# 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:** 70
**Author:** ![ZosterSandstorm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e0b2c6/32.png) [@ZosterSandstorm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZosterSandstorm)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2026, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1383 "2026-06-30T22:09:06Z")
> [@SunUp](#): > > Mmmm… these days, Republicans want to smear Democrats preemptively I see we’ve imported the British definition of “smear” from the Jeremy Corbyn fiasco - “smear” is when you accurately report something a leftist did or said regarding Jews. > [@Thing.Fish](#): > > Well, the “anonymous source” who claims Platner knew for years that the tattoo was a Nazi symbol [turns out to be Lyndsey Fifeld,](https://substack.com/home/post/p-201063355?selection=71313a56-7a1c-4c57-8914-4a13afdc0eea#:~:text=Last%20fall%2C%20I%20received%20a%20tip%20from%20a%20trusted%20Republican%20source%20that%20Republicans%20in%20Washington%20D) the very same person who made unsubstantiated accusations of physical abuse against him in the recent NYT article. Among other bright spots in her resume was being a founder of…you can’t make this shit up…“Ladies for Kavanaugh”, which was instrumental in persuading Collins to vote to confirm the rapist to the Supreme Court. I wonder why Platner was running in the social circles of Republican operatives so deeply that he was dating one, right up until the moment he got recruited as a Democratic candidate. Must be another one of those coincidences. > [@Smapti](#): > > I suspect the overlap between “jarhead oyster farmers from Maine” and “fans of an obscure early 2000s British sketch comedy show” is smaller than you assume. As has been pointed out, Platner is a rich kid who grew up in private schools and on Reddit, and is entirely likely to be aware of the kind of popular culture that the upper class consumes. His oyster business is a fake company whose income comes entirely from selling to members of his own family and is registered entirely as his wife’s. Remember, he’s 100% disabled according to the VA so he can’t admit to actually working on the oyster boat, nor can he claim the income since it would affect his benefit and tax situation. The setup to get free money from his rich parents is a convenient fiction for painting him as a “working class Mainer” when his actual job was hanging around a bar in DC part-time and collecting benefits. Like “I didn’t know it was a Nazi tattoo,” no one here _actually_ believes Platner is a working oysterman, but it’s fun watching you degrade yourselves by being forced to pretend. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2026, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1384 "2026-06-30T22:21:58Z")
> [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > Remember, he’s 100% disabled according to the VA so he can’t admit to actually working on the oyster boat, nor can he claim the income since it would affect his benefit and tax situation. I’m sure you won’t mind providing a citation from the VA stating that a 100% disabled veteran is not allow to be employed, thanks in advance! ---
**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 30, 2026, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1385 "2026-06-30T22:24:03Z")
Bad news for Senator Duckworth if true. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2026, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1386 "2026-06-30T22:34:24Z")
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**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2026, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1387 "2026-06-30T22:38:37Z")
**Moderating:** You’re accusing poster of lying and got pretty insulting with the “degrade yourselves” bit. Don’t attack other posters. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2026, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1388 "2026-06-30T22:38:52Z")
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**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 30, 2026, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1389 "2026-06-30T22:52:16Z")
> [@crowmanyclouds](#): > > I’m sure you won’t mind providing a citation from the VA stating that a 100% disabled veteran is not allow to be employed, thanks in advance! It’s entirely false. There’s nothing illegal or fraudulent about a vet with a 100% disability rating working unless they’ve specifically made the legal claim that they are unable to work. ---
