Donald Trump's lawyer on birth certificate controversy: No one doubts where Trump was born

Donald Trump, speaks at the Conservative Political Action conference (CPAC), on February 10, 2011 in Washington, DC.

/ Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Updated 1:40 p.m. Eastern Time

Donald Trump, who says he is "seriously" considering a run for the Republican presidential nomination, yesterday released what he said was his birth certificate. Trump has been questioning whether President Obama was born in the United States, and he released the document to prove a point.

"It took me one hour to get my birth certificate. It's inconceivable that after four years of questioning, the president still hasn't produced his birth certificate," he said.

As it turns out, however, the document released by Trump was not actually an official New York birth certificate, but rather a document generated by the hospital where Trump's mother gave birth. The situation prompted commentators to sarcastically offer birther-style questions about whether Trump was born in the United States.

"Trump's mother, it should be noted, was born in Scotland, which is not part of the United States," wrote Politico's Ben Smith. "His plane is registered in the Bahamas, also a foreign country. This fact pattern -- along with the wave of new questions surrounding what he claims is a birth certificate -- raises serious doubts about his eligibility to serve as President of the United States."

Hotsheet reached Trump lawyer and advisor Michael Cohen, who is on vacation in Italy, for a response. Cohen said it was obvious that Trump has released "something that his parents had given him years and years ago and he obviously just had it put away."

"I don't think anyone's going to question whether Donald Trump is or was not born in New York," Cohen said. He went on to say that there are hospitals named after the Trump family in New York, yet the only hospitals named after Mr. Obama are in Ghana.

"It's a little bit odd," he said.

Asked whether Trump needed to release his official birth certificate, Cohen pointed out that Trump is "not yet" the president. He said Trump could produce an official birth certificate if necessary.

"If he is asked to produce a raised seal New York City Department of Health birth certificate, I'm pretty sure he can have one in as quick a period of time as you can go down and get it," said Cohen.

UPDATE: A Trump staffer today released what he says is Trump's actual birth certificate to ABC News.

Cohen insisted that Trump is "not part of this birther movement, he's just an individual that is questioning."

"What he is is a person who demands transparency, which is what the president's platform was all about when he decided to run," Cohen said, adding: "If you want to kill the comments, and you want to stop the chitter chatter about it, just show your birth certificate."

Birthers' claims have been widely disproved. The Obama campaign released a copy of Mr. Obama's certificate of live birth during the presidential campaign, and it has been verified by independent journalists. There are also a pair of birth announcements in Hawaiian newspapers from when the president was born. (Trump's camp maintains that a certificate of live birth is not tantamount to a birth certificate, even though the state of Hawaii considers them the same thing.)

Trump says he will formally announce whether he is running for president by June.

"There are many more issues of consequence that Mr. Trump will be talking about if he elects to run in June, issues that are more important to this country's future," said Cohen.

[san850]

READ THIS: http://factcheck.org/2011/04/donald-youre-fired/

It doesn't matter what Trump's opinion is...he's just another of the GOP crackpots on parade...he has ZERO chances of becoming President, especially after spewing his "birther" nonsense. He's nothing more than a narcissistic publicity hound who has had one extravagant failure after another.

These birthers must really have a problem recognizing facts and truth....or perhaps just choose not to because of their unbridled hatred for our President.

[san850]

If the crackpot birthers would bother to do their research vs. believing every spoof email they receive on the issue of President Obama's birth certificate, they could arrive at the truth...but they prefer lies and embellishment over truth.

Anyone can go to factcheck.org and type in "Obama birth certificate" and find numerous articles debunking/disproving these wild birth certificate theories. Factcheck.org is a highly trusted, nonpartisan organization which has been proven to be fair in their research and reporting.

Many of the false emails began circulating as April Fool's spoofs and have taken on a life of their own since 2008. Unfortunately, because of the birthers' unbridled hatred for our President, they are very quick to perpetuate these lies by spreading them around like manure. And, unfortunately, there are so many gullible folks who can't think for themselves that believe this manure.

[mikelpond]

I doubt that Trump was born in this country and I'm a citizen and a voter. I also doubt that Trumps lawyer was born in this country.

mike

[san850]

...and I doubt that the animal on his head came from this country.

[san850]

by troopf4 March 31, 2011 9:27 AM EDT
......."Tell me why Obama would spend, to date, $996,000.00 on lawyer's fees to fight lawsuits asking that he produce his long form birth certificate...."
=============================
This statement has been proven false many times.
There's no evidence that Obama has spent anywhere near a million on the citizenship issue. There are only 2 sources that even mention specific amounts of legal fees.

One source was an email spoof, since disproven but frequently cited and re-circulated on the internet, the other is an FEC filing from the campaign where all the bills were attributed to the BC issue. None of the cases have made it to the point where significant legal fees were accumulated. Instead, they get thrown out because of the plaintiff's lack of standing, filing in the wrong court, filing paperwork wrong, or have been judged frivolous.

He also hasn't spent anything preventing the records from being accessed. Everyone has the same rights to privacy in this country, and personal info can't be released to just anyone who asks for it.

Obama has shown his proof of birth in Hawaii, in the form that Hawaii currently issues those documents. Officials in Hawaii have confirmed that the information is correct, and that Obama was born in Hawaii. A birth certificate (or any other name for proof of birth) is merely a document that says that the real information is located and held by the state government.

These despicable lies take on a life of their own and the Obama haters are very quick to perpetuate them...and even believe them because they "read it on the internet". The birthers are just showing their ignorance of fact.

[thesevenveils]

Where is was born is not the issue. Its What was he born from? I've read enough science fiction to recognize a humanoid from the subterranean depths. His hair, speech pattern, the pouty lip thing he does and his mannerisms, especially with his not knowing what to do with his arms and hands, clearly identifies him as a mole-man.

[skepticalJM]

God, this is the kind of candidates we have in America these days; this proves just how low America has sunk; the lame, the feeble and the brain dead are our brave New World leaders...LOL!

[trueblueusa]

Trump
Makes NO News,...
Because it will Not make a difference where he born,..
No One cares about him,..
He`s just another ReCon Clown
The Three-Ring Circus
Newt,PaLin,Trumped

[taylorsucram]

ALL BIRTHERS ARE RACISTS, PERIOD! No one has ever asked a politician for his Birth Certificate until a Black Man (well, half-black) was elected President of these United States. Their hope and desire and wish is that a Black Man cannot be President because he wasn't born in this country, therefore the "WHITE" sanctity of the highest office in the land is preserved. These idiots will come up with one excuse or reason after another no matter what evidence is provided. Heck, they'll say they were forgeries!

[chrisdjax]

This is inaccurate.If you research there was some controversy over John McCain's birth certificate because it was from Panama when his father was in the military. I disagree that it is a racial issue at all. I'm not a "birther" however the President has always had the power to easily dispel this and he seems reluctant to do so. That breeds questions in the minds of people who given the same scenario would just produce the long form birth certificate which probably cost $15. Any amount of money he spent on attorneys answer these court claims has easily eclipsed what it would have cost in money and effort to just produce the document. That's what makes no sense.

[morris2196]

My question regarding birth is if Trump was born a jerk or became that way later in life.

[taylorsucram]

It was between his first and second wife when the doctors noticed "jerkitis" in his blood.

[wiser5606]

i doubt where he and his lawyer were born