(
MyFoxBoston.com) -- Is President Obama quietly urging Senator Elizabeth Warren to run for president?
Senator Warren repeatedly has denied she's running for president.
But now a controversial report in the New York Post suggests the president himself is pushing her to run. It cites "personal animosity" with the Clintons, and concerns they'll undo some of the president's policies.
A spokeswoman for Senator Warren tells FOX 25's political reporter Sharman Sacchetti flatly that "there is no truth to those reports."
But Republican strategist Rob Gray says different.
"I think it's real that some parts of the Obama machine, not necessarily the president himself, do want Elizabeth Warren, somebody new, progressive, energetic, into the race if only to preserve their power in Washington and not let the Clintons back into power," said Gray, owner of Gray Media.
In just over a year in office, senator warren has won over the hearts and minds of the liberal wing of the democratic party.
The report says President Obama believes Warren is the best person to carry on his vision. When FOX 25 political reporter Sharman Sacchetti asked Gray if Warren would dare to challenge Hillary Clinton in a primary, he responded, "I think she would challenge her and I think she is thinking about it."
Democratic strategist Scott Ferson says Warren is smart to deny any interest right now.
"If the tumblers start to fall into place, if Hillary Clinton decides not to run, to be poised to have your name put in speculation is probably not a bad position to be in right now."
He says it's very possible the president believes democrats should have a process that encourages competition. "I'm not sure I ascribe palace intrigue to the president's motivations. But I do think as somebody who was discouraged from running himself, who was told he needed to clear the field for the heir apparent, and I think somebody who truly believes in the democratic process that encouraging people as opposed to discouraging them given that he's still the head of the party, I can see him wanting to do that."
A Bloomberg report out Monday also suggests there's always the possibility that Warren may not run for president and instead be interested in other jobs, such as cabinet posts.
Senator Warren has spent much of her time recently traveling nationally helping Democrats raise money, and she's been promoting her book.
