How Elizabeth Warren got hired at Harvard

Patrick Howley writing in the Washington Free Beacon lays out the facts of the role played by Elizabeth Warren’s virtually non-existent American Indian heritage in boosting her career as a law professor. In addition to showing how she has been listed as a “minority” faculty member at various law schools where she has taught, Howley makes a strong circumstantial case that given her relatively unimpressive academic and writing background, her claim to being an American Indian was what got her hired as a professor at Harvard Law School in 1995. She is a graduate of Rutgers Law School, the lowest ranked law school alma mater of any current Harvard Law professor, and she has published little, while Harvard is known for placing great emphasis on the writing achievements of its law professors. But she did have one thing going for her:

Harvard was experiencing racial controversy on campus at the time of her hiring. Professor Derrick Bell denounced Harvard Law School for not having a minority female professor on staff, according to reports. Harvard officials also were facing legal consequences from the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination for the university’s perceived lack of faculty diversity.

Will any of this matter to the overwhelmingly Democratic voters of Massachusetts? Why should it? She’s one of them. That’s all that matters. Remember how Harvard re-admitted the younger brother of U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy after a two year suspension for his having a friend take a Spanish exam for him? Anyone else would surely have been expelled from the school for such a grave misdeed. Being a liberal—especially in Massachusetts—means never having to say you’re sorry.

- end of initial entry -

James N. writes:

There have been many humorous tropes arising from the Elizabeth Warren situation, most of them around her supposed Cherokee name, like “Dances With Lies”.

My favorite, which I think is original to Mark Steyn, is “Fauxcahontas”.

James N. writes:

“Will any of this matter to the overwhelmingly Democratic voters of Massachusetts? Why should it? She’s one of them. That’s all that matters”

Actually, no. I predict Scott Brown will win reelection by at least 53-47, if not more.

He owns the votes of single, unenrolled (i.e., “independent”) pro-abortion women who control the outcome of all elections in Massachusetts. He owns them for reasons that they would be embarrassed to admit—he’s a real man, hunky enough to have appeared in a Cosmopolitan centerfold, he knows what he wants and acts like he knows how to get it.

If he could beat Martha Coakley, a leftist with real accomplishments, he will crush Fauxcahontas.

The things we political junkies think are important matter little. Senator Brown has “the touch,” Elizabeth Warren does not. It’s over.

LA replies:

I did not intend my comment as a prediction that Warren would win the election; I meant that her fake minority status would not result in her losing a significant number of the votes of Democrats.

Lois writes:

I was curious about your statement:”Being a liberal means never having to say your sorry.” I’ve often heard Dennis Prager say it. Did you get it from him, or is it in general circulation?

LA replies:

I didn’t know that Prager used it. I came up with it on my own a long time ago. But it was pretty obvious—a play on words of the famous line from Love Story.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at May 12, 2012 08:50 AM | Send