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Elizabeth Warren Accused Of 'Playing The Minority Card'

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Massachusetts Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Elizabeth Warren (AP)
Massachusetts Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Elizabeth Warren (AP)

The unearthing of Elizabeth Warren's great-great-great grandmother's century-old marriage certificate has confirmed that she does, in fact, have Native American ancestry. She is 1/32 Cherokee to be exact, to which she comments, "I am very proud of my heritage. These are my family stories."

But to some, 1/32 seems like a bit of a stretch. After learning that Warren listed herself as a "minority professor" in the Association of American Law Schools desk book between 1986 and 1995, critics of the candidate have seized this opportunity to call her credibility and character into question as the Senate race heats up.

Boston Herald columnist Margery Eagan has accused Warren of "grabbing for minority cred without enduring the minority grief". Similarly, Harvard Law School is under fire for having supposedly touted Warren as a "minority hire." Warren has denied using her ancestry to land her position at Harvard, but has not responded directly to accusations of "playing the minority card".

Meanwhile, Republican candidate Scott Brown claims to be staying out of it, telling the press "I'm learning about [the story] as you are, and you've asked a lot of questions, she should answer them."

Warren's campaign is fighting back with a hypocrisy accusation after Brown acknowledged that he takes advantage of President Obama's health care law - which he has openly criticized - to keep his twenty-three year-old daughter on his health insurance.

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This segment aired on May 1, 2012.

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