Well, Dems and their supporters seem to be jumping on the Collins bandwagon, by drawing a yellow highlighter over Platner’s essentially meaningless texts. So that’s the major “problem” with Platner, the failure to live up to another Dem “purity” test, and I am heartily sorry to see Bulwark jump on this bandwagon.
Yeah, I agree with this; if Platner's behavior was abusive or violent or harassment, that would give me pause. That does not seem to be the case.
I don't love this, but also, if you listen to both Graham and his wife talk about it, they seem to be dealing with it / have already dealt with it.
There's breathless coverage of the Maine senate race where folks keep looking (if not cheering for) the wheels to come off Platner. We'll see if that happens. If it does, it won't be over this.
Platner is from the upper class. His mother is funding his business. If he were actually from the working class, he wouldn't be running for Senate as he'd have to support his family right now.
Platner's mother is not funding her son's business. We live in Hancock County Maine and I know graham's mother, Leslie Harlow. That's not unusual, because everyone knows Leslie. She has always been a very hard worker. Back in the 70's she ran a restaurant in Bar Harbor called the Town Farm, which was terrific. We loved eating there.! Now she runs a restaurant called Ironbound, in Hancock, Maine, ( named after one of the islands in Frenchman Bay) That restaurant is also very well regarded. Do you have any idea how hard running a restaurant is? There is a nice story about how Graham ended up owning his oyster business, but it has nothing to do with Leslie. Suffice it to say that the rumor you heard about Leslie funding it is not true.
The media pretends he is working class when he is not. That's because the media looks down on the working class and thinks they can sell us ANYTHING. Even Nazi tattoos.
I tend to cut Graham and his fellow Marines some slack about the tattoo. this was a group of Marines on leave in Split, Croatia. They got drunk and all decided they wanted to get scary tattoos. They chose one that resembled the Pirate flag, The jolly Roger., with the skull and crossbones. Google the Jolly Roger sometime and then Google the Totenhopf flag. They are very similar. I believe it's absolutely possible for these guys to have thought they were getting Jolly Roger tattoos with the skull and crossbones.
George W*. Bush stops folksily clearing brush on his ranch, just to consider this phenomenon.
*for “Walker”, as in Walker Cup; never mind the merely patrician Bush side of things. I just can’t wait to “have a beer” with these regular people, can you?
True. Although that's basically every politician. How many GOP reps who are like lawyers or trust fund kids do we see in campaign ads wearing cowboy hats and wandering around a farm...
Elite is a mindset as much as anything. Having a headstart and reaching down to pull others up, reaching out to those with other backgrounds that you can speak to and share commonalities with is "bipartisanship."
TR still carries weight because he was able to do similar things while he bucked his "class." He called the bullshit in his own home.
Neither he nor Platner were/are perfect, but it's a model that speaks to others far more than those who "did it the right way" in their own heads.
Understand that most of the staff of The Bulwark are disenfranchised Republicans who shrugged their shoulders while Republican candidates were doing far worse than Platner's naughty texting.
You yourself might not have shrugged, but plenty did.( Mark Sanford anyone?) In any case, if the women were fullly adults, and the couple is dealing with it, is it our business?
I don't think that's the point here. The Bulwark is largely old neocons who are much closer to old centrist Democrats than anything current. That era is just gone and we don't have time for it. Platner is messy and winning because he's a real person who connects with real people. The old manicured and poll tested personalities are not going to win anymore. Trying means that we will lose.
The Bulwark has done an admirable job of bringing in younger people who fit the mold you're talking about less and less. Egger graduated from college in the Trump era, just for example.
Same. The stakes are way too f'in high for pearl clutching, folks. The senate is going to be replacing "justices" Thomas and Alito and we need a fighting shot to stop SCOTUS, Inc. from the hell it has unleashed.
Keith - for real. But how bout this summer daydream (tho the events will occur after November 3) or more like a hopium multiverse where McConnell & Cornyn decide to give in to personal animus, along w/Collins & Murkowski... but even then there's Fetterman flipping to vote w/Republicans to tie the vote for Vance to settle. Where's that 5th Republican senator to scuttle the replacements? Need another hopium fix... 🎼"Up to Lexington, 125..."
Yeah McConnell didn't get where he is by letting his emotions run wild. He'll carry out Federalist Society agenda as ever, will probably figure that squares his legacy for whatever damages Trump brings
The stakes ARE high, and that's exactly why such a terrible candidate should never have been allowed to get this far. It shows that they're not taking the high stakes seriously.
I disagree. It isn't about "purity" tests. I can understand being younger, being in combat, becoming disillusioned and succumbing to stupid words and behavior. This is different - this is on-going and it isn't about meaningless texts. It's about keeping commitments versus putting oneself above having to. The very same people complaining about "purity tests" are outraged that Fetterman would even consider becoming a Republican. Why? Because he should honor the commitment he made to those who elected him. IT MATTERS.
How can you judge if a candidate will keep the commitments he/she makes during his/her campaign without looking at their track record? The Platners' marriage is between them - stay together and accept it, break up over it - I really don't care. But I do care whether he would keep his commitments to the voters and all I can judge him by is his poor track record in his personal life...
Maine voters should decide for themselves. Maybe you vote for him anyway because it's way too late to field a different candidate, and you don't want to give Collins another win. There's nothing wrong with that, but for people to talk about "purity tests" as if character does not matter in our candidates - well isn't that what happened to the Republican party and their voters? Character does and should matter is all I'm saying.
Oh my. Platner has zero government experience. It is our job and responsibility, which we should take seriously, to judge whether people can be counted on to live the values they profess. Platner has not lived the values he professes.
I am just tired of Democrats and progressives going in an endless quest for candidates who can measure up to a standard that the GOP regularly flouts, and for which they are rewarded.
We are helmed now by an existential threat to democracy and a GOP that facilitates that. Including Susan Collins. We have a clearly deranged President who posted over 50 demented social media comments in 7 hours. And we lost a damned fine Senator, Al Franken because of Dem elite pearl clutching because he failed another purity test. Let’s focus!
If I may vent about purity tests from a different perspective:
I live in a Nebraska congressional district that hasn't sent a Democrat to congress since the early 1960's. Yet the district is competitive enough that in a wave election, the Democrats have a fighting chance. (The independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn received more votes in 2024 in the district than incumbent Senator Deb Fischer, who ultimately won reelection.) There was a competitive primary last month between two Democrats with the more progressive candidate who advocated for Medicare-for-all losing to the candidate who favored healthcare reform in the context of Obamacare. The winning candidate has foreign policy experience, having been on the JCPOA negotiating team. The left seems to think he has some Gaza stink on him, and now, having not participated in the primary, are using the petition process to place a candidate on the general election ballot. This appears likely to ensure the reelection of the Republican incumbent. Because, why not: Centrist Democrats are as bad as Trumpists, I guess.
If we should have learned anything from the last decade plus in politics, it is about the effects/importance of character... or the lack thereof.
But maybe the problem is that the way we do politics (especially these days) seems to attract people lacking in character... and people are even more willing to excuse it, so long as it is our tribe and not their tribe.
This extends beyond this particular case and there are real problems and weaknesses in the Democratic party WRT candidate selection and messaging. Turning into MAGA-lite or to people lacking in character probably isn't a good answer.
You don't need "purity" tests WRT ideological issues, but maybe character should be a concern?
Lately we have been electing people who know how to run for government, not run government. Let’s give someone else who doesn’t want this trick. Abraham Lincoln is a great example. With today’s metric of electability he would never have been chosen to lead the new party, and we would all be poorer for that twist of fate.
