Diehl declares Liz’s ancestry not a target
Massachusetts U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s claims of Cherokee Indian ancestry remain a question hanging over her political career — and a frequent target for President Trump — but don’t expect Republican state Rep. Geoff Diehl to make it a punch line in his campaign.
Diehl, in an interview on the “Battenfeld” show on Boston Herald Radio, said while he’s “concerned” about Warren’s use of her purported Native American background, he won’t be pushing it on the stump like Trump.
“She has plenty of other things that look to be sort of hypocritical,” said Diehl, a Republican state representative from Whitman who officially launched his 2018 U.S. Senate campaign a week ago.
“I don’t think I have to bring it up,” he added. “Most people seem to know what happened with that situation.”
While some Republicans may not like to hear that from Diehl, it’s probably a smart move. Focusing on the Native American issue didn’t help former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown in his race against Warren, and may have even played against him. Warren got to claim that Brown was attacking her “family” — even though he clearly wasn’t — and running a negative campaign.
And it’s highly likely that Republican super PACs targeting Warren will be weighing in on the Cherokee question, so Diehl himself can stay out of the fray.
Diehl responded to questions about Warren’s heritage on the “Battenfeld” show, but didn’t raise the issue himself.
“I think some people remain concerned about it,” Diehl said about Warren claiming minority status while seeking law school positions.
“The problem people have with that is they feel she probably sort of stretched the margins there of the ethics of taking on what is considered to be a minority hire,” he said.
Whether Diehl will stick with the plan to focus on issues other than Warren’s heritage remains unknown. It’s easy during the heat of a debate to bring up the dirt.
But Diehl’s reluctance to use the issue against Warren right now is a stark contrast from Trump, who seems to relish mocking the Massachusetts senator, calling her “Pocahontas.”
Diehl was co-chairman of Trump’s campaign in Massachusetts, and remains supportive of the president. It’s a role that most likely would become the chief attacking point for Warren’s campaign, should Diehl become the nominee.
Diehl bristles at being characterized as a Trump clone, but says he still “believes in his core message.”
During yesterday’s interview, Diehl also stood by Trump’s threat to cut off some federal funding for cities or states that become “sanctuaries” for illegal immigrants. Even if Diehl was a U.S. senator, he said he wouldn’t work to stop Trump from cutting federal law enforcement funds from Massachusetts if it becomes a “sanctuary” state.
“If you’re not going to do the job of law enforcement in protecting citizens, then yeah, I think that’s a tool that should be on the table,” Diehl said.
Other Republicans who have announced or are considering a race for U.S. Senate include: businessman and philanthropist John Kingston, former Mitt Romney aide Beth Lindstrom, and Shiva Ayyadurai.