The Seasaw with Graham Platner

[Chasstev365]

I still can't believe that he didn't know what the Nazi tattoo was and it bothers me. However this new Lyndsey Fifield accusation seems like an Al Franken type hit. Someone needs to link her to Roger Stone.

In the final analysis, if I lived in Maine I would vote for him only to prevent the phoniest "Concerned Moderate" in Senate history, Susan Collins.

[EdmondDantes_]

1. 8 different women accusing Franken wasn't a hit

Several of those women told people in their lives at the time and at least one was a Democratic staffer. We need to be honest about that so people can stop using it to justify claiming other things were a hit.

2 of the women accusing Platner are Democrats. Did Republicans get them to date him in case he ever ran for office? When you have multiple unrelated people painting the same picture of someone's behavior, the odds they are lying drops dramatically.

[Irish_Dem]

5. You are making astute and accurate comments.

We have already been through this a couple of times.
Not smart.

[AloeVera]

25. Hit job. .

One of the self-identifying "Democrats" is anonymous.

Wonder if the NYT asked to see her voter registration. Or any evidence of her "long-distance" relationship with him.

And the worst (and only) thing she had to say in the hit-job NYT article?

Asked to sum up how he treated her, the third woman said she felt like “collateral damage to the world that is his."

That's how people - men and women - often feel after a break-up. There is no evidence of any abuse here.

The other Democrat? She is quoted:

Jenny Racicot, 41, a Maine Democrat, who said she dated him casually off and on between 2019 and 2021, said the posts deepened her belief that he did not respect women. “When I saw the old comments that he made online,” she said, “I recognized a version of him that I had experiences with.”

What experiences? She doesn't say. The worst and only thing she says is that he showed up drunk at her house contrary to her wishes. Pass the smelling salts please! But did anything happen, did he do something? She "declined to elaborate". But she did label his behaviour "unsettling" and adjective that found its way to the NYT headline. Of course.

Hit job. It's the NYT after all.

[DoBW]

65. total f*cking hit job

middle finger to Collins Klanners

[mzmolly]

70. Eight women, some of whom made ridiculous

claims against Franken. Groping in crowds at the State Fair? "Anonymous" accusers suggesting he gropes for photo ops?

Yes, let's be honest.

[lostincalifornia]

79. Yup.

[Ziggy Beans]

2. It helps to listen to him talk policy

I suggest you watch some of his interviews or speeches on Youtube and avoid the propaganda coming from the Israel lobby, republicans, and right-wing media

The two below are really good

Speech->

Jon Stewart->

[al bupp]

81. I particularly like the Stewart interview

But I have to say that's one hell of a speech in first video. Working people unite!

He is exactly the kind of person we need in politics.

Ignore the rat f*ckery.

[ABC123Easy]

3. Agreed

I'm seeing a ton of articles linking Fifield to Collins, Heritage Foundation, etc.

Fetterman came out parroting the same things as Fifield as well.

I think you're correct.

But I still wouldn't vote for Platner because of the Nazi tattoo but good thing Maine has a voting system to cover this scenario.

I really, really dislike Collins but I hate Nazi supporters even more.

[Emile]

4. "Are these Nazis in the room with you right now?"

[ABC123Easy]

6. Not that I'm aware of

Are there any there with you?

[Emile]

9. No, but if we had a drink every time you posted about a Nazi tattoo,

we would all be passed out by now..

[ABC123Easy]

14. I doubt

Given Platner’s enthusiasm for alcohol, I doubt he'd even be buzzed by now though.

How do you know I'm not taking a drink for every post?

[Emile]

19. I salute your liver's dedication to your cause.

[ABC123Easy]

20. Thank you

[FarPoint]

37. Hang in there....

You do well...holding your position.

[ABC123Easy]

42. Thank you

[Just_Vote_Dem]

18. Some people are getting drunk on trolling n/t

[ABC123Easy]

21. Some people are yes

Can't a guy say he hates Nazis and their sympathizers anymore?

Geez

[BannonsLiver]

49. Yes you can.

Though I have a feeling you may be saying it somewhere else soon if the trend lines hold up.

