BOSTON – Yesterday, the Washington Post obtained a record of Senator Elizabeth Warren’s 1986 registration card for the State Bar of Texas where she identified herself as ‘American Indian.’ This comes a week after she issued a private apology to the Chief of the Cherokee Nation for her failed DNA stunt that backfired and led to hand-wringing among Democrats in the lead-up to her expected presidential campaign.

Warren’s Woes: Her Politically-Motivated Apology Backfires

BOSTON – Yesterday, the Washington Post obtained a record of Senator Elizabeth Warren’s 1986 registration card for the State Bar of Texas where she identified herself as ‘American Indian.’ This comes a week after she issued a private apology to the Chief of the Cherokee Nation for her failed DNA stunt that backfired and led to hand-wringing among Democrats in the lead-up to her expected presidential campaign.

“Her actions clearly confirm that she is incapable of being a leader for the Democratic Party,” said MassGOP Chairman Jim Lyons. “It is discouraging to know that our Senator, who is preparing to formally announce her run for president refuses to provide voters with a straight timeline and honest accounting about claiming an inauthentic heritage to advance her legal and academic career. If she is serious about running for president, Senator Warren must start by answering these questions: What has she claimed about her heritage? When did she claim it? How many of her claims are not authentic?”

Background:

A diverse field of Democratic presidential hopefuls awaits Warren. “The nascent 2020 Democratic field is already the most diverse in history, with two black senators, five women, a gay man and an Asian entrepreneur among the announced or potential candidates.Nonwhite voters have a significant voice in the Democratic primaries. Blacks made up 25 percent of the electorate in the 2016 Democratic primary, according to exit polls. Hispanics made up 7 percent, but that rose to 19 percent in Nevada, a critical early primary state,” (Annie Linskey & Amy Gardner, ‘Elizabeth Warren apologizes for calling herself Native American,’ The Washington Post, 2/5/19).

Warren needs to tell voters who she is.  “A big part of presidential campaigns is introducing yourself to voters who don’t know you. And the best way to do that is to tell them the story of your life — how you came to a place where you believe you are best equipped to represent a nation of more than 300 million people.That back story is hopelessly compromised for Warren now. Every time she talks about growing up or her life before this presidential race, it will dredge up the (ongoing) controversy over why she claimed to be Native American despite very iffy evidence of that claim. She won’t be able to escape it. It will be in every story about her past — and in most voters’ minds when they think about which candidate to support,” (Chris Cillizza, ‘Elizabeth Warren’s Native American problem just got even worse,’ CNN, 2/6/19).