Christie says media distorts Trump’s immigration remarks – Politico

In a private call to Donald Trump supporters, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Trump wasn’t dramatically altering his immigration stance. | Getty

Chris Christie reassured Donald Trump supporters during a private call Thursday that the Republican presidential candidate isn’t dramatically altering his stance on immigration.

Pressed by a Trump supporter to respond to the candidate’s softer recent comments on immigration, Christie suggested the media is exaggerating the nominee’s remarks and that he doesn’t expect Trump to change his position, a person on the call told POLITICO. Christie said Trump plans to give an immigration-focused speech in the coming weeks in which he’ll clarify his position.

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The Republican nominee, who has vowed to build a wall on the Mexican border and to deport 11 million undocumented immigrants, said this week he's open to "softening" immigration laws and that he'd like to "work with" non-criminal undocumented immigrants.

Christie organized the call to brief about 100 Trump supporters on efforts to prepare for the presidential transition should the Manhattan businessman win in November. Christie is leading the transition team with help from longtime confidants Rich Bagger and Bill Palatucci.

Transition aides said on the call that the team is in the process of building out staff with a goal of developing a specific policy agenda for Day One, Day 100 and Day 200 of a Trump administration. The team is also putting together a strategy for the 73-day period between Election Day and the inauguration. In addition, they said they are in the process of identifying potential candidates for the more than 4,000 government positions that would need to be filled by the next administration, according to the person on the call.

Christie said the transition team is forming a 501c4 group to raise money for the transition efforts and encouraged Trump supporters on the call to make the maximum donation of $ 5,000.

A Trump spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.