[ABC123Easy]

53. Feeling

What the hell does that mean?

I don't like your implication and I'm taking that as some sort of threat.

[mr715]

60. Forum rules against bashing Democratic candidates.

Graham Platner is going to be the Democratic standard bearer, and so posts that potentially depress his turnout will be in violation of forum rules.

So, we are all going to get in line after the primary. If you don't want to get in line, which is your right, you won't be allowed to broadcast that position on this forum.

That is my understanding, anyway.

I'd never alert on a post that isn't abusive. But that is a forum rule.

[ABC123Easy]

61. I'm aware of all of that.

Are you aware of the rules against making threats against other users?

[mr715]

62. Am I making a threat?

I'm trying to do the opposite.

[ABC123Easy]

63. I took that as a threat, yes

You're threatening to turn me in and accusing me of something I haven't done.

Are you in charge of what gets broadcast on this forum? Telling me to get in line or else?

If saying I wouldn't vote for someone with Nazi tattos gets me in trouble on here, then I'll be proud to go. I haven't attempted to sway anyone's vote or said anything that 100s of others haven't said.

[mr715]

64. I'm explicitly stating I would not.

I'm clarifying the reason why, after 4 days, you will likely not be able to have conversations about Platner's tattoo on this forum.

It isn't me that made the rules.

This is not a threat -- the nature of this forum changes before and after a primary.

[ABC123Easy]

66. I've

Explicitly stated I'm not trying to sway anyone's vote.

I simply posted an article from the NYTimes and everyone began attacking me.

My only point is that I will not vote for someone with Nazi tattoos or nazi sympathizers.

Again, if that gets me in trouble here, something is very wrong.

[mr715]

67. I apologize if I gave the impression I am attacking you.

I apologize if I gave the impression I was threatening you, I am not.

[ABC123Easy]

68. Thank you.

I appreciate your saying so.

[Chasstev365]

29. Gosh, I had no idea what a Nazi Tattoo was.

[Just_Vote_Dem]

7. Thanks for admitting you wouldn't vote for a Democrat

On a Democratic message board

[ABC123Easy]

11. This is a Democratic Messaging board?

I was totally unaware! Thank you!

For you I'll clarify. I don't live in Maine so I CAN'T vote for him. But there ARE other Dems on the ballot due to the system Maine uses. AND if you read my other replies, I DID recommend other Dems to vote for.

[LisaL]

30. He has not been nominated yet.

As such this doesn't hold water.

[FarPoint]

38. The Primary is still in contest

in Maine....so, discusssion/debate sounds reasonable prior to Primary vote.

[Just_Vote_Dem]

40. Yes, and I would vote for Mills, Platner, or any other Democrat nominated

To defeat fascism!!!!!

[NoRethugFriends]

8. And you ignore the consequences of having Susan Collins voting in the Senate rather than Plattner

How many people around the world do you think have died because of Susan Collins voting? Answer is a hell of a lot.

[ABC123Easy]

17. So you you ignore the consequences of having Nazi sympathizers in the US Senate?

How many people around the world have died because of Nazi's and their sympathizers?

[LisaL]

31. Millions.

Many millions.

[ABC123Easy]

34. Agreed

This is why I draw the line at Nazi tattoos

[LAS14]

47. That's so stupid!!! nt

[ABC123Easy]

52. I agree

Nazi sympathizers and Nazis are stupid.

[MineralMan]

10. So, you ARE OK with six more years of Susan Collins?

Just as I thought.

But his tattoo!

[Just_Vote_Dem]

12. And they think they're fooling people

LOL

[MineralMan]

13. I know, right?

So transparent.

[EdmondDantes_]

15. Can you explain why a tattoo two people have said he called his totenkopf is funny?

Because I'm not seeing the joke.

[MineralMan]

16. No joke. It's a tattoo.

He has had it covered up with more tattoo.

I'm sure glad I never got any tattoos when I had been drinking while younger. Yes, indeed, I am.

So, are you OK with six more years of Susan Collins, too?

