During some remarks at a New York Historical Society gala at the Mandarin Oriental Friday, Hillary Clinton “venture[d] a guess” that the servers and cooks at the hotel were illegal immigrants. The hotel was apparently not too pleased when the comment made headlines. Now the Mandarin Oriental has issued an official denial of Clinton’s claim.
Mandarin Oriental spokesperson Tammy Peters provided the hotel’s response in an email to The Weekly Standard:
Mandarin Oriental, New York does not knowingly employ illegal and/or undocumented immigrants. We require all employees to provide proof of their eligibility to legally work in the U.S. All wait staff and catering staff are employed through our hotel and we do not use outside contractors for such services.
As TruthRevolt reported earlier this week, during her acceptance speech for the New York Historical Society’s “History Maker” award Clinton lauded the president’s executive order on illegal immigrants as “historic,” and then reminded the audience that this in the end was about “peoples’ lives.” That’s when she ventured her “guess” about the hotel’s catering staff:
"We should all remember … that this is about peoples’ lives. This is about, I would venture to guess, the people who served us tonight, who prepared our food tonight,” and those who perform construction jobs, she said to applause. “These are the lives of people who are, in many instances, longtime residents and workers who have not only raised children, but made contributions."
