Trump lashes out at Warren over DNA test
Trump called on his potential 2020 Democratic challenger to apologize and claimed that even the Cherokee Nation “denies her.”
Warren released the test results Monday in part to push back against Trump’s taunts about her claim of Native American ancestry. The results provide some evidence that a Native American is in her bloodline, though the ancestor probably lived six to 10 generations ago, according to the analysis.
An ancestor six generations removed would make Warren 1/64th Native American while an ancestor as much as 10 generations removed would render the Massachusetts Democrat only 1/1024th Native American, according to Blaine Bettinger, a genealogist and author who specializes in DNA evidence.
Trump, who refers to Warren as “Pocahontas,” seized on the conclusion in a series of tweets Tuesday.
“Pocahontas (the bad version), sometimes referred to as Elizabeth Warren, is getting slammed,” he wrote. “She took a bogus DNA test and it showed that she may be 1/1024, far less than the average American. Now Cherokee Nation denies her, “DNA test is useless.” Even they don’t want her. Phony!”
Cherokee Nation Secretary of State Chuck Hoskin Jr. said Monday that DNA tests are useless in determining tribal citizenship, which is determined by tribal nations. Hoskin accused Warren of “undermining tribal interests with her continued claims of tribal heritage.”
Warren acknowledged in a tweet Monday that DNA and family history have nothing to do with tribal affiliation or citizenship, which is determined by tribal nations. “I respect the distinction, & don’t list myself as Native in the Senate,” she said.
Others questioned Warren’s decision to raise the issue so close to an election in which her party is focused on regaining control of the U.S. House.
“Now that her claims of being of Indian heritage have turned out to be a scam and a lie, Elizabeth Warren should apologize for perpetrating this fraud against the American Public,” Trump said in another tweet that ignored the evidence of her Native American background, however small the percentage.
Trump thanked the Cherokee Nation “for revealing that Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to as Pocahontas, is a complete and total Fraud!”
Hoskin, in his statement, did not refer to Warren as a “fraud.”
Trump also claimed Tuesday that Harvard, where Warren has taught law, called her “a person of color” (amazing con), and would not have taken her otherwise!” There is no evidence Harvard ever publicly described her in that manner.