Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner is facing a political firestorm after his own political director resigned in protest over a flood of offensive Reddit posts targeting white rural Americans, police officers, and sexual assault victims.
Platner’s political director, former state representative Genevieve McDonald, quit Friday, saying his comments “were not known to me when I agreed to join the campaign, and they are not words or values I can stand behind in a candidate.” McDonald added that “while I am empathetic to Graham’s experiences and respect his personal journey and growth, I cannot overlook the volume and nature of his past comments, many of which were made as an adult, not as a young man.”
The posts, unearthed last week, show Platner calling rural white Americans “actually racist and stupid,” labeling “all” police officers “bastards,” and saying he kept guns because he didn’t “trust the fascists to act politely.” He also mocked people wearing “underwear designed to prevent sexual assault,” suggesting they should “take some responsibility for themselves.”
When confronted, Platner tried to minimize the remarks, telling CNN, “That was very much me fucking around the internet. I don’t think any of that is indicative of who I am today, really.”
Democratic National Committee chairman Ken Martin called Platner’s comments “indefensible,” “hurtful,” and “offensive”—but stopped short of declaring them “disqualifying.”
Platner, endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, previously argued that “one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter” after 9/11, raising further concerns about his judgment as he seeks to unseat Republican Sen. Susan Collins.
