The first document that publicly identifies Sen. Elizabeth Warren as a Native American surfaced through an open records request this week, and the senator's apology for self-identifying herself as an American Indian continues.
The Washington Post reported the senator said she was sorry for the long-time identification reaching back more than 20 years. As Sen. Warren now prepares to make an announcement for a 2020 presidential bid, she openly regretted any harm it may have caused.
"I can't go back," Warren told The Post. "But I am sorry for furthering confusion on tribal sovereignty and tribal citizenship and harm that resulted."
Warren has long faced scrutiny over her claims as being a Native American, and has been mocked by President Donald Trump, who has often referred to her as "Pocahontas."
The Washington Post filed an open records request to the State Bar of Texas for a copy of Warren's registration card. The results showed a card that was filled out by hand, listing her race as "American Indian."
Warren apologized, but then took it further. The senator said she intends her apology to extend to Harvard University, The University of Pennsylvania and the Association of American Law Schools directory, to which she informed them all of a Native American heritage.
"I am also sorry for not being more mindful about this decades ago," a CNN report indicated Monday.
A Boston Globe report shows that Warren taught classes at Harvard under the assumption she was Native American while the school attempted to "diversify the law faculty," according to The Globe.
Warren declared last Saturday that she would run for president in 2020, and the president wasted no time throwing another jab at the senator.
"Today Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to by me as Pocahontas, joined the race for President," Trump tweeted. "Will she run as our first Native American presidential candidate, or has she decided that after 32 years, this is not playing so well anymore? See you on the campaign TRAIL, Liz!"
His statement set off social media. Many read the president's statement as a reference to the infamous Trail of Tears, a 19th-century event in which thousands of Native Americans died during relocation from the Southeast United States to Oklahoma under the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Many died from hunger, disease and exposure before ever reaching Oklahoma.
Warren took a DNA test last year that proved she was Native American dating back anywhere from six to 10 generations, and she later made a private apology to a member of the Cherokee Nation on the report, according to The Post.
The Texas State Bar ID card was neatly handwritten in blue ink, with Warren's credentials stating she went to the University of Houston and then juris doctorate from Rutgers Law School. The date of the card is April 11, 1986.
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