I largely agree. The problem is that the skillset and character required to get elected don’t match up with the skillset/character needed for effective governance. I learned that lesson early from student government in school.
That is why I am hugely in favor of doing away with legislative elections in favor of sortition selected citizen assemblies.
I also do not think that judgeships or law enforcement positions (like sheriffs) should be elected positions.
Lincoln didn't sext women or espouse Nazi ideals. It's as if the people supporting Platner refuse to name our objectives, and that worries me. If there are things you can't say and still support a candidate, that's a huge red flag to me personally.
Kate, do you live in Maine? Because a previous message above implied that you thought there was still a possibility that Platner could be defeated in the primary. He no longer has any Democratic opposition.
So if you live in Maine, are you voting for Platner or Collins? That’s the choice.
Call me old-fashioned (and you can pass me one these days what w Trump's lack thereof), but the old saw that "character is destiny" still rings true.
When the chips are way down, I'll lean on character in public office (or out of it) bcuz it's tied into courage which is the 1st virtue bcuz all others depend on it.
Really? Because when “they go low, we go high” has worked so well? Reminds me of a cartoon I saw after the first Trump victory with a line of ethnically-drawn people being marched out of the country, but an apparent elite liberal standing there saying “Well, at least I voted my conscience.”
There's some space in the political sphere between low and high. I don't believe in “white plaster cast saints,” much less politicians. It's where one draws the line on character, as it's a damn good bellwether.
It also involves the office involved. Trump as a senator is far less dangerous.
I think it depends on how he and his wife and the campain tackle this issue. Flirting with text is not quite cheating, but the event is not from decades ago. It is recent. One measure of the gravity is that if this kind of thing happened while he is a sitting Senator, it might spiral badly and lead to his forced resignation. So, it does matter.
"Well, Dems and their supporters seem to be jumping on the Collins bandwagon ..."
I wouldn't worry about the Democrats. After all, they didn't waver when Bill Clinton did far worse. Platner didn't even lie under oath. I would worry about Independents and persuadable Republicans (if there are any).
I understand Andrew's concerns about the latest Platner revelations, but it's late in the day, and there's a real risk of Democrats simply ceding the election to the odious Collins here and now, as of early June.
The fact is, Republicans are poised to pull all kinds of scandal rabbits out of all kinds of Democratic hats between now and November, relying on both the press and the Democrats to do what they've been doing since they took down Al Franken--take to the fainting couch in a show of wounded virtue before chucking the latest sacrificial lamb into the pyre.
Franken was one of the strongest and brightest progressive voices in the US Senate. The Democrats, led by Gillibrand and Schumer, took him down, using as a pretext a decade-old spoof photo first revealed on Sean Hannity's show by a publicity-hungry right wing hack who was both a friend and employee of Sean's. This was followed up with a spate of anonymous accusations in the Times that Franken had once smiled inappropriately, patted a back uncomfortably close to a backside, winked at a woman when she didn't want to be winked at, or whatever. Gosh.
In the real world, we know that the two New York Senators Gillibrand and Schumer (both D-Wall Street) were delighted to take Franken down precisely because he was a strong, bright progressive voice, and Wall Street couldn't stand him.
The Party has a way of ignoring all kinds of scandals when they touch legislators who can be counted on not to upset the corporate applecart: it is less tolerant of mavericks, progressives, and those who in any way challenge the Party establishment.
I would remind The Bulwark that they've been in the forefront of those fretting about the takeover of the Democratic Party by a gerontocracy. The one virtue of septuagenarians and octogenarians is that (with the exception of Dear Leader Donald) they're unlikely to spend much time on social media, which minimizes the risk that embarrassing or compromising posts or texts will suddenly pop up.
It isn't that the elders aren't adulterers, or gropers, or lechers, or various other horrid things: it's that they are less likely to act out on social media.
If you're going to recruit younger candidates, you're going to have to deal with the issues that come with youth. Finding candidates under sixty who simultaneously please the Party leadership, soothe Wall Street, and pose no risk of embarrassing social media indiscretions, is going to be quite the task.
This is the Platner's business, not ours. If Mrs Platner loves her husband and he loves her that's it. Now let's beat Collins and take back the Senate. Disappointed to see The Bulwark clutching its pearls and tsk-tsking.
"This is the Platner's business, not ours. If Mrs. Platner loves her husband and he loves her that's it. " I would agree with your analysis if the Platners were a married couple down the street not running for an important US Senate seat.. But as a US Senate candidate--married or single--.Graham Platner's sexting is an issue of really poor judgement voters should take into account. If I were a Maine voter, Platner would still get my vote over Collins with her history of enabling Trump.
This feels right to me. Collins needs to go. I think that Andrew is right in pointing out the dangers of following the GOP into the abyss. I do feel that we Dems hold our candidates to a higher standard. As a general concept, I think that's important. As we clearly see every day they if we elect morally bankrupt people to the highest offices, we get rampant immorality.
On the othher hand, who among us us squeaky clean? So the ral question is where do we draw the line? I don't know the answer to this.
This is what we said at the time about Bill Clinton. I think we were wrong. Either character matters or it doesn’t. I don’t like Platner as a candidate, but I thought he was a talented politician. Maybe he is too sketchy to survive a heated campaign tho.
We'll see what Maine voters think about this. My guess is removing Collins and saving Democracy will win over this private family issue. Incidentally, Clinton's numbers did not decline despite the media frenzy over the Lewinsky situation. I hear your concern about "character" just pointing out that right or wrong, it doesn't always matter to voters.
I respectfully disagree that this is *all* on Schumer. There is a Democratic Party organization in Maine. There are possible Democratic Candidates in Maine. I've lived in Maine and visit there often, and am considering returning in retirement. If you accused most people from Maine that they could be pushed around by Chuck Schumer, I suspect they would take some offense.
And, frankly, if they could be pushed around by Schumer to do what we all see to feel was a stupid choice, I guess I think we're better off with Platner, tattoo and texts and all.
Oh, give me a break! Platner IS going to be the Democratic nominee 8 days from now. His only significant primary proponent has dropped out. So, the time for people in the pro-Democracy movement to discuss the pro's and con's of Platner's candidacy are over.
Now, if he runs for higher office in the future, we can circle back to this.
P.S. The Dem's are running a squeaky clean choir boy in my home state of Texas. If Talarico wins the general and Platner loses, I'll eat crow and happily apologize to Andrew.
What you are describing is the point of the piece. If the only moment to "discuss the pros and cons" of a person's candidacy is before the party primary, and parties have lost the ability to winnow the field ahead of that moment, we're going to see lots more voters holding their nose and voting for a person without ever having really had a moment to weigh those pros and cons. I'm not telling anybody "don't vote Platner," I'm suggesting a structural weakness created by feckless parties and voters who increasingly love "outsiders."
This isn't about "outsiders"! You don't get it! What you are calling "outsider" behaviour is merely candidates who are willing to say the things that a) might make them unpopular in the party, but b) are what the public knows and understands.
No one is fetishizing outsider behaviour; every Dem who supports one of these outspoken and brave candidates is trying to communicate we want MORE of these, not fewer.
Flawed people run for office. Voters will decide. The days of Democrats anointing their MBA-JD candidates as fit to run are over. Real people with real experiences demonstrating an ability to rise above and change. That'll do.
Justin, WE are flawed which is why our political system is a mess. We are what is standing between tyranny and freedom. It looks as though we did stumble, we are getting back on track. Lessons were actually learned.
