Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren said Sunday that she changed her mind recently and took a DNA test proving her heritage because Americans’ trust in government is “at an all-time low” and she wanted to help rebuild it by being transparent.
The incumbent Massachusetts senator spoke at her second debate against Republican state Rep. Geoff Diehl in the U.S. Senate race.
She was asked by a moderator why she had said, in March, that no DNA test was needed to prove she had some Native American heritage. She said she ultimately took the test, reporting the result last week that showed a relative six to 10 generations ago was Native American.
Ultimately, she said, she took a DNA test because she believes one way to rebuild trust in government is by posting her full family history online “so anybody can take a look. … I believe one way that we try to rebuild confidence is through transparency.”
Diehl shot back that the issue “is not about Sen. Warren’s ancestry, it’s about integrity in my mind, and I don’t care whether you think you benefited or not from that claim, it’s the fact that you tried to benefit from that claim that I think bothers a lot of people and it’s something you haven’t been able to put to rest since the 2012 campaign,” when she first mentioned having Native American heritage that led President Donald Trump to start mocking her by calling her “Pocahontas.”
He added, “I don’t care what percentage she claims to be Native American; I just care that I’m 100 percent for Massachusetts and will be working for the people of this state.”
Trump’s silent presence dominated the debate, with Diehl saying it’s “obvious” she doesn’t want to be senator, but rather, president. “She’s been campaigning in states that are more important to her than Massachusetts,” he said.
On Sunday, the two candidates also touched on the subjects of climate change, gun safety, health care and racism, with generally opposing views they have exchanged in the past. But a rather surprising topic on which they agreed was the legalization of marijuana, with both supporting the right of states to legalize it.
“I think this is a states’ rights issue,” Diehl said, adding that he is referring to medical and recreational marijuana.
Warren has backed a federal bill that asks the government to cede to a state once it legalizes marijuana.
Warren, 69, is running for her second six-year term in the Senate and is a potential 2020 candidate for president. She has been a frequent critic of Trump.
Diehl, 49, co-chaired Trump’s 2016 Massachusetts presidential campaign.
Independent candidate Shiva Ayyadurai is also on the ballot for the Nov. 6 midterm elections.
The debate, the second between Warren and Diehl in three days, was sponsored by the Western Massachusetts Media Consortium in the studios of WGBY-TV in Springfield and moderated by WGBY’s Carrie Saldo.
I’m not a fan of Warren and I really don’t want Warren, Bernie or Biden running in 2020 but, I’m really pissed off over this DNA thing and the Talking Heads this weekend.
While I agree she shouldn’t have stooped to acknowledge the Giant Baby Man, the fact that all the talking heads were this destroyed her 2020 chances, she needs to hang it up and not run. I can’t help but roll my eyes at the stupidity (and possibly misogyny) involved, Male candidates (especially GOP) have done so much worse and we’re throwing out a female candidate for this?!
I’m a huge fan of Warren, and I feel that she has done this entire thing exactly wrong.
Giving in will never make them see sense, all it will do is show them further weakness.
Turning it into some post hoc “I was doing it for this noble reason!” is just lamely trying to put lipstick on the pig that just gored you.
Obama failed to learn this lesson after eight years. I was kind of hoping that the rest of the Democrats, particularly the smarter ones like Warren, would have learned from Obama’s failure. Apparently not.
I had been leaning toward supporting her for the nomination in 2020. However, the DNA test was a bonehead political move that played into the hands of the enemy. We need to have someone who thinks through their political actions so that they don’t end up with egg on their faces.
She should stop.
Not a fan of Warren’s right now. I was years ago but the shine has pretty much worn off with this episode. That she seems to be explaining her backfired stunt in the most obscure way is really lame.