# Are there any reasons to reject Graham Platner in Maine (campaign suspended July 8, 2026) **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [March 4, 2026, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179 "2026-03-04T03:50:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 53
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1043 "2026-06-09T03:20:52Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > And you’re calling him a “Nazi sympathizer” on the basis of…? Hanging out with Nazis, amplifying Nazi voices, and putting Nazi symbols ON HIS OWN FLESH. And yes, he knew it was a Nazi symbol. How much does it take, man? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1044 "2026-06-09T03:23:00Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > There is, simply put, zero evidence that Platner is; > > - An open Nazi > - A secret Nazi > - Going to switch parties once elected > - A serial abuser > - A pedophile > - A kidnapper > - A white supremacist > - A Manchin/Fetterman/Sinema type > - A pathological liar Ah you forget- He also cheats on his military disability , he isnt really disabled. He is antisemitic. He trolled the people at that wedding by dancing with his nazi symbol on his chest. He is secretly a Manchurian candidate type, and will turn on the Democrats as soon as elected, a secret MAGA He is also a secret member of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), and is backed by Jacobin a commie 'zine. (Both a Socialist and a Nazi, eh?) The Marines rejected him due to his being a nazi. Platner says there is nothing wrong with his Totenkopf tattoo. He is simultaneously an idiot and a super clever liar. And and he has either mind controlled or blackmailed Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren into endorsing him- not to mention U.S. Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM) U.S. Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) and the AFL-CIO and the United Auto Workers (UAW) Does anyone here think Sanders, Warren, Khanna are idiots? Or secret Nazis? Or maybe, just _maybe_, they know more than the GOP lie machine has generated. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1045 "2026-06-09T03:29:33Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Hanging out with Nazis Cite? > [@RickJay](#): > > amplifying Nazi voices, Cite? > [@RickJay](#): > > and putting Nazi symbols ON HIS OWN FLESH. And yes, he knew it was a Nazi symbol. Cite that he knew that in 2007? > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > concerned about the pretendicide, billionaires, and the Epstein class? Are you not? > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > I’m sure he has opinions on lots of other important issues like usury, the kidnapping of Christian babies to drain their blood, and the injustice of circumcision. So you got nothing but baseless accusations, then. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1046 "2026-06-09T03:45:17Z")
Amplifying Nazi voices? Stew Peters is a Nazi, full stop. And don’t pretend you believe his bullshit about his Nazi tattoo. He knew what his was. Be serious. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1047 "2026-06-09T03:49:44Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > He also cheats on his military disability , he isnt really disabled. The alternative - that he really is too disabled due to PTSD to work for a living - would also seem to be disqualifying for a Senate position, of course. > [@DrDeth](#): > > Does anyone here think Sanders, Warren, Khanna are idiots? I mean, yes, obviously. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1048 "2026-06-09T03:59:30Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Amplifying Nazi voices? Stew Peters is a Nazi, full stop. And? Platner has never “amplified” him. His _campaign staffer_ retweeted a C-Span clip he had posted, not knowing who he was, and deleted it when they realized who he was. Platner never even saw the tweet before it was deleted. Never mind that it makes no sense for him to deliberately retweet a Nazi if he’s trying to _hide_ his true beliefs. This is conspiracy theory level thinking. > **[Graham Platner once again under fire for a now-deleted social media post](https://www.pressherald.com/2026/02/26/graham-platner-under-fire-for-a-now-deleted-social-media-post/)** > > The Democrat's Senate campaign shared a post from a far-right social media personality about Trump's State of the Union address, but deleted it after realizing it 'had been posted by a despicable account.' > [@RickJay](#): > > And don’t pretend you believe his bullshit about his Nazi tattoo. He knew what his was. I’ll ask again; cite? ---