Right, the real problem for Dems is finding good candidates for the primaries. Why in the world are we having such a hard time doing that? I’m in CA and for the governor race, we had Swalwell who apparently was a well known creep to everyone but the public and now we have Javier Becera - who has minus charisma and long time staff pleading guilty to stealing campaign funds and Susan Rice said she wouldn’t trust him running the CA govt vs Tom Steyer a billionaire who is self funded to the tune of 200 million, seems like a good lefty but who knows because he’s never held public office. I mean, how in the world are we not getting better candidates than this???
Andrew, Platner started running town halls all over the state in the summer of 2025. Any plausible challenger to Platner should have been doing the same. Where were the potential challengers? Nowhere. The Maine Democratic Party did not “lose the ability to winnow the field.” There WAS no field until Schumer decided to convince Janet Mills to run a race that she clearly had no interest in.
Platner is an incredibly effective retail politician and has built a base all over the state that will be hard to shake. In any case, it’s now Platner vs. Collins, and the choice is clear.
Platner’s sexts never separated migrant kids from their families, launched a reign of terror and ethnic cleansing on America cities, or laundered an insurrection — but Collins’ votes did. I honestly don’t even see the purpose of this type of takedown.
Collins also voted to give a man credibly accused of rape a lifetime appointment on the Supreme Court. She wouldn't even insist on an FBI investigation of the allegations.
I think the purpose is that character does matter, as we have ample demonstration of from Donald Trump. Planter’s character seems way more questionable than Collins’. At least to me it does.
someone wrote in colorful chalk on the sidewalk in front or near Collins home, she highly over-reacted. I do not like her, and have not for quite some time, don't live in Maine, but if I had, would've voted against her at least three times
( whatever they wrote it was not even nasty, profane or even insulting )
Fine. Wait for your perfect Dem candidates to step up to satisfy your sanctimonious purity tests. Let Susan Collins keep her seat. Grind Abdul El-Sayed into the ground so that people are so frightened of his "communism" they won't vote for him, and you can have McMorrow, the squishy quasi Democrat who thinks siding with Republicans makes her "independent."
If you had your way, Zohran Mamdani would not be mayor of NYC, and people in that city would be deprived of the hope they are actually feeling and experiencing that change is possible.
Never thought this dyed-in-the-wool lefty Democrat would be quoting Donald Rumsfeld, but it seems appropriate since I AM on a Republican-lite site: "You go to war with the army you have, not the army you might want or wish to have at a later time."
Hope you like your fascist state, as it won't be going anywhere if you keep 86ing imperfect candidates whose views Democrats actually support.
To add to your excellent comment, I am also up to my ears with Never Trumpers who were powerless to bring Trump down in his first term repeatedly warning Dems about how pathetic they are in bringing policy papers to knife fights. It's as if they have forgotten how their own messaging and tactics 'win at all costs' hasn't resulted in potentially costing the US everything for their winning.
So why do I have to ignore red flags? Platner demonstrates over and over that he does not live the values he claims to hold. Sorry, I feel obligated to point that out. He does not act in a way that matches his words. Keep that in mind for his future.
The “red flags” are there for people considering marrying or dating him. I plan on neither. His marital mistakes do not count him out as a strong contender for Senator. This purity test is partially to blame for MAGA’s popularity and for having a convicted felon in the White House. There needs to be more loyalty and power wielding on the left, and sometimes overlooking undesirable histories is needed—IMHO.
. (Just to tell you how impactful this article was to me—I am canceling my subscription over it)
His "mistakes" encompass a lot of behavior beyond his marriage. Look, candidates are going to have to deal with voters who want reps who live their values instead of making a mockery of them. How does Platner win over the vote of people who want to trust someone's words?
Oh, as if Collin's word is 'trustworthy'? She 'lives the values' she talks about?
You have many, many, posts where you respond with the same moral argument.
This is now a political argument. Pure and Simple.
Which candidate, it's a binary choice, is better and necessary for the moment?
Platner is a flawed person. He grows, apologizes, changes and tries to fix the problem. Which Republicans do you hear doing that? Does Susan?
To answer your question that's the only way "to win over the vote of people you want to trust someone's word" - you don't do it by finding a candidate who has always without fail 'lived their values', they don't exist.
I'm very clear that Collins is a hypocrite who doesn't live the values she professes. She's clear about it too. But there is a still a Democratic primary that needs to happen. There is still a slim chance Maine will choose differently.
Al Frankin made those gestures with a Miss Hooters winner. The crocodile tears over someone who happily traded on her looks when it suited her still bothers me.
I learned a long time ago that marriage is complicated and messy and no one should judge the reasons why someone chooses to stay or go in a marriage. Since Platner and his wife have both publicly addressed the matter, I am done with the hand-wringing. Why is everyone so willing to give Trump a pass on so many character flaws and transgressions but everyone else has to pass a test with ever-moving goal posts. Look I don’t love that he did these things but he has never tried to deny the stupid stuff he said on line and having heard him speak in person several times now, I am ready to vote. Susan’s votes and comments over the last few decades is an on-the record-display of her cowardice and “concern” that I can no longer stomach. To me the choice is crystal clear so stop making more out of this than you already have.
No I am saying that we seem to have a double standard -Trump gets a pass for all of his transgressions and character flaws and outright lies and when a Dem candidate like Platner fesses up to his own transgressions which in my mind do not rise to the level of Trumps, there is an outcry and a willingness to dump him. We did the same thing to Al Franken and others.
It seems this happened before they were married, they worked it out, went to counseling and according to his wife, they are fine now. I generally don't like dragging people's dirty laundry into the street unless a crime of some kind has been committed. Did he do wrong? Apparently. Is it my business? Doesn't appear to be.
We can always do better certainly, but your other choices are Collins who will do whatever trump wants and a very elderly establishment candidate, who has already thrown in the towel. I'll take the risk on the bad judgement. If it turns out he has bad judgement and is a bad senator, then toss him out.
Platner isn't Fetterman. Fetterman had a stroke that has fried his brain. You can just listen to Platner, who has been asked about the Fetterman comparison multiple times, and know he is not Fetterman.
My point is, what can voters do when their elected representative ceases to represent them in a consistent or responsible way, regardless of the reason. Fetterman's stroke was no choice or decision of his but he still should resign. I have urged him to do that for the sake of his health and his family, AND also his constituents. This is not what we voted for.
Carolyn - tho the stakes are far more serious (for you Pennsylvanians & our whole country), it's kinda like a false advertising situation... you didn't get what you were expecting, not performing "as advertised." In politics & govt we don't really seem to have a great solution for this. Sure suggests the importance of voters shopping more carefully in future!
I feel for you on that one, but people over play that, he had a stroke, and as someone who worked with stroke patients, personality shifts are pretty common. That appears to be what happened to him.
VJ - Andrew reports Platner's wife "found EXPLICIT texts with a NUMBER of other women on his phone" (emphasis added). When we eventually see some of these texts (odds: hi) we'll know where on continuum they fall between "mildy" flirtatious (tho explicit?) to arranging extra-marital trysts. Different voters will have different assessments of how explicit & how many it takes to affect their vote. Expect big bux to be available to any of his text recipients to encourage them to go public, along with psy-op AI versions coming to a website near you soon! The drip drip drip will take its toll. Good luck, Maine
I get your point for sure. I care about character; and someone doing this sort of thing - esp. in the early days of their marriage - certainly raises questions about that. But what exactly is "this sort of thing"? We don't have details.
