.WHEN DONALD TRUMP uttered the word "Springfield" thirty three minutes in to the American presidential debate on September 10th, David Muir, the co-moderator, was actually prepped. During that tiny Ohio town, Mr Trump stated, illegal immigrants are "eating the dogs, they are actually consuming the cats, they are actually consuming the pets of individuals who live there". Mr Muir quickly responded that, depending on to Springfield's mayor, there were no credible documents of pet-eating. The former president's claim should have hit numerous customers as strange. But considerable amounts of Mr Trump's supporters were topped for it: the charge possessed been moving around in conservative groups on social media, boosted by Elon Musk, the proprietor of X. How performed the community become at the center of a right-wing conspiracy concept?