[EdmondDantes_]

22. Weird that you were rolling on the floor laughing if it wasn't a joke

But that's often what happens when someone gets called out laughing at inappropriate things and don't want to have to explain it.

I can't imagine how drunk I'd have to be to get a nazi tattoo and I'm pretty sure it would be well past my ability to remain able to walk into the tattoo parlor. What other mistakes can we look past on he drank too much? The women accusing him of being abusive said it was worse when he drank. So does that get a free pass?

Being a Democrat doesn't get infinite free passes. Especially since you're being more than a little disingenuous considering the primary hasn't been held yet.

[MineralMan]

24. Just keep on keeping on, dude...

You didn't answer my question, though...

[Emile]

23. The last picture I saw, it looked like the state of Ohio.

[questionseverything]

27. When this all started and I first saw his tat, I thought " looks like darth vader to me"

[LisaL]

28. After the story about his Nazi tattoo came into the open,

he covered it up. But only a year ago.

[MadameButterfly]

69. Excuse me, but who between Platner and Collins has been supporting Nazis?

Are you suggesting he's a secret Nazi because of this tattoo and it's all going to come out once he's elected?
Because Collins has been supporting the agenda of a president who is ACTUALLY TRYING TO ESTABLISH a Fascist government. She's been voting for Supreme Court Justices that are gutting our democracy. The Fascists occasionallly let her vote against them only when her vote won't be decisive, just to keep her in office.

You need not have this conflict between hating Collins and Nazis. See if you can find any Nazis out there supporting Platner. I didn't think so.

[ABC123Easy]

71. You're excused?

Last edited Fri Jun 5, 2026, 04:52 PM - Edit history (1)

Did I say anything about "secret Nazis? NOPE

Did I accuse Platner, Collins, or anyone else of bring a Nazi? NOPE

Did Platner happen to have a Nazi tattoo? YEP

Does Collins have Nazi tattoos? I doubt it but really don't want to see her bare skin to find out.

I'd bet given the crazy yahoos that ARE Nazis out there, that at least one supports Platner. You could probably find at least one who supports any candidate you can think of. Collins, Yosemite Sam, Vanilla Ice, or whoever you choose. If they're Nazis, their brains obviously aren't working too well, so attaching logic to their thoughts is a waste of time.

This simply boils down to the fact that I, me, myself, will not support a candidate who has Nazi tattoos. You and everyone else can support whichever candidate you want. There are two Dem candidates Mainers can vote for who do not have Nazi tattoos (that I'm aware of) both of whom I support. I DO NOT support Collins nor any Republican. Except for the Nazi tattoos and some other things, I would support Platner. That's my choice and you're not required to be okay with it.

[MadameButterfly]

72. Usually people are concerned with Nazi tattoos

because they think they mean the wearer is a Nazi. And you've said you hate Nazis. Sorry if I made an assumption based on that.

And if you aren't voting for Platner, yes you are supporting Collins. Like the Michiganders who didn't vote for Biden because they were (understandably) mad about Gaza, were actually helping Trump get elected.

You have a right to do that and I have a right to not agree.

[ABC123Easy]

73. Okay.....

Explain to me how I can vote for Platner given I don't live in Maine. Please explain since you said, "And if you aren't voting for Platner, yes you are supporting Collins."

Tell that to the Mainers (and non Mainers like myself) who support Democrats like Mills and Costello.

Do YOU live in Maine?

[MadameButterfly]

75. Sorry, when you said earlier that you "wouldn't" vote for Platner

I assumed that was actually an option. Now I see that that means "would" you were a Mainer.
Missed that nuance.

I also now see earlier posts where you indeed have accused Graham of being a Nazi sympathizer. So yes, to your earlier complaint.

i am not a Mainer but I contribute to his campaign. As I do all the Democratic Senate candidates in tight races.

[ABC123Easy]

76. Well, well

"And if you aren't voting for Platner, yes you are supporting Collins."

You're not voting for Platner.

By your own statement, I guess you support Collins.