Much more importantly - to your point - these are not normal times as JVL likes to say. Whatever he wrote, and to what degree it demonstrates his untrustworthiness and lack of good judgment, appears at this point to be MUCH less of a threat to our country than Susan Collins.
Platner has never impressed me, and if we ever get back to normal times we'll hopefully have better candidates. Considering what politics has become, I'm surprised anyone decent is ever willing to get involved.
I find his former service, his ability to speak to toxic masculinity and admit to his utter human-ness, as exceptionally impressive. I do not understand JVL’s issues with Platner, other than it’s his temperament to be lower case c conservative about most things, which is a thing I love and respect about JVL. Platner is going win, it’s just by how big of a margin.
I could be misinformed, I heard she told the staffer about it last year and it occured shortly before their marriage. But I could have misheard or got bad reporting on that. Either way it is a bad look certainly.
Platner got married in November 2023 and the messaged or spring of 2025 or after he married his wife, but also when he was probably considering running for office.
having that creepy online kik app with a shirtless profile pic was pretty lame (the NYT left that one out of their story). I'd vote for the guy but he still kinda sucks.
I honestly blame Chuck Schumer for not recruiting Jared Golden to run against Collins. Yes, Dem voters may still go for Platner, we saw that when Fetterman annihilated Conor Lamb in the primary four years ago. But not offering a viable choice shows how weak he is.
Mills was a serious misread of the mood of the party after Biden, yeah.
I'm nervous about Platner but also find the hand wringing tedious at this point. It's him vs Collins and as Andrew eventually pointed out, what are you gonna do, vote for Collins instead?
What troubled me the most is he referred his private part as “Mein Fuhrer”, much less than he is a horn dog. It makes the deniability of the tattoo much less plausible. Instead of hand wringing, I hope he comes clean on everything now and refocus the energy against Collins.
I’m a Maine voter and will be voting for Platner. The sexting was incredibly stupid but imho that’s between him and his wife. Bulwark release your grip on the pearls!
The difference with Platner is that he addressed it. He's not Swalwell who fortunately bowed out. Most Dems do not tolerate the behavior we've seen from Republicans as far as sexual harassment. Ironically the establishment Dems tried to foist Andrew Cuomo on NYC but the voters said no.
One only has to listen to Platner to know where he stands on the issues and he's on the side of the angels. Collins must go. So get over the tatoo. Let's face it. A lot of our American heroes cheated on their spouses. Great presidents have cheated on their spouses. Great generals have cheated on their spouses. This sounds like a carry over from the Clinton era where the same Republicans who wanted to impeach Clinton for lying about cheating on his wife because it was a matter of "character" are now perfectly happy with a guy who has cheated on all three of his wives. If his wife wants to forgive him, who am I to say this is a disqualification?
I am not defending Platner. In fact, I have very mixed feelings about him. And I do take Egger's point about the temptation to downplay character. Still, I have to say that extramarital sexting in no way compares to repeated assaults and rape
I continue to wonder how pundits like Andrew just don't get American voters. We are enraged by Republican corruption and fascism. So what if the candidate likes to text with other women. I don't care. Do you have any idea how many men and women have semi cheated on their spouses using tech? Like millions. Or even cheated and stay married? Again, millions. If we actually knew the personal histories of many of our leaders they are included. Sex lives absent abuse are not really important. Believing in democracy and democracy reform is. You just can't get over the tatoo.
Well, I'm a progressive feminist who agrees with Andrew. It takes all kinds of voters. Some of us have learned our lessons about voting for liars who can't get their stories straight and who think vows are meaningless.
You clearly haven't read the stories or he and his wife's response. He didn't lie. He has made zero effort to cover up anything. How about learning the facts before trashing the candidate.
Your moniker isn't clear then. Last time I checked Lake Ontarios includes Ontario, CA. Still doesn't excuse you commenting on a story about which you don't know the facts. Plattner sexted with some women. His wife knows. Former campaign staff leaked the info (probably to get the story out before Collins or for her). He didn't lie. Is it really our business? What if they have an open marriage? Is that our business? Does a candidate have to reveal the details of their sex lives to us? Is that really necessary?
Platner is not a convicted rapist. Talk about degrees of difference. How many women have filed harassment lawsuits against Platner? How many women has he paid off to hush them up? How many magazines have practiced 'catch and kill' to hide his indiscretions. Y'all can't hide your deep repub roots sometimes.
Well, Dems and their supporters seem to be jumping on the Collins bandwagon, by drawing a yellow highlighter over Platner’s essentially meaningless texts. So that’s the major “problem” with Platner, the failure to live up to another Dem “purity” test, and I am heartily sorry to see Bulwark jump on this bandwagon.
Yeah, I agree with this; if Platner's behavior was abusive or violent or harassment, that would give me pause. That does not seem to be the case.
I don't love this, but also, if you listen to both Graham and his wife talk about it, they seem to be dealing with it / have already dealt with it.
There's breathless coverage of the Maine senate race where folks keep looking (if not cheering for) the wheels to come off Platner. We'll see if that happens. If it does, it won't be over this.
There does seem to be a class dimension to the way Platner gets talked and reported about.
Platner is from the upper class. His mother is funding his business. If he were actually from the working class, he wouldn't be running for Senate as he'd have to support his family right now.
Platner's mother is not funding her son's business. We live in Hancock County Maine and I know graham's mother, Leslie Harlow. That's not unusual, because everyone knows Leslie. She has always been a very hard worker. Back in the 70's she ran a restaurant in Bar Harbor called the Town Farm, which was terrific. We loved eating there.! Now she runs a restaurant called Ironbound, in Hancock, Maine, ( named after one of the islands in Frenchman Bay) That restaurant is also very well regarded. Do you have any idea how hard running a restaurant is? There is a nice story about how Graham ended up owning his oyster business, but it has nothing to do with Leslie. Suffice it to say that the rumor you heard about Leslie funding it is not true.
True though my point is more how the media treats him, and the reporting on Platner.
The media pretends he is working class when he is not. That's because the media looks down on the working class and thinks they can sell us ANYTHING. Even Nazi tattoos.
I tend to cut Graham and his fellow Marines some slack about the tattoo. this was a group of Marines on leave in Split, Croatia. They got drunk and all decided they wanted to get scary tattoos. They chose one that resembled the Pirate flag, The jolly Roger., with the skull and crossbones. Google the Jolly Roger sometime and then Google the Totenhopf flag. They are very similar. I believe it's absolutely possible for these guys to have thought they were getting Jolly Roger tattoos with the skull and crossbones.
He's made mistakes that others can see. If you're "elite" it hides better.
Sophisticated monkeys don't like noisy unsophisticated monkeys. Both wipe shit with their hands.
Yeah, but the sophisticated monkeys have the really DeLuxe shit - it doesn’t stink.
but he's only play acting at being working class
George W*. Bush stops folksily clearing brush on his ranch, just to consider this phenomenon.
*for “Walker”, as in Walker Cup; never mind the merely patrician Bush side of things. I just can’t wait to “have a beer” with these regular people, can you?
that drove me crazy ass well - ironically both Bush and Platner are rich new england fail sons
True. Although that's basically every politician. How many GOP reps who are like lawyers or trust fund kids do we see in campaign ads wearing cowboy hats and wandering around a farm...
yeah sometimes I wish dem voters wouldn't fall for the same cosplay but alas.....
And the unsullied elites are only acting at being human.
what straw man are you arguing about in your head?? I just said that platner's background is itself pretty elite.
