None of this feels good at all. The guy is a douche. The one saving grace is that he’s not Susan Collins and could beat her. But the more shit that comes out about him, the less possible that seems. And the more I know about him, the more it seems like Platner is likely to be a “fierce independent centrist” like Fetterman or Manchin. Honestly I would give the odds better than 50/50 that within a year Platner would be giving his “I didn’t leave the Democrats, they left me” speech.
I’m sorry Maine couldn’t do any better than this, and I’m glad I don’t live there.
I’m sympathetic. I care more about my grandmother than about the hundreds of little swastikas on the tablecloth she made, that i inherited. (She made it as a child, before there was a Nazi party. At the time, it was a generic good luck symbol that was easy to embroider.)
Since it’s swastikas, and that’s not at all obscure, i basically can’t use the thing in public. But i keep it with my table linens, and sometimes take it out and think of my grandmother.
I don’t know about all the rest of this, some of which does indeed look skeezy. (Whether it’s skeezier than what a Republican majority senate is likely to allow is another question. Right now I’m just as glad I can’t vote in Maine elections.)
But I’m not in the least impressed by this horror about sharpening an axe. If you use an axe (and lots of people, including me and half my friends and more than half my neighbors, have entirely legitimate reasons to use an axe), then you need to sharpen it. If you use an axe and also watch TV, why the hell not sharpen the thing while watching TV? People do lots of other stuff while watching TV.
It’s clear that there’s a dirt machine trying to dig up anything they can on the guy, and hoping some of it sticks. I agree that it’s not even a little weird to sharpen an axe while watching TV. I’ve never done it, because i almost never use an axe, and don’t watch TV that often, either. But I’ve sharpened large kitchen knives while watching random unrelated YouTube videos.
Still, I’d vote for the other candidate on the Democratic ballot, if i voted in Maine.
Of course there’s a dirt machine - this is one of the most consequential elections of 2026. In September and October it’s going to be nothing but dirt. Hopefully Platner’s “I’m a blue collar guy and im not super polished” schtick lasts that long and against a real candidate who’s handled many election cycles competently. It’s a hell of a bet. Unfortunately we’re less than a week from the democratic primary and Platners competition is terrible, so we’re not going to find out if the latest with the sexting and allegations of toxic behavior will sink him until his competition is a republican.
It wouldve been nice if the dirt machine was firing earlier and there was any primary competition. A Cal Cunningham situation where the dirt comes out after the primaries are well over is the worst thing that can happen. Right now i suppose a drastic reversal either by primary voters turning on him en nasse or Platner dropping abd/or party leadership pressuring him out of the race is conceivable, but also a much worse outcome than all of the dirt coming out well in advance.
Today I learned: If your a teenage WWII buff that means you have committed to memory every German insignia and not just have been fascinated by Patton, Guderian and Eastern Front tank battles.
The “replacement” would be Mills. Who maybe wouldn’t have a great chance against Collins, but it’d be better than Platner would, because even at worst, Mills won’t hurt any other races on the ballot like Platner will.
At least with Harris she was the obvious successor if a primary wasn’t possible and there was no outsider winner who won an upset and then was usurped.
If Platner wins handily, his polls nosedive and he drops there is no continuity Harris candidate to name. Unlike Harris, Mills will have literally just lost a primary rather than coming out of an incumbent administration.
I don’t know what the solution is other than sticking with Platner and white-knuckling it.
Sure that’s the best option if it can happen. The latest dirt came out after early voting started (no idea how many Mainers vote early) and public opinion might not even shift on the latest reporting by Tuesday.
Yes, I would be voting Mills in the primary if I lived in Maine. Her campaign would be weaker than if she’d not have suspended her primary, but as you say, at least we wouldn’t be the party that ran The Boy with the Nazi Tattoo.
Mills also should either actively campaign in the next few days or officially endorse someone (did she endorse Platner when she dropped previously - Im not sure).
Latest is she announced “Im still on the ballot” which is absurd weaksauce. There is actually an candidate. He has almost no juice but he at least is all rhe way in or out. And nowadays you can go online and drum up some kind of support without any leadtime. It wouldnt be conventional but if she doesn’t shit or get off the pot Platner is just going to win the pri.ary - she has nothing to lose and no reason to play it safe.
Yeah. I believe he didn’t know what it was when he got it. I also believe he learned what it was a long time before he got it altered. And the evidence that he danced shirtless, with it on display, at a Jewish wedding, is overwhelming. And i also believe that no one at the wedding was bothered by it.
I do wonder about all the people who left his campaign, and what they know about him. From Platner’s Wikipedia article:
In late October and early November 2025, several high-level staffers left Platner’s campaign during a period that coincided with media reporting on his controversial tattoo and old Reddit posts. On October 17, Platner’s political director, Genevieve McDonald, resigned.[45] Platner offered her $15,000 in severance pay if she signed an NDA, but she refused the offer.[46] On October 27, Platner’s campaign manager, Kevin Brown, resigned, citing family reasons.[47] On October 31, Platner’s campaign finance director, Ronald Holmes, resigned.[48] Also on October 31, Platner filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission indicating that Victoria Perrone was no longer his treasurer and Ben Martelo would take her place.[49]
And, even from the MAGA operative, there is really nothing that makes it a crime.
Believe but confirm. No one thinks that means unqualified acceptance. We have 6 women here, one has no credibility and is a republican operative. Three said great guy and two said
So, heavy drinking and being unfaithful- decades ago, before he was married. Okay, I believe her- and so? Neither of those are reasons to reject a candidate. Especially as the good testimonials show there is no pattern. He cheated on a girlfriend while still a young man- big deal.
It is amazing how one anonymous person who claimed that is what Platner said has changed into “he told people”.
CNN and Jewish Insider reported claims from a former acquaintance alleging that Platner had previously referred to the tattoo as “my Totenkopf”, which Platner denied
Afaik, there is one instance of him showing itand it is blurry.
Even wiki has said-
During his 2026 Senate campaign, Platner faced scrutiny over a skull-and-bones tattoo on his chest that resembled the Totenkopf symbol used by the NaziSchutzstaffel (SS). In an interview on Pod Save America , Platner said he and other Marines received the tattoo while on leave in Croatia in 2007 and that he had been unaware of its historical association at the time. He later covered the tattoo.[63][64][65]
Note “resembled”.
Yeah, altho there were other military groups with the same symbol, the SS is by far the most common.
After it was pointed out to him. But the Marines he was with did use a skull and crossbones motif- just more like Pirate than SS.
One or two blurry photos from a party- Jewish wedding?- he was at- where there were a good number of Jewish people, and from what we know, no one remarked on it.