President Donald Trump held an event in the Oval Office Monday honoring Native American code talkers who helped the Allies in World War II, and he quipped about calling Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) "Pocahontas."
Trump was mentioning those Native Americans who lived in North America long before European settlers crossed the Atlantic Ocean before he referenced Warren. The reference caught the attention of Toronto Star's Daniel Dale.
"You were here long before any of us were here," Trump said to attendees. "Although we have a representative in Congress who they say was here a long time ago. They call her Pocahontas."
!!! Trump, at event honouring Native American code talkers, calls Elizabeth Warren "Pocahontas." Full quote:
"You were here long before any of us were here. Although we have a representative in Congress who they say was here a long time ago. They call her Pocahontas."
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) November 27, 2017
Trump is holding this event honouring Native American code talkers, and insulting Warren as "Pocahontas," in front of a portrait of president Andrew Jackson, who signed the Indian Removal Act. pic.twitter.com/UoJpoOsoNC
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) November 27, 2017
Trump also praised his chief of staff John Kelly, telling attendees people refer to him as "the chief."
Trump, at event honouring Native American code talkers, calls John Kelly "the chief."
"He's the general and the chief," he adds.
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) November 27, 2017
Trump has called Warren Pocahontas at various times in the past, a reference to her unsubstantiated claim to Cherokee heritage. Warren's opponent in a 2012 Senate race, Scott Brown, criticized her for making it up to gain an advantage in her academic career.