Elite is a mindset as much as anything. Having a headstart and reaching down to pull others up, reaching out to those with other backgrounds that you can speak to and share commonalities with is "bipartisanship."
TR still carries weight because he was able to do similar things while he bucked his "class." He called the bullshit in his own home.
Neither he nor Platner were/are perfect, but it's a model that speaks to others far more than those who "did it the right way" in their own heads.
Works for DJT. Some can play the role well.
somehow DJT can do it without the phony wardrobe Platner uses
Just phony hair and the makeup.
Understand that most of the staff of The Bulwark are disenfranchised Republicans who shrugged their shoulders while Republican candidates were doing far worse than Platner's naughty texting.
If you've got receipts on Republicans candidates I shrugged at at moments like this I'd love to see them!
You yourself might not have shrugged, but plenty did.( Mark Sanford anyone?) In any case, if the women were fullly adults, and the couple is dealing with it, is it our business?
he maybe said you're or your _ss is attractive, and maybe it was
we need to live in the ' modern' real world.
I don't think that's the point here. The Bulwark is largely old neocons who are much closer to old centrist Democrats than anything current. That era is just gone and we don't have time for it. Platner is messy and winning because he's a real person who connects with real people. The old manicured and poll tested personalities are not going to win anymore. Trying means that we will lose.
magats think trump is 'a real person who connects with real people'. Yep. A real asshole connected to real assholes or wilfully ignorant.
I only know Platner from what I have read across a wide swath of varying viewpoints. Just sayin' BEWARE.
Hear, hear!
The Bulwark has done an admirable job of bringing in younger people who fit the mold you're talking about less and less. Egger graduated from college in the Trump era, just for example.
Same. The stakes are way too f'in high for pearl clutching, folks. The senate is going to be replacing "justices" Thomas and Alito and we need a fighting shot to stop SCOTUS, Inc. from the hell it has unleashed.
If Republicans loose the senate, Alito and Thomas will be replaced before the new senate is seated.
Keith - for real. But how bout this summer daydream (tho the events will occur after November 3) or more like a hopium multiverse where McConnell & Cornyn decide to give in to personal animus, along w/Collins & Murkowski... but even then there's Fetterman flipping to vote w/Republicans to tie the vote for Vance to settle. Where's that 5th Republican senator to scuttle the replacements? Need another hopium fix... 🎼"Up to Lexington, 125..."
Cassidy? But McConnell who is the architect of the current SCOTUS would never pass up replacing a sear despite his animus with Trump.
Yeah McConnell didn't get where he is by letting his emotions run wild. He'll carry out Federalist Society agenda as ever, will probably figure that squares his legacy for whatever damages Trump brings
The stakes ARE high, and that's exactly why such a terrible candidate should never have been allowed to get this far. It shows that they're not taking the high stakes seriously.
I disagree. It isn't about "purity" tests. I can understand being younger, being in combat, becoming disillusioned and succumbing to stupid words and behavior. This is different - this is on-going and it isn't about meaningless texts. It's about keeping commitments versus putting oneself above having to. The very same people complaining about "purity tests" are outraged that Fetterman would even consider becoming a Republican. Why? Because he should honor the commitment he made to those who elected him. IT MATTERS.
Fetterman is politics. The Platners are personal. That matters, because they are managing their personal life, which is really not our business.
How can you judge if a candidate will keep the commitments he/she makes during his/her campaign without looking at their track record? The Platners' marriage is between them - stay together and accept it, break up over it - I really don't care. But I do care whether he would keep his commitments to the voters and all I can judge him by is his poor track record in his personal life...
So should Maine voters yield the race because their candidate failed a test that a huge number of those voters could not pass?
Where are we to go with these lofty ideals?
Maine voters should decide for themselves. Maybe you vote for him anyway because it's way too late to field a different candidate, and you don't want to give Collins another win. There's nothing wrong with that, but for people to talk about "purity tests" as if character does not matter in our candidates - well isn't that what happened to the Republican party and their voters? Character does and should matter is all I'm saying.
Oh my. Platner has zero government experience. It is our job and responsibility, which we should take seriously, to judge whether people can be counted on to live the values they profess. Platner has not lived the values he professes.
So what are Maine voters to do?
I’ve had my fill of Collins’ furrowed brow and feigned “concerned,” and I don’t even live in her state.
Nobody MAGA is running in a Democratic primary.
I am just tired of Democrats and progressives going in an endless quest for candidates who can measure up to a standard that the GOP regularly flouts, and for which they are rewarded.
We are helmed now by an existential threat to democracy and a GOP that facilitates that. Including Susan Collins. We have a clearly deranged President who posted over 50 demented social media comments in 7 hours. And we lost a damned fine Senator, Al Franken because of Dem elite pearl clutching because he failed another purity test. Let’s focus!
Seriously? You don't see a whole lot of daylight between what happened to Al Franken and Platner? WOW!
This is why I want to form the No Sex Pests Party. We wouldn't be having this conversation about candidates in the No Sex Pests Party.
[Probably have a better chance of getting a woman elected, too, since last I checked, relatively fewer of them doddle kids and grope colleagues.]
youth have been texting, some sexting a lot longer than others, and recall he is a tad bit younger
It definitely sorts to the bottom of the list.
If I may vent about purity tests from a different perspective:
I live in a Nebraska congressional district that hasn't sent a Democrat to congress since the early 1960's. Yet the district is competitive enough that in a wave election, the Democrats have a fighting chance. (The independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn received more votes in 2024 in the district than incumbent Senator Deb Fischer, who ultimately won reelection.) There was a competitive primary last month between two Democrats with the more progressive candidate who advocated for Medicare-for-all losing to the candidate who favored healthcare reform in the context of Obamacare. The winning candidate has foreign policy experience, having been on the JCPOA negotiating team. The left seems to think he has some Gaza stink on him, and now, having not participated in the primary, are using the petition process to place a candidate on the general election ballot. This appears likely to ensure the reelection of the Republican incumbent. Because, why not: Centrist Democrats are as bad as Trumpists, I guess.
If we should have learned anything from the last decade plus in politics, it is about the effects/importance of character... or the lack thereof.
But maybe the problem is that the way we do politics (especially these days) seems to attract people lacking in character... and people are even more willing to excuse it, so long as it is our tribe and not their tribe.
This extends beyond this particular case and there are real problems and weaknesses in the Democratic party WRT candidate selection and messaging. Turning into MAGA-lite or to people lacking in character probably isn't a good answer.
You don't need "purity" tests WRT ideological issues, but maybe character should be a concern?
Lately we have been electing people who know how to run for government, not run government. Let’s give someone else who doesn’t want this trick. Abraham Lincoln is a great example. With today’s metric of electability he would never have been chosen to lead the new party, and we would all be poorer for that twist of fate.
I largely agree. The problem is that the skillset and character required to get elected don’t match up with the skillset/character needed for effective governance. I learned that lesson early from student government in school.
That is why I am hugely in favor of doing away with legislative elections in favor of sortition selected citizen assemblies.
I also do not think that judgeships or law enforcement positions (like sheriffs) should be elected positions.
Lincoln didn't sext women or espouse Nazi ideals. It's as if the people supporting Platner refuse to name our objectives, and that worries me. If there are things you can't say and still support a candidate, that's a huge red flag to me personally.
Kate, do you live in Maine? Because a previous message above implied that you thought there was still a possibility that Platner could be defeated in the primary. He no longer has any Democratic opposition.