**Author:** ![ZosterSandstorm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e0b2c6/32.png) [@ZosterSandstorm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZosterSandstorm)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1049 "2026-06-09T04:00:55Z")
He was working as a bartender in DC when he was recruited as a candidate. He also claims to personally operate a commercial oyster boat and even got a fawning media profile to comment on his rough manly manual-labor hands. Is he lying about that or is he lying to the VA about being totally disabled and unable to hold any job? It’s got to be one or the other. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1050 "2026-06-09T04:04:36Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > The alternative - that he really is too disabled due to PTSD to work for a living - would also seem to be disqualifying for a Senate position, of course. Please inform - Senator Tammy Duckworth and Rep. Jim Baird (R-IN) who lost his left arm during combat in the Vietnam War, also Dan Crenshaw- lost an eye in combat. Also serving in the past- Bob Dole, Sen. Max Cleland (D-GA):Triple amputee and Vietnam War veteran, and Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI): Lost his right arm during World War II while fighting in Italy. So, these brave veterans, who were wounded and disabled fighting for us, and are perfectly legally serving even while disabled- are all practicing disability fraud. Riiight. > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > He also claims to personally operate a commercial oyster boat and even got a fawning media profile to comment on his rough manly manual-labor hands. Is he lying about that or is he lying to the VA about being totally disabled and unable to hold any job? It’s got to be one or the other. No, it doesnt. You obviously have no idea how a military disability works- even tho this has been explained to you- > **[Can You Work While Receiving VA Disability Benefits?](https://vabenefitslawgroup.com/can-you-work-while-receiving-va-disability-benefits/)** > > Can you work while on VA disability benefits? Learn how employment affects ratings, TDIU, pensions, and SSDI eligibility. > Veterans who receive benefits based on their scheduled rating (0 to 100 percent) usually can work without immediately affecting their disability benefits. Is Tammy Duckworth commiting disability fraud? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1051 "2026-06-09T04:06:42Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I’ll ask again; cite? Well, at one time he did, of course, then he covered it up. Maybe not immediately. ---
**Author:** ![ZosterSandstorm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e0b2c6/32.png) [@ZosterSandstorm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZosterSandstorm)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1052 "2026-06-09T07:42:34Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > No, it doesnt. You obviously have no idea how a military disability works- even tho this has been explained to you- > > [https://vabenefitslawgroup.com/can-you-work-while-receiving-va-disability-benefits/](https://vabenefitslawgroup.com/can-you-work-while-receiving-va-disability-benefits/) > > > Veterans who receive benefits based on their scheduled rating (0 to 100 percent) usually can work without immediately affecting their disability benefits. Nothing on that page supports anything you are claiming in your post, and several points contradict it. > [@DrDeth](#): > > Is Tammy Duckworth commiting disability fraud? Tammy Duckworth applied for a medical waiver to remain in the military for ten years after she lost her legs and has used her position in the Senate to speak out against VA disability fraud and make curtailing it a signature issue. Possibly the worst example you could have picked. In any case, an obvious physical disability like having artificial legs that precludes one from doing certain manual-labor jobs is not the same as claiming that PTSD makes one constitutionally incapable of working at all, especially when considering the ethics of continuing to work (as a bartender) while claiming a second fake job (as an oysterman) for political purposes, or the impact of debilitating mental health conditions on the judgment expected of a U.S. senator, which missing limbs don’t enter into. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1053 "2026-06-09T09:54:28Z")
> [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > Is he lying about that or is he lying to the VA about being totally disabled and unable to hold any job? This is not how VA disability works. You can have a job and still get VA disability benefits if you have a physical or mental health issue caused by your military service. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1054 "2026-06-09T10:09:01Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Well, at one time he did, of course, then he covered it up. Nobody’s denying that he had a totenkopf tattoo. The allegation being made is that he knew what it was when he got it, and that he got it because he was a Nazi (which, since he and his Marine buddies that he was with on that occasion all got matching tattoos, would have to mean that they were all also Secret Nazis™, along with his wife, his Jewish in-laws, and Bernie Sanders), which is impossible to prove unless the person making the claim is a telepath or has personal knowledge of what his state of mind was when he was a drunk 23-year-old. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1055 "2026-06-09T12:21:10Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > The allegation being made is that he knew what it was when he got it The voters didn’t seem to be very concerned about the tattoo meaning he is actually a Nazi, and neither am I, but FWIW to that: > **[Platner’s Fellow Marine Pushes Back on Accuser’s Claim About Their Tattoos](https://zeteo.com/p/platners-fellow-marine-pushes-back)** > > A Marine who got matching tattoos with Platner tells Zeteo ‘we did not purposely get hateful fucking shit… We just got matching skull-and-crossbone tattoos that we thought looked cool.’ That person being someone who > [@Smapti](#): > > has personal knowledge of what his state of mind was when he was a drunk 23-year-old. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1056 "2026-06-09T12:38:20Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Nobody’s denying that he had a totenkopf tattoo. Multiple people in this thread have denied that the tattoo is a Totenkopf. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1057 "2026-06-09T12:38:44Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Nobody’s denying that he had a totenkopf tattoo. You’re denying it. You said there’s no evidence that he’s a Nazi. A totenkopf tattoo is definitely evidence that someone’s a Nazi. Likewise evidence of all of those other things you mentioned, that have been posted repeatedly in this thread. You know what there’s actually no evidence of? There’s no evidence whatsoever that he’s a liberal, or a Democrat, or that he’ll vote with Democrats on any issue at all, including senate leadership. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1058 "2026-06-09T12:52:42Z")
> [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > …the pretendicide… The what? ---
**Author:** ![ZosterSandstorm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e0b2c6/32.png) [@ZosterSandstorm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZosterSandstorm)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1059 "2026-06-09T14:50:00Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > This is not how VA disability works. You can have a job and still get VA disability benefits if you have a physical or mental health issue caused by your military service. As the link above points out, no, you cannot have a full-time job if you are under TDIU status. Platner has repeatedly refused to answer the direct question of whether his 100% disabled rating is a TDIU designation, which of course means that it is. Working full time in his actual job as a bartender would not be allowed under that designation, nor would working as an oysterman, though he doesn’t really work as an oysterman and that’s just a lie his handlers made up to create the fake “working class Mainer” persona. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1060 "2026-06-09T14:52:46Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > > > Is he lying about that or is he lying to the VA about being totally disabled and unable to hold any job? > > This is not how VA disability works. You can have a job and still get VA disability benefits if you have a physical or mental health issue caused by your military service. My father had VA disability, because the VA concluded that WWII gave him heart attacks. He was medical officer at the D-Day landing, trying to patch people back together as they were fished back out of the water or the beach severely wounded, and sometimes failing. They figured out later that he had a heart attack in the middle of this, and kept right on working. He held down a full time job with long hours and walked significant distances at high speeds. Whenever he wasn’t having another heart attack, that is; he had several of them through the rest of his life. His disintegrating circulatory system finally killed him at age 69. And yes he was entitled to that disability; and no you wouldn’t have seen it if you saw him at any time between heart attacks. And yes he was entirely capable of doing his job. This kind of attack doesn’t make me more dubious about Platner. It makes me more dubious about the other attacks. ---
**Author:** ![ZosterSandstorm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e0b2c6/32.png) [@ZosterSandstorm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZosterSandstorm)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1061 "2026-06-09T15:02:05Z")
Great. If your father was claiming a 100% rating and TDIU status while working full-time under the current law, then he was committing benefits fraud, and if your father was claiming a debilitating mental illness then he didn’t belong in the Senate making decisions about American laws, and neither does Graham Platner. If none of those are the case then the comparison to your father is completely irrelevant, except as a ready example as to why VA benefits fraud is so easy and widespread - no one wants to politically risk pissing off the kids of the one “combat hero with a heart problem” who actually exists for every 1000 “dipshits claiming free money under false pretenses” so the wheel keeps on turning. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2026, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1062 "2026-06-09T15:05:19Z")
Or maybe it means that he doesn’t want to answer because it’s private information. VA benefits are private medical information and it’s entirely reasonable to keep that stuff private. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179.md?page=52) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179.md?page=54)