Marjorie Taylor Greene and Mike Collins make bizarre case for Trump over Peanut the Squirrel’s death

ATLANTA, GEORGIA: In one of the more unusual campaign strategies we’ve seen of late, Republican leaders turned a recent rally into a passionate defense of squirrels, raccoons, and all things small and furry.

With warnings of “socialistic” control and “woke” government, Georgia Reps Marjorie Taylor Greene and Mike Collins went all out to rally behind former president Donald Trump by pointing to the tragic fate of Peanut the Squirrel.

Reps Marjorie Taylor Greene and Mike Collins sound alarm bells

"Trump's running against a socialistic, big government control everything about you woke regime," Mike Collins told the crowd at a campaign rally at Macon, Georgia. "This thing's gotten so bad that they're killing the pets, they're killing the squirrels, they're killing the raccoons."

Greene, of course, had more “evidence". She told supporters, "Democrats in New York City went in and raided a home to kill a squirrel," adding, "They did — to kill a squirrel."

It wasn’t in New York City per se, but a small town called Pine City where state wildlife officials recently confiscated Peanut the Squirrel, CBS News reported.

The whole saga began over concerns that keeping wild animals as pets could pose some health risks—rabies, for one. Still, this story clearly took on a life of its own at the rally, where “the squirrel raid” became a symbol of government overreach.

Peanut the Squirrel

If you haven’t heard of Peanut, let’s catch you up. Peanut was a social media celebrity with a solid following thanks to his adorable antics and his owner, Mark Longo. But on October 30, state wildlife officials seized Peanut (and his buddy, a raccoon named Fred) after concerns were raised about the legality and safety of keeping them as pets.

Both animals were euthanized after Peanut allegedly bit a wildlife officer, and the state deemed them a rabies risk. Longo was heartbroken and took to Instagram to voice his frustration, calling Peanut his “best friend” and slamming officials.

Now Longo’s supporters have rallied around him, with the hashtag #JusticeForPeanut making the rounds and a GoFundMe campaign raising a whopping $140,000 to support Longo’s P’Nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary. The embattled owner says he’ll be taking legal action, vowing to get justice for Peanut.

Ohio Senator JD Vance chimed in from a rally in North Carolina, insisting that Trump himself was “fired up” about the situation. Vance argued that the government cares more about taking away pet squirrels than tackling immigration issues.

"The same government that doesn't care about hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrant criminals coming into our country, doesn't want us to have pets," the Ohio senator told the crowd. "It's the craziest thing."

Sarah Huckabee Sanders also seeks justice for Peanut the Squirrel

Marjorie Taylor Greene and Mike Collins were not alone in making their case. Arkansas Gov Sarah Huckabee Sanders also joined the rally, despite having a complicated history with animals herself.

Earlier this year, Sanders faced backlash in Arkansas when a sudden chicken farm closure left millions of birds at risk of starvation. Farmers were in desperate need of financial support, but Sanders’ administration reportedly opted to euthanize more than a million birds by smothering them with foam.

Locals described the sight as “horrible,” and one state senator went as far as to call it “the most communist thing I’ve ever seen," Raw Story reported.

For Sanders’ critics, the move was no different than the cold, overbearing government that Greene and Collins were railing against. On the other hand, Republicans have maintained that whether it’s chickens, squirrels, or even raccoons, the “woke” regime doesn’t care about your animals.

If it seems odd that animals would be part of an election debate, this isn’t the first time. A couple of months ago, Vance and Trump pushed a bizarre claim that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were eating local pets, sparking outrage and disbelief. The story was ultimately debunked, according to Axios.