So if you live in Maine, are you voting for Platner or Collins? That’s the choice.
logsplitter and all that walking - Lincoln ( but secretly I think he married a strange woman, Lincoln )
Call me old-fashioned (and you can pass me one these days what w Trump's lack thereof), but the old saw that "character is destiny" still rings true.
When the chips are way down, I'll lean on character in public office (or out of it) bcuz it's tied into courage which is the 1st virtue bcuz all others depend on it.
Really? Because when “they go low, we go high” has worked so well? Reminds me of a cartoon I saw after the first Trump victory with a line of ethnically-drawn people being marched out of the country, but an apparent elite liberal standing there saying “Well, at least I voted my conscience.”
There's some space in the political sphere between low and high. I don't believe in “white plaster cast saints,” much less politicians. It's where one draws the line on character, as it's a damn good bellwether.
It also involves the office involved. Trump as a senator is far less dangerous.
I think it depends on how he and his wife and the campain tackle this issue. Flirting with text is not quite cheating, but the event is not from decades ago. It is recent. One measure of the gravity is that if this kind of thing happened while he is a sitting Senator, it might spiral badly and lead to his forced resignation. So, it does matter.
"Well, Dems and their supporters seem to be jumping on the Collins bandwagon ..."
I wouldn't worry about the Democrats. After all, they didn't waver when Bill Clinton did far worse. Platner didn't even lie under oath. I would worry about Independents and persuadable Republicans (if there are any).
I understand Andrew's concerns about the latest Platner revelations, but it's late in the day, and there's a real risk of Democrats simply ceding the election to the odious Collins here and now, as of early June.
The fact is, Republicans are poised to pull all kinds of scandal rabbits out of all kinds of Democratic hats between now and November, relying on both the press and the Democrats to do what they've been doing since they took down Al Franken--take to the fainting couch in a show of wounded virtue before chucking the latest sacrificial lamb into the pyre.
Franken was one of the strongest and brightest progressive voices in the US Senate. The Democrats, led by Gillibrand and Schumer, took him down, using as a pretext a decade-old spoof photo first revealed on Sean Hannity's show by a publicity-hungry right wing hack who was both a friend and employee of Sean's. This was followed up with a spate of anonymous accusations in the Times that Franken had once smiled inappropriately, patted a back uncomfortably close to a backside, winked at a woman when she didn't want to be winked at, or whatever. Gosh.
In the real world, we know that the two New York Senators Gillibrand and Schumer (both D-Wall Street) were delighted to take Franken down precisely because he was a strong, bright progressive voice, and Wall Street couldn't stand him.
The Party has a way of ignoring all kinds of scandals when they touch legislators who can be counted on not to upset the corporate applecart: it is less tolerant of mavericks, progressives, and those who in any way challenge the Party establishment.
I would remind The Bulwark that they've been in the forefront of those fretting about the takeover of the Democratic Party by a gerontocracy. The one virtue of septuagenarians and octogenarians is that (with the exception of Dear Leader Donald) they're unlikely to spend much time on social media, which minimizes the risk that embarrassing or compromising posts or texts will suddenly pop up.
It isn't that the elders aren't adulterers, or gropers, or lechers, or various other horrid things: it's that they are less likely to act out on social media.
If you're going to recruit younger candidates, you're going to have to deal with the issues that come with youth. Finding candidates under sixty who simultaneously please the Party leadership, soothe Wall Street, and pose no risk of embarrassing social media indiscretions, is going to be quite the task.
This is the Platner's business, not ours. If Mrs Platner loves her husband and he loves her that's it. Now let's beat Collins and take back the Senate. Disappointed to see The Bulwark clutching its pearls and tsk-tsking.
"This is the Platner's business, not ours. If Mrs. Platner loves her husband and he loves her that's it. " I would agree with your analysis if the Platners were a married couple down the street not running for an important US Senate seat.. But as a US Senate candidate--married or single--.Graham Platner's sexting is an issue of really poor judgement voters should take into account. If I were a Maine voter, Platner would still get my vote over Collins with her history of enabling Trump.
Respectfully, we will agree to disagree. These are not ordinary times and Democracy is at stake.
This feels right to me. Collins needs to go. I think that Andrew is right in pointing out the dangers of following the GOP into the abyss. I do feel that we Dems hold our candidates to a higher standard. As a general concept, I think that's important. As we clearly see every day they if we elect morally bankrupt people to the highest offices, we get rampant immorality.
On the othher hand, who among us us squeaky clean? So the ral question is where do we draw the line? I don't know the answer to this.
This is what we said at the time about Bill Clinton. I think we were wrong. Either character matters or it doesn’t. I don’t like Platner as a candidate, but I thought he was a talented politician. Maybe he is too sketchy to survive a heated campaign tho.
We'll see what Maine voters think about this. My guess is removing Collins and saving Democracy will win over this private family issue. Incidentally, Clinton's numbers did not decline despite the media frenzy over the Lewinsky situation. I hear your concern about "character" just pointing out that right or wrong, it doesn't always matter to voters.
This is on Schumer. He effectively bludgeoned potential candidates out by going all in on Mills, and was left holding the bag when she washed out.
I respectfully disagree that this is *all* on Schumer. There is a Democratic Party organization in Maine. There are possible Democratic Candidates in Maine. I've lived in Maine and visit there often, and am considering returning in retirement. If you accused most people from Maine that they could be pushed around by Chuck Schumer, I suspect they would take some offense.
And, frankly, if they could be pushed around by Schumer to do what we all see to feel was a stupid choice, I guess I think we're better off with Platner, tattoo and texts and all.
Then how come someone like Chellie Pingree or Mike Michaud or anyone else didn’t jump in?
Oh, give me a break! Platner IS going to be the Democratic nominee 8 days from now. His only significant primary proponent has dropped out. So, the time for people in the pro-Democracy movement to discuss the pro's and con's of Platner's candidacy are over.
Now, if he runs for higher office in the future, we can circle back to this.
P.S. The Dem's are running a squeaky clean choir boy in my home state of Texas. If Talarico wins the general and Platner loses, I'll eat crow and happily apologize to Andrew.
What you are describing is the point of the piece. If the only moment to "discuss the pros and cons" of a person's candidacy is before the party primary, and parties have lost the ability to winnow the field ahead of that moment, we're going to see lots more voters holding their nose and voting for a person without ever having really had a moment to weigh those pros and cons. I'm not telling anybody "don't vote Platner," I'm suggesting a structural weakness created by feckless parties and voters who increasingly love "outsiders."
This isn't about "outsiders"! You don't get it! What you are calling "outsider" behaviour is merely candidates who are willing to say the things that a) might make them unpopular in the party, but b) are what the public knows and understands.
No one is fetishizing outsider behaviour; every Dem who supports one of these outspoken and brave candidates is trying to communicate we want MORE of these, not fewer.
Flawed people run for office. Voters will decide. The days of Democrats anointing their MBA-JD candidates as fit to run are over. Real people with real experiences demonstrating an ability to rise above and change. That'll do.
That's true. Our political system is flawed in so many ways. But flawed as it is, it's all we have standing between tyranny and freedom.
Justin, WE are flawed which is why our political system is a mess. We are what is standing between tyranny and freedom. It looks as though we did stumble, we are getting back on track. Lessons were actually learned.
