Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent blasted Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) over her economic record Saturday, accusing her of hypocrisy on inflation and government spending before closing a letter with a handwritten jab at her claims of Native American ancestry.
The letter, first obtained by Fox Business, responded to an Oct. 7 inquiry from Warren about the 10-year Treasury yield and the Trump administration’s efforts to lower borrowing costs. Bessent questioned Warren’s sincerity, pointing to her support for former President Joe Biden’s economic policies.
“It is difficult to treat your concern as sincere. As the federal funds rate climbed from near zero to its highest level in 22 years, with inflation hitting a 40-year high, you were a cheerleader for the Biden Administration’s reckless spending,” Bessent wrote.
Exclusive: FOX Business obtained the response from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to the latest request for information from Senator Elizabeth Warren.
The Senator has sent more than 100 letters to Treasury asking for information in the past 21 months. The Secretary snarky at… pic.twitter.com/uCULskNejK
— Edward Lawrence (@EdwardLawrence) October 10, 2026
He also defended the administration’s tax policies, writing, “While you voted for a $5 trillion tax hike on every day Americans, the Working Families Tax Cuts continue to deliver for families and workers across the country.”
Bessent ended the letter with a handwritten message: “Happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day in advance to you and your family.”
The remark appeared to reference Warren’s controversial claims of Native American ancestry, which have drawn criticism from Republicans for years. President Donald Trump has repeatedly called the Massachusetts Democrat “Pocahontas.”
In 2018, Warren released a DNA analysis that found evidence of a Native American ancestor who likely lived six to 10 generations earlier. The Associated Press reported that the finding suggested between 1/64th and 1/1,024th Native American ancestry, though researchers could not identify a specific tribe.
Bessent’s letter came two days before Columbus Day, which some jurisdictions also observe as Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Trump marked the occasion Friday by highlighting a 13-foot marble statue of Christopher Columbus installed near the White House. The statue is a replica of one toppled by protesters in 2020.
“I resurrected Christopher Columbus,” Trump said. “I put up a statue, beautiful statue of Christopher Columbus, right in front of the main office building, the Eisenhower Building, right across the street. That’s the office building, essentially, for the White House and other very important agencies.”
“He’s back to where he should be,” Trump added.
Bessent also criticized Warren’s frequent correspondence with the Treasury Department. According to Fox Business, the senator has sent more than 100 letters requesting information from the department over the past 21 months.
The Treasury secretary mocked the volume of those inquiries and offered Warren tutorials on foreign exchange and fixed-income markets.
The exchange comes amid a broader dispute between the administration and congressional Democrats over interest rates, federal spending and the cost of borrowing. Warren has pressed Treasury officials over rising yields, while Bessent has defended Trump’s tax policies and blamed the Biden administration’s spending for the inflation that drove borrowing costs higher.
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