Insiders Reveal Full Extent of Damage Elizabeth Warren's DNA Test Caused
Advisers close to Sen. Elizabeth Warren reportedly are concerned that October’s big reveal of her DNA results intended to put the question of her claimed Native American ancestry to rest may have done more harm than good.
The results showed “strong evidence” that the Massachusetts lawmaker had a Native American somewhere in her family tree from six to 10 generations ago.
However, the Associated Press reported the amount was very minimal.
“If Warren’s ancestor were six generations removed, she would be 1/64th Native American. But if her ancestor had been as much as 10 generations removed, that would make the individual a great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandparent and render Warren only 1/1,024th Native American, according to Blaine Bettinger, a genealogist and author who specializes in DNA evidence,” according to the AP.
If it is the latter, that would mean Warren has .098 percent Native American ancestry, giving her a lower percentage than the average European-American, who is made up of .18 percent.
“Advisers close to Ms. Warren say she has privately expressed concern that she may have damaged her relationships to Native American groups and her own standing with activists, particularly those who are racial minorities,” The New York Times reported. “Several outside advisers are even more worried: They say they believe a plan should be made to repair that damage, possibly including a strong statement of apology.”
Warren told reporters on Thursday she felt it was important to be transparent and said she does not regret releasing her DNA results.
“So, I have put it all out, in public, I’ve put out 10 years of tax returns, my hiring records and DNA tests all out there on the internet for anybody to see,” she said, according to Fox News.
The Cherokee Nation rebuked Warren in a statement for trying to claim ancestry in the tribe.
“A DNA test is useless to determine tribal citizenship,” Cherokee Nation Secretary of State Chuck Hoskin Jr. said. “Using a DNA test to lay claim to any connection to the Cherokee Nation or any tribal nation, even vaguely, is inappropriate and wrong.”
In a scathing editorial, Warren’s left-leaning hometown paper, The Boston Globe, called on the lawmaker not to run for president in 2020.
“While Warren is an effective and impactful senator with an important voice nationally, she has become a divisive figure,” the Globe editorial read. “A unifying voice is what the country needs now after the polarizing politics of Donald Trump.”
The paper pointed out a poll in September found people from Massachusetts were more excited about a potential run by the state’s governor, Deval Patrick, who announced this week he would not be running, than Warren.
“Those are warning signs from the voters who know her best,” according to The Globe editorial board.
CNN noted The Globe had urged Warren to run for president in 2016, but now the paper apparently believes her moment has passed.
The Times reported that Warren will likely make her presidential plans known in the next few weeks.
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