**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 30, 2026, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1390 "2026-06-30T22:54:58Z")
> [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > Platner is a rich kid who grew up in private schools and on Reddit, and is entirely likely to be aware of the kind of popular culture that the upper class consumes So we’ve gone from “everyone knows that Mitchell and Webb sketch” to “Mitchell and Webb is the demesne of the aristocracy”. > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > His oyster business is a fake company whose income comes entirely from selling to members of his own family and is registered entirely as his wife’s. Remember, he’s 100% disabled according to the VA so he can’t admit to actually working on the oyster boat, nor can he claim the income since it would affect his benefit and tax situation. So is it a fake job that only exists on paper or is it proof that he’s not a helpless cripple that can’t provide for himself and is defrauding the federal government by claiming otherwise? It can’t be both. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1391 "2026-07-01T01:58:39Z")
> [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > I wonder why Platner was running in the social circles of Republican operatives so deeply that he was dating one, right up until the moment he got recruited as a Democratic candidate. He dated her for a few months back in 2013, while he was a student. > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > As has been pointed out, Platner is a rich kid > **[This is Graham Platner's net worth](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2026/06/08/politics/elections/maine-senate-race-graham-platner-net-worth/)** > > Graham Platner, whose insurgent Senate campaign has attacked the "billionaire class," has faced questions about his schooling, lineage and wealth. > Khan-Mullins pegs Platner’s net worth around $300,000, more than half of which is tied up in his home, which like other homes here has seen its value grow since COVID. The remainder of his reported wealth comprises the pension of his wife, Amy Gertner, and his oyster farming equipment If that is “rich” then i am Daddy Warbucks. > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > Remember, he’s 100% disabled according to the VA so he can’t admit to actually working on the oyster boat, nor can he claim the income since it would affect his benefit and tax situation. We have debunked this several times- yes, you can work and have a 100% VA disability. And since this is your 41st post here, I know you have read those posts. This is false, completely false, and has been covered in this thread many times. Wiki > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > The setup to get free money from his rich parents is a convenient fiction for painting him as a “working class Mainer” Wikipedia " Platner’s parents separated when he was six.[[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-:28-2)" > [@iiandyiiii](#): > > It’s entirely false. There’s nothing illegal or fraudulent about a vet with a 100% disability rating working unless they’ve specifically made the legal claim that they are unable to work. Right, this bogus claim comes very close to “PTSD is a real disability”. > [@Smapti](#): > > So is it a fake job that only exists on paper or is it proof that he’s not a helpless cripple that can’t provide for himself and is defrauding the federal government by claiming otherwise? It can’t be both. Sure it can, by republican reasoning, like _Schrödinger’s Mexican_, simultaneously being too lazy to work and living off benefits while stealing red blooded Americans jobs. 🙄 ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1392 "2026-07-01T02:28:42Z")
NY Times did a podcast interview with the reporters that did the Platner investigative article. Lyndsey Fifeld was interviewed by consent on tape, and after the article was published contradicted her interview and made new bigger claims. At least in the small shit towns I grew up in, the “wealthy” elite lawyer family was a best upper rural middle class. It’s not hard to “look rich” if the average income is $25k per year and you’re pulling in $100k. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1393 "2026-07-01T02:31:35Z")
> [@China\_Guy](#): > > At least in the small shit towns I grew up in, the “wealthy” elite lawyer family was a best upper rural middle class. It’s not hard to “look rich” if the average income is $25k per year and you’re pulling in $100k. Sure, but a net worth of 300K is not the same as 100K a year income. ---
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1394 "2026-07-01T02:40:58Z")
It’s really obvious to me what the situation is with Platner’s tattoo. He knew it was a Nazi symbol, and he got it because he thought it was badass. Not because he’s a Nazi, not because he is or ever was sympatico with Nazi beliefs. It’s because he thought it was badass, and the reason why he thought it was badass is because, like a lot of Nazi shit, it IS badass. Everyone thinks Nazi shit is badass. They designed it to be badass. They knew what they were doing. They were masters of looking badass. MOST people still would view that iconography as too taboo to commit to your skin. But Graham Platner, as a young, fairly dumb, boozed up, Enlisted, Combat Arms Marine, at that time in his life, decided that the badass nature of the Nazi symbology overrode the taboo nature. The problem is that he can’t just SAY this even though it’s the fucking truth. Because people would clutch their pearls way too much and feign outrageSo he has to play this dumb game of acting like he didn’t know what it was. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1395 "2026-07-01T02:46:53Z")
