New Dem lawmaker slams Gaetz for using the term ‘Sacagawea’ to attack Warren

Freshman Rep. Deb Haaland (D-N.M.), who this week became one of the first two Native American women sworn into Congress, said it was “offensive and hurtful” for Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to call Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) “Sacagawea.”

Haaland slammed Gaetz for making the comparison to Sacagawea, the Lemhi Shoshone woman who helped the Lewis and Clark expedition. 

{mosads}“Sacagawea made great sacrifices that changed American history,” Haaland said. “When anyone speaks her name, it should be with great respect.”

Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna tribe in New Mexico, called Gaetz’s comments “offensive and hurtful.”

“I invite him to meet [with] me so I can share how such comments are a continuing assault on indigenous people,” she added.

Sacagawea made great sacrifices that changed American history. When anyone speaks her name, it should be with great respect. @RepMattGaetz‘s comments are offensive & hurtful. I invite him to meet w/ me so I can share how such comments are a continuing assault on indigenous people https://t.co/LsSN54Wj5M

— Congresswoman Deb Haaland (@RepDebHaaland) January 5, 2019

In response, the Florida Republican asked if Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) could be invited as well.

“We’re going to go in and impeach the mothef—er,” the freshman Democrat told supporters, referring to President Trump.

“She seems to have a sophisticated understanding of non-offensive language,” Gaetz said in a tweet.

I always enjoy conversations with new colleagues. Can we invite @RashidaTlaib too? She seems to have a sophisticated understanding of non-offensive language. https://t.co/JbWaM3Aw6d

— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) January 5, 2019

The Hill has reached out to Gaetz’s office about Haaland’s invitation.

Gaetz made the remark about Warren and her claims of Native American heritage during a Fox News segment Friday.

“I know the president likes to call her ‘Pocahontas,’ but now that she’s making her way from the eastern seaboard into the center of the country, maybe Sacagawea would be more appropriate,” Gaetz said. “Instead of bringing Lewis and Clark, she is bringing the most liberal policies of the Democratic Party.”

Warren, who announced her plans to form an exploratory committee to run for president, was the first prominent Democrat to enter the 2020 race.

She has long claimed to have Native American heritage and released the results of a DNA test in October which showed she had “strong evidence” of ancestry.

Haaland commended Warren for sharing the results, saying she acknowledged her Native ancestry as “testament to who we are as Americans.”

“The oppression that Native people have experienced over the course of our history caused many Native American families to deny their heritage, language, and culture, and I understand why this was the case with her family,” Haaland said in a statement.

Trump and his Republican base has not ceased his attacks on Warren, frequently using the nickname “Pocahontas.”

Gaetz defended his use of a nickname when Fox News host Melissa Francis pushed back, saying “half the world screams at you that you have made a racial slur.”

“I am simply saying that this is someone who misrepresented her heritage,” Gaetz, an outspoken Trump supporter, said. “She wanted to be forward-leaning on this element of her own biography that wasn’t accurate. It’s not about her heritage, it’s about trustworthiness.”

–This report was updated on Jan. 6 at 10:38 a.m.