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The Mitt Romney campaign released a stinging attack ad on chief rival Rick Perry’s immigration policy Friday, featuring a clip of the former president of Mexico applauding the Texas governor for allowing university access to migrants.

Perry has come under fire for his comments during last week’s Republican presidential debate in which he defended granting in-state tuition for illegal immigrants at Texas colleges. “If you say that we should not educate children who have come into our state for no reason other than they’ve been brought there by no fault of their own, I don’t think you have a heart,” Perry said at the Orlando, Fla., debate.

The three-term governor has since backpedaled, saying in an interview with Newsmax earlier this week: "I probably chose a poor word to explain that. For people who don't want their state to be giving tuition to illegal aliens, illegal immigrants, in this country, that's their call, and I respect that. And I was probably, you know, a bit over-passionate in using that word, and it was inappropriate. But it is a state’s sovereign right to decide that issue for themselves. In Texas in 2001, we had 181 members of the legislature -- only four voted against this piece of legislation -- because it wasn’t about immigration, it was about education.”

The Romney Web video, titled “Thank You, Governor Perry,” likens Perry's position to that of President Obama, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. The spot then turns praise from Mexican President Vicente Fox for Perry on its head, featuring video from a 2003 speech by the Mexican leader, in which he says, “I want to publically recognize Governor Perry and the state of Texas for having taken that step forward when you decided to give access to Mexican migrants to universities in Texas. “

The ad pivots to Romney’s “different view,” with video from the Orlando debate, in which the former Massachusetts governor criticized the policy. Four years of college amounts to an "almost $100,000 discount if you are an illegal alien to go to the University of Texas,” Romney said. “If you are a United States citizen from any one of the other 49 states, you have to pay $100,000 more. That doesn't make sense to me.”

Perry campaign spokesman Ray Sullivan described the video to Fox News’ Sean Hannity as close to “crossing the line” and “fundamentally wrong.”

“Perry has done more to secure that border than anyone in the country -- 400 million state dollars, Texas Rangers, boots on the ground, support for local law enforcement,” Sullivan said. “Our law enforcement officers in our state, not the feds, have been shot at across that river. We deal with this issue every day. Fight this issue every day and have a solid plan to secure that border.” 

Earlier this week, the Perry campaign went after Romney for the former governor's record on health care, and edits made to his book about the health insurance bill he signed into law in 2006.