> [@Lamoral](#): > > It’s really obvious to me what the situation is with Platner’s tattoo. He knew it was a Nazi symbol, and he got it because he thought it was badass. That has been shown to be not true- > **[Why I am skeptical of the NY Times' Platner Investigation](https://andyobrien.substack.com/p/why-i-am-skeptical-of-the-ny-times?selection=71313a56-7a1c-4c57-8914-4a13afdc0eea#:~:text=Last%20fall%2C%20I%20received%20a%20tip%20from%20a%20trusted%20Republican%20source%20that%20Republicans%20in%20Washington%20D)** > > The NY Times' runs with uncorroborated allegations from a right-wing activist > No one else has publicly claimed that Platner knew that the symbol was used by the Nazis. In a statement to the _Times_, Platner “strongly” disputed Fifield’s account of what he knew about the tattoo. He has long claimed that he didn’t know its symbolism when he got it with his Marine buddies in Croatia in 2007. He noted that he had never hidden the tattoo. He frequently went bare chested in photos, including on his businesses’ social media account. He even serenaded his Jewish sister-in-law and her family shirtless at her and his brother’s wedding. He claims he and his friends picked the tattoo off the wall in a tattoo parlor because “marines and skulls and crossbones are a pretty standard military thing.” > > He was also screened for white supremacist tattoos and cleared to serve in the Army National Guard and with Department of Defense contractor Constellis in Afghanistan. He got the tattoo covered up within days of when the tattoo story first broke last October. > > At the time, Marine veteran Phil Proschko, who got the same tattoo with Platner, [forcefully denied](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/10/21/graham-platner-tattoo-antisemitism/) that they were aware that the skull tattoo had been used by the S.S. Following the recent _NY Times_ story, Phil Proschko once again dismissed Fifield’s claim that they knew about its Nazi symbolism. In an interview with _Zeteo_, Proschko said, “we did not purposely get hateful fucking shit… We just got matching skull-and-crossbone tattoos that we thought looked cool.” He added, “I too have PTSD. It changes your mental process. It’s something that is very difficult to work through, and he is somebody that has gone miles above anybody that’s even tried to better themselves. He’s not a fucking racist, he’s far from it.” > > Proschko was clearly fed up with the media circus around his body art, telling _Zeteo_ that he didn’t want to talk to anymore reporters. > > “That was over 20 years ago,” he said. “We just got matching skull-and-crossbone tattoos that we thought looked cool in Croatia. Whatever happened after that, that’s everybody else’s fucking business.” The person who claimed he “knew it was” is a MAGA Operative, who lied about several other things. Platner got it because those Marines he was with were decorating a lot of stuff with a Skull and crossbones- which indeed is “badass”. ---
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1396 "2026-07-01T02:49:19Z")
Just so we’re clear here I AM A FAN OF PLATNER personally. I like him. A lot. I hope he is elected and I hope many more like him are elected. Everyone did cringe shit in the past. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1397 "2026-07-01T02:52:57Z")
> [@Lamoral](#): > > Everyone did cringe shit in the past. Oh yeah, getting drunk with your buddies and getting matching tattoos is generally not a good life decision. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1398 "2026-07-01T03:08:25Z")
> [@Lamoral](#): > > he got it because he thought it was badass. I think we can all agree that Platner and his drunken squadies on leave from a pretty nasty combat zone got a group tattoo because they thought it was badass. That’s all that is known. Anything else is projection or conjecture. YMMV ---