Right, the real problem for Dems is finding good candidates for the primaries. Why in the world are we having such a hard time doing that? I’m in CA and for the governor race, we had Swalwell who apparently was a well known creep to everyone but the public and now we have Javier Becera - who has minus charisma and long time staff pleading guilty to stealing campaign funds and Susan Rice said she wouldn’t trust him running the CA govt vs Tom Steyer a billionaire who is self funded to the tune of 200 million, seems like a good lefty but who knows because he’s never held public office. I mean, how in the world are we not getting better candidates than this???
Andrew, Platner started running town halls all over the state in the summer of 2025. Any plausible challenger to Platner should have been doing the same. Where were the potential challengers? Nowhere. The Maine Democratic Party did not “lose the ability to winnow the field.” There WAS no field until Schumer decided to convince Janet Mills to run a race that she clearly had no interest in.
Platner is an incredibly effective retail politician and has built a base all over the state that will be hard to shake. In any case, it’s now Platner vs. Collins, and the choice is clear.
Judge not, he's not running for a deacon-ship.
Seriously, anything to get rid of Collins
Platner’s sexts never separated migrant kids from their families, launched a reign of terror and ethnic cleansing on America cities, or laundered an insurrection — but Collins’ votes did. I honestly don’t even see the purpose of this type of takedown.
Collins also voted to give a man credibly accused of rape a lifetime appointment on the Supreme Court. She wouldn't even insist on an FBI investigation of the allegations.
I think the purpose is that character does matter, as we have ample demonstration of from Donald Trump. Planter’s character seems way more questionable than Collins’. At least to me it does.
Is Susan Collins’ character not demonstrated in the votes she has taken, continues to take, and the real-world impacts of those votes?
She keeps giving Trump the “benefit of the doubt”, which is what people would be giving Platner.
someone wrote in colorful chalk on the sidewalk in front or near Collins home, she highly over-reacted. I do not like her, and have not for quite some time, don't live in Maine, but if I had, would've voted against her at least three times
( whatever they wrote it was not even nasty, profane or even insulting )
If you volunteered to go fight after 911, then you have a leg (or prosthesis) to stand on in your assessment of Platner’s “character.”
Mother of god, you people are ridiculous.
Fine. Wait for your perfect Dem candidates to step up to satisfy your sanctimonious purity tests. Let Susan Collins keep her seat. Grind Abdul El-Sayed into the ground so that people are so frightened of his "communism" they won't vote for him, and you can have McMorrow, the squishy quasi Democrat who thinks siding with Republicans makes her "independent."
If you had your way, Zohran Mamdani would not be mayor of NYC, and people in that city would be deprived of the hope they are actually feeling and experiencing that change is possible.
Never thought this dyed-in-the-wool lefty Democrat would be quoting Donald Rumsfeld, but it seems appropriate since I AM on a Republican-lite site: "You go to war with the army you have, not the army you might want or wish to have at a later time."
Hope you like your fascist state, as it won't be going anywhere if you keep 86ing imperfect candidates whose views Democrats actually support.
Rick Wilson says a version of this to. You play the game you are in, not the one you want.
It's been grounding and helpful the last few years.
To add to your excellent comment, I am also up to my ears with Never Trumpers who were powerless to bring Trump down in his first term repeatedly warning Dems about how pathetic they are in bringing policy papers to knife fights. It's as if they have forgotten how their own messaging and tactics 'win at all costs' hasn't resulted in potentially costing the US everything for their winning.
Thank you! Could not agree more!
👆🏻This all day.
do you live in new york city?
Did we not learn anything from kicking Al Frankin to the curb for an obscene gesture he made as a comedian???
I don’t approve of sexting other women when in a committed relationship, therefore I probably won’t help put Platner in a role of my pastor.
IDT that is the role he is campaigning for. Be at least as smart (politically) as our opposition, PLEASE!!!!
So why do I have to ignore red flags? Platner demonstrates over and over that he does not live the values he claims to hold. Sorry, I feel obligated to point that out. He does not act in a way that matches his words. Keep that in mind for his future.
The “red flags” are there for people considering marrying or dating him. I plan on neither. His marital mistakes do not count him out as a strong contender for Senator. This purity test is partially to blame for MAGA’s popularity and for having a convicted felon in the White House. There needs to be more loyalty and power wielding on the left, and sometimes overlooking undesirable histories is needed—IMHO.
. (Just to tell you how impactful this article was to me—I am canceling my subscription over it)
Thanks for your comment.
His "mistakes" encompass a lot of behavior beyond his marriage. Look, candidates are going to have to deal with voters who want reps who live their values instead of making a mockery of them. How does Platner win over the vote of people who want to trust someone's words?
Oh, as if Collin's word is 'trustworthy'? She 'lives the values' she talks about?
You have many, many, posts where you respond with the same moral argument.
This is now a political argument. Pure and Simple.
Which candidate, it's a binary choice, is better and necessary for the moment?
Platner is a flawed person. He grows, apologizes, changes and tries to fix the problem. Which Republicans do you hear doing that? Does Susan?
To answer your question that's the only way "to win over the vote of people you want to trust someone's word" - you don't do it by finding a candidate who has always without fail 'lived their values', they don't exist.
I'm very clear that Collins is a hypocrite who doesn't live the values she professes. She's clear about it too. But there is a still a Democratic primary that needs to happen. There is still a slim chance Maine will choose differently.
Al Frankin made those gestures with a Miss Hooters winner. The crocodile tears over someone who happily traded on her looks when it suited her still bothers me.
I learned a long time ago that marriage is complicated and messy and no one should judge the reasons why someone chooses to stay or go in a marriage. Since Platner and his wife have both publicly addressed the matter, I am done with the hand-wringing. Why is everyone so willing to give Trump a pass on so many character flaws and transgressions but everyone else has to pass a test with ever-moving goal posts. Look I don’t love that he did these things but he has never tried to deny the stupid stuff he said on line and having heard him speak in person several times now, I am ready to vote. Susan’s votes and comments over the last few decades is an on-the record-display of her cowardice and “concern” that I can no longer stomach. To me the choice is crystal clear so stop making more out of this than you already have.
No I am saying that we seem to have a double standard -Trump gets a pass for all of his transgressions and character flaws and outright lies and when a Dem candidate like Platner fesses up to his own transgressions which in my mind do not rise to the level of Trumps, there is an outcry and a willingness to dump him. We did the same thing to Al Franken and others.
You're comparing this to Trump. Positively. As in "This worked for Trump, why not us?"
It seems this happened before they were married, they worked it out, went to counseling and according to his wife, they are fine now. I generally don't like dragging people's dirty laundry into the street unless a crime of some kind has been committed. Did he do wrong? Apparently. Is it my business? Doesn't appear to be.
Platner has poor judgment. He has demonstrated it time and again.
For crying out loud, Maine can do better than this!
We can always do better certainly, but your other choices are Collins who will do whatever trump wants and a very elderly establishment candidate, who has already thrown in the towel. I'll take the risk on the bad judgement. If it turns out he has bad judgement and is a bad senator, then toss him out.
Well, we Pennsylvanians are stuck with John Fetterman, who can do a lot more poor or anti-representation in the next three years.
Platner isn't Fetterman. Fetterman had a stroke that has fried his brain. You can just listen to Platner, who has been asked about the Fetterman comparison multiple times, and know he is not Fetterman.
My point is, what can voters do when their elected representative ceases to represent them in a consistent or responsible way, regardless of the reason. Fetterman's stroke was no choice or decision of his but he still should resign. I have urged him to do that for the sake of his health and his family, AND also his constituents. This is not what we voted for.
Oh he absolutely should have resigned, no doubt.
