Warren set to announce 2020 bid amid scrutiny of Native ancestry claims

February 8, 2019 11:17 pm

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren is expected to officially kick off her presidential campaign Saturday morning in Lawrence, Massachusetts.

The announcement comes as Warren finds herself back in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. New documents show she listed her race as “American Indian” when registering for the Texas bar in 1986.

Senator Warren apologized on Wednesday, saying “I am not a tribal citizen. I am also sorry for not being more mindful of this decades ago.”

This follows months of criticism, including from President Trump, of how the Senator has spoken about her native ancestry–which DNA testing has shown is extremely limited.

“I think the stereotype of her exploiting her native heritage and identifying herself as hurt her dramatically, and it’s the only reason she’s not the leading candidate,” said Joe Cammarano, a political science professor at Providence College.

Cammarano says Warren should use Saturday’s announcement to put the ancestry issue to rest once and for all.

“The question about the Native American heritage of Senator Warren is perhaps one of the stupidest stories of our decade. It’s a really silly story that she has to find a way to put to bed if she wants to be a serious presidential contender. If she doesn’t, it will ruin her candidacy,” said Cammarano.

Voters I spoke to see the controversy hurting Warren’s bid, but not necessarily ending it.

“It’s definitely potentially troubling, but as a politician the legislation she’s created in the past, I support her as a legislator,” said Aaron Horowitz of Providence.

“It definitely could impact her because I think some people are definitely offended by it,” said Stephanie Briggs of Boston. “I think she still has a shot.”