**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:** [July 1, 2026, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1399 "2026-07-01T13:24:18Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > net worth of 300K is not the same as 100K a year income A net worth of 300K these days probably means having significant equity in a house and a vehicle or two. In many areas it wouldn’t cover owning them outright. 300K was rich when I was a kid, sixty or seventy years ago. It isn’t now. It’s more than a lot of people have, even if it’s all tied up in necessities of living; but it’s a long way from rich. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1400 "2026-07-01T16:16:52Z")
> [@Lamoral](#): > > It’s really obvious to me what the situation is with Platner’s tattoo. He knew it was a Nazi symbol, and he got it because he thought it was badass. Not because he’s a Nazi, not because he is or ever was sympatico with Nazi beliefs. It’s because he thought it was badass, and the reason why he thought it was badass is because, like a lot of Nazi shit, it IS badass. A few weeks ago, when I was educating myself on what a _Totenkopf_ was, I ran across **[the Anti-Defamation League’s database of hate symbols](https://www.adl.org/resources/hate-symbol/totenkopf)**. Above all of their hate-symbol articles is the following disclaimer: > All the symbols depicted in the hate symbols database must be evaluated in the context in which they appear. Few symbols represent just one idea or are used exclusively by one group. For example, 100% is often used as an amount or an expression and it is also used by some white supremacists as shorthand for “100% white.” Similarly, other symbols in this database may be significant to people who are not extreme or racist. The descriptions here point out significant multiple meanings but may not be able to relay every possible meaning of a particular symbol. Now then. The ADL article doesn’t address multiple contexts in which the specific SS _Totenkopf_ may appear. However, **[their article on the SS bolts](https://www.adl.org/resources/hate-symbol/ss-bolts)** mentions something interesting: > The SS bolts are typically used as a symbol of white supremacy but there is one context in which this is not necessarily always so. Decades ago, some outlaw biker gangs appropriated several Nazi-related symbols, including the SS bolts, essentially as shock symbols or symbols of rebellion or non-conformity. Thus SS bolts in the context of the outlaw biker subculture does not necessarily denote actual adherence to white supremacy. However, because there are a number of racists and full-blown white supremacists within the outlaw biker subculture, sometimes it actually is used as a symbol of white supremacy. Often the intended use and meaning of the SS bolts in this context is quite ambiguous and difficult to determine. I would think most people interpret this passage through their existing priors. For some, the “_… does not necessarily denote actual adherence to white supremacy_” carries most or all of the weight of this passage. For others, “_[however] … sometimes it actually is used as a symbol of white supremacy_” is the beginning and the end of the meaning of this passage. Now Platner is not an outlaw biker. And his tattoo was not of the SS bolts. Nevertheless, it doesn’t require a mental stretch (for me, at least) to believe that Platner and some dumb-ass drunk young Marines picked out tattoos not especially caring in the moment about the iconography. I can even conceive (no evidence, granted) of kind of a “_fuck it – it’s bad-ass and no one who matters will see it_” running through their minds. Maybe they’d already seen other similar tattoos on fellow Marines (perhaps even those in authority) and knew they would pass whatever inspections would later take place. How could they not know what a _Totenkopf_ symbolized? Especially being into WWII – that SS Totenkopf was everywhere! Right? Well, I don’t know. I’m not the biggest WWII buff, but my father is and I’ve looked through a lot of his materials and collection of memorabilia. Now, his expertise is firearms of the Pacific Theater, but he’s got plenty of comprehensive books about both theaters that have been in the house since before I was born. I wouldn’t even be at all surprised if he actually has an actual metal SS _Totenkopf_, straight off an officer’s hat, in his collection. Even with that background, I’d not have been able to identify Platner’s tattoo to an SS insignia before a few months ago. Given my own priors I’d be astonished if, back before Platner became a national name, as many as one in 10,000 American adults could look at that tattoo and go straight to “Nazi”. It could have been far fewer than that, especially among Platner’s age cohort circa the mid-2000s (early-to-mid 20s). ---
**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:** [July 6, 2026, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1401 "2026-07-06T19:53:03Z")
To answer the OP, alleged drunken rape: [https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/06/graham-platner-sexual-assault-allegation-00987737](https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/06/graham-platner-sexual-assault-allegation-00987737) ---
**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:** [July 6, 2026, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/1402 "2026-07-06T21:01:28Z")
To be fair, is there any evidence that he knew at the time that rape was bad? [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=69) [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=71)