because of these lies Trump And Vance have been spreading. What is stunning to me is the degree to which they are detaching themselves from the truth and openly emigressing the great Replacement Theory that black and brown people are here to destroy the country. It is appalling but not stunning. It has been part of Trumps Strategy i think from the time he came down that elevator. And whats interesting is that even the republicans in springfield, the mayor is a republican. Theres a republican governor. There was a story about a Trump Supporter who at first accused haitians of stealing her cat. Then she found her cat in the basement. And used a Google Translater to go next Door And Apologize to them. So there is a level of decency even among some of the maga types in that area that you are not seeing at all from their leaders. And i think that in a way that they sort of revel in the fact they are not going to be bound by facts. They are not going to be bound by truth. That they can pretend it is fine to make up stories in the service of what they see as a higher truth and to make us all talk about what they want to talk about. I do think heather that they are pretty open about the fact that springfield is a spring board. A metaphor for the change they see in america they want to stop at all costs. Donald trump was in a Rally Tonight in Long Island which is not springfield. But where there is plenty of immigration. And it is abundantly clear that the issue is not haitians but brown people. Lets listen to what trump had to say a few minutes ago in Long Island. They are coming from the congo. They are coming from africa. They are coming from The Middle East. From all over the world. Asia. A lot from asia. And what is happening to our country is we are just destroying the fabric of life in our country. And we are not going to take it any longer and you have to get rid of these people. Give me a shot. Youll have a safe New York within three months. Three months. It shouldnt be surprising but it doesnt make it less chilling, heather. What do all those people have in common . They are the fabric of america. Asian, black people. People of latino heritage. Thats america. And thats not what Donald Trump wants to be america. Whats your reaction . In my book, i write about how this Core Question of who are we as americans, what are we to one another, and who is responsible for the rise in inequality is the fulcrum of our politics. Here is a multimillionaire, maybe billionaire depending on the day. And his Running Mate, a rich Wall Street Guy saying blame the diversifying country. Blame people who come to this country with very little to their name who are doing exactly what for the most of the white people that he is speaking to