Carolyn - tho the stakes are far more serious (for you Pennsylvanians & our whole country), it's kinda like a false advertising situation... you didn't get what you were expecting, not performing "as advertised." In politics & govt we don't really seem to have a great solution for this. Sure suggests the importance of voters shopping more carefully in future!
I feel for you on that one, but people over play that, he had a stroke, and as someone who worked with stroke patients, personality shifts are pretty common. That appears to be what happened to him.
See my response to Mary.
And Collins has good judgment? 🤯 Maine can do better than both of them, but that's not their reality this election.
At this point, the nature of the process means that they can't.
I wish I good believe that people are better than they appear to be. Give me some reasons.
Every report I've read said he did it after they were married - which is the point.
SO, he flirted
VJ - Andrew reports Platner's wife "found EXPLICIT texts with a NUMBER of other women on his phone" (emphasis added). When we eventually see some of these texts (odds: hi) we'll know where on continuum they fall between "mildy" flirtatious (tho explicit?) to arranging extra-marital trysts. Different voters will have different assessments of how explicit & how many it takes to affect their vote. Expect big bux to be available to any of his text recipients to encourage them to go public, along with psy-op AI versions coming to a website near you soon! The drip drip drip will take its toll. Good luck, Maine
I'm not in Maine. he is what in his early forties. I am older than that.
I would not flirt by text but younger people do, explicit, that depends
what is explicit. what is dirty, is all sex dirty. I think not.
Who care?! Stop rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic!
I get your point for sure. I care about character; and someone doing this sort of thing - esp. in the early days of their marriage - certainly raises questions about that. But what exactly is "this sort of thing"? We don't have details.
Much more importantly - to your point - these are not normal times as JVL likes to say. Whatever he wrote, and to what degree it demonstrates his untrustworthiness and lack of good judgment, appears at this point to be MUCH less of a threat to our country than Susan Collins.
Platner has never impressed me, and if we ever get back to normal times we'll hopefully have better candidates. Considering what politics has become, I'm surprised anyone decent is ever willing to get involved.
I find his former service, his ability to speak to toxic masculinity and admit to his utter human-ness, as exceptionally impressive. I do not understand JVL’s issues with Platner, other than it’s his temperament to be lower case c conservative about most things, which is a thing I love and respect about JVL. Platner is going win, it’s just by how big of a margin.
I’m curious, what about him do you find unimpressive aside from all the media reports about his tattoos and Reddit threads?
I could be misinformed, I heard she told the staffer about it last year and it occured shortly before their marriage. But I could have misheard or got bad reporting on that. Either way it is a bad look certainly.
Platner got married in November 2023 and the messaged or spring of 2025 or after he married his wife, but also when he was probably considering running for office.
Yeah I doubled checked that, apparently she said this happened in the early days of their marriage. I stand corrected on the timing.
having that creepy online kik app with a shirtless profile pic was pretty lame (the NYT left that one out of their story). I'd vote for the guy but he still kinda sucks.
I honestly blame Chuck Schumer for not recruiting Jared Golden to run against Collins. Yes, Dem voters may still go for Platner, we saw that when Fetterman annihilated Conor Lamb in the primary four years ago. But not offering a viable choice shows how weak he is.
Mills was a serious misread of the mood of the party after Biden, yeah.
I'm nervous about Platner but also find the hand wringing tedious at this point. It's him vs Collins and as Andrew eventually pointed out, what are you gonna do, vote for Collins instead?
I had a friend in college who said she voted for Nixon because she wanted to send a message to McCarthy! How did that work out?
What troubled me the most is he referred his private part as “Mein Fuhrer”, much less than he is a horn dog. It makes the deniability of the tattoo much less plausible. Instead of hand wringing, I hope he comes clean on everything now and refocus the energy against Collins.
Well you may be happy to learn then that the "Mein Fuhrer" part is totally invented--sort of a reverse JD Vance couch thing.
Thanks Andrew for clearing it up. Still very annoyed by how ineffectual Schumer is.
I'm thrilled to discover I'm apparently NOT irretrievably online cuz I hadn't heard this one until now. Must've missed the Will Sommer piece about it
It was on MSN news so who knows what online sewers that came from.
That was laughably ridiculous, they need to lie better.
Good point about the Feuhrer nickname.
Andrew cleared that one so hopefully it is now off the table.
Tai - or, wait... by talking about it have we amplified it again? Gaaauughhhh!!!
Yep, we're apparently stuck with him.
how weak who is?
Schumer
I’m a Maine voter and will be voting for Platner. The sexting was incredibly stupid but imho that’s between him and his wife. Bulwark release your grip on the pearls!
The difference with Platner is that he addressed it. He's not Swalwell who fortunately bowed out. Most Dems do not tolerate the behavior we've seen from Republicans as far as sexual harassment. Ironically the establishment Dems tried to foist Andrew Cuomo on NYC but the voters said no.
One only has to listen to Platner to know where he stands on the issues and he's on the side of the angels. Collins must go. So get over the tatoo. Let's face it. A lot of our American heroes cheated on their spouses. Great presidents have cheated on their spouses. Great generals have cheated on their spouses. This sounds like a carry over from the Clinton era where the same Republicans who wanted to impeach Clinton for lying about cheating on his wife because it was a matter of "character" are now perfectly happy with a guy who has cheated on all three of his wives. If his wife wants to forgive him, who am I to say this is a disqualification?
What consenting adults in their own time is no one's business. There's no comparison to Swalwell.
big time agree! ps, married people flirt, they really do in real life ( then they decide if they should not have ) adults.
FYI Lawfare is also creating a database of the Jan. 6 docs. I think that's a separate move from Tom Joscelyn's. Good to have multiple people doing it.
I am not defending Platner. In fact, I have very mixed feelings about him. And I do take Egger's point about the temptation to downplay character. Still, I have to say that extramarital sexting in no way compares to repeated assaults and rape
💯
I continue to wonder how pundits like Andrew just don't get American voters. We are enraged by Republican corruption and fascism. So what if the candidate likes to text with other women. I don't care. Do you have any idea how many men and women have semi cheated on their spouses using tech? Like millions. Or even cheated and stay married? Again, millions. If we actually knew the personal histories of many of our leaders they are included. Sex lives absent abuse are not really important. Believing in democracy and democracy reform is. You just can't get over the tatoo.
100%. This kind of ex-Republican nonsense is why my infatuation with the Bulwark is waning.
Well, I'm a progressive feminist who agrees with Andrew. It takes all kinds of voters. Some of us have learned our lessons about voting for liars who can't get their stories straight and who think vows are meaningless.
You clearly haven't read the stories or he and his wife's response. He didn't lie. He has made zero effort to cover up anything. How about learning the facts before trashing the candidate.
And if you are actually from Ontario why are you commenting on American candidates as if you are an American voter?
Lake Ontario is in New York State.
Your moniker isn't clear then. Last time I checked Lake Ontarios includes Ontario, CA. Still doesn't excuse you commenting on a story about which you don't know the facts. Plattner sexted with some women. His wife knows. Former campaign staff leaked the info (probably to get the story out before Collins or for her). He didn't lie. Is it really our business? What if they have an open marriage? Is that our business? Does a candidate have to reveal the details of their sex lives to us? Is that really necessary?
Platner is not a convicted rapist. Talk about degrees of difference. How many women have filed harassment lawsuits against Platner? How many women has he paid off to hush them up? How many magazines have practiced 'catch and kill' to hide his indiscretions. Y'all can't hide your deep repub roots sometimes.