Donald Trump's lawyer Tuesday acknowledged that a campaign TV spot showing people crossing a border en masse were from Morocco and not Mexico but defended the Republican presidential front-runner's stance against illegal immigration.
"I'm going to have a conversation with whoever made the mistake, no doubt about that," Michael Cohen, executive vice president for the Trump Organization and the developer's special counsel, told Chris Cuomo on CNN. He was referring to the campaign staffer who used the incorrect footage.
"Whoever the person is, I'm sure I'll be sending them a letter very soon on behalf of Mr. Trump.
"The bottom line is, it's the same thing," he added. "It's Morocco, Mexico — the people are pouring into this country. We don't know who they are.
"Donald Trump is about national security, about protecting you and me and everybody else out there. That's why he's resonating with the people."
In Trump's first television campaign ad, released on Monday, dozens of people are shown swarming over a border fence. While the ad suggests that the migrants are from Mexico, they actually are from Melilla, a small Spanish enclave on the mainland of Morocco.
Cohen said that regardless of the error, the broader issue was stopping illegal immigration.
"What's the difference? In all reality, right?" he asked. "The point is they're coming through. The truth is people are pouring through our borders which are open. Donald Trump's the guy who brought that to the forefront.
"Now, everybody is talking about it," Cohen said. "Do you remember from the first debate how they attacked him, they continued to attack him? You can't do that. It's not American.
"No, no, it is American," he added. "That's our laws. We are a land of laws."
However, Cohen later walked back his comments in an email to
Politico.
"I wasn't aware of the question as stated, knew little about the ad or campaign strategy — but after connecting with the Trump campaign, I understand it was done that way to demonstrate that the United States has become a dumping ground for other countries who are continually taking advantage of us.
"I do not speak for Mr. Trump or the campaign," Cohen said.
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