Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D) dug into Sen. Scott Brown on Thursday evening, criticizing the Republican for using his opponent Elizabeth Warren's claims of Native American heritage against her in campaign ads.
During an interview with WCVB in Boston, Patrick was asked if he thought the ads are a good campaign strategy for Brown.
"Senator Brown has turned into a Bay State birther, for goodness' sake," Patrick said, referring to individuals who believe President Obama was born outside the United States. "And it doesn't have anything to do with solutions to help the people of Massachusetts."
The ads in question, launched by Brown's campaign last week, feature news clips on Warren listing herself as a minority while teaching at the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University.
Brown also attacked Warren over the issue during the first debate between the two candidates.
"Professor Warren claimed that she's a Native American and a person of color, and she's not," Brown said. "But the fact is she checked a box."
Warren, who says her mother told her of her Native American heritage when she was a child, maintains that she has received no professional benefits based on her background.
"My Native American heritage is part of who I am, I’m proud of it and I have been open about it," she told the Boston Globe in May.
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