"I also now see earlier posts where you indeed have accused Graham of being a Nazi sympathizer."

Please, oh please, show me where I did such a thing. I've most definitely not done that as you say. Although, using your logic, wouldn't it make sense that if someone has a Nazi tattoo....you could assume that they are at minimum a sympathizer?

However, I most definitely do not believe that. And thank you for looking through all of my earlier posts.

[MadameButterfly]

78. now you are just being intentially obtuse

and I've been wasting my time

[ABC123Easy]

80. Hey

I didn't ask you to respond to my post, especially in the way you did.

Still waiting for proof of anything you've accused me of.

[questionseverything]

77. You are helping Collins by trying to take support from platner, the only candidate polling well enough to beat Collins

[LisaL]

26. Look, if you want to vote for a guy with a Nazi tattoo,

my opinion can't stop you. He hasn't even been nominated yet, however.

[aeromanKC]

32. Susan Collins represents a deadly cancer to the body that needs immediate removal to have a chance for survival.

Platner is a splinter in the finger that can easily be taken care of once the Collin's/Trump cancer on America is eliminated.

[LisaL]

33. He has not been nominated yet.

So why exactly should he be, if you think he is a splinter?

[aeromanKC]

35. I'm not from Maine, but I would only want the best chance to eliminate Collins.

It is imperative that Collins not be re-elected!! America's future depends on it!! We can deal with splinters but the cancer needs to be eliminated!!

[LisaL]

36. What makes him a best chance?

I really don't think we heard all there is to hear about him.

[aeromanKC]

39. I was originally for Mills since she had proven she can win statewide race.

But seems people are impressed with the progressive issues that Platner advocates. The only issue to me would be to get Collins out!! It's up to Maine to not fuck this up!!

[Jedi Guy]

41. Disclaimer: I don't live in Maine so my vote doesn't make a damn bit of difference here. Let's get that out of the way.

Now that we've got that out of the way, Platner's candidacy - and the reaction to these revelations about his past - are pretty troubling to me. Because let's all be very real here: if this were anyone else, no one would be minimizing his whoops-didn't-know-it-was-a-Nazi-tattoo excuse and no one would be hand-waving away the reports about his past behavior towards women.

The sexting and drinking I don't care so much about as long as the former was between consenting adults. If we immediately nixed anyone with peccadillos and a drinking problem from public office the halls of Congress would be very, very quiet indeed.

What I find troubling is that a lot of people seem okay with jettisoning certain values out of convenience and/or a desire to capture the Senate. They're okay with a very flimsy "aw shucks, I didn't know" excuse about a literal Nazi tattoo and content to shrug off reports of borderline-violent behavior towards women that would draw immediate and visceral condemnation if the guy in question wasn't running for Senate in a hotly contested midterm election cycle.

The thing about values is that they can be very slippery. It's easy to subjectively shift them to fit the conveniences and needs of the moment. If a value is truly, deeply held one will remain true to it even (perhaps especially) when doing so carries a cost. And if that value shifts to allow for that moment of convenience, it comes across a lot like that value wasn't all that important to begin with.

I understand the importance of capturing the Senate in the midterms. I get that control of both houses of Congress is key to defanging Trump's agenda for the remainder of his term. I'm just not certain that abandoning certain values is a cost that's worth the price because once those values start slipping away it'll get easier and easier to compromise them when convenient or necessary.

Just my view from the outside looking in.

[LAS14]

45. No one except the MAGA base

"if this were anyone else, [EXCEPT TRUMP OR HIS BUDDIES] no one [EXCEPT TRUMP AND HIS BUDDIES] would be minimizing his whoops-didn't-know-it-was-a-Nazi-tattoo excuse and no one [EXCEPT TRUMP AND HIS BUDDIES] would be hand-waving away the reports about his past behavior towards women."

[Jedi Guy]

48. Kind of proves my point, though, doesn't it?

Trump has been accused of many, many things that are, I will concede, way worse than what Platner has been accused of. And his legions of adoring minions shrugged it off and hand-waved it away because he's their guy, he's on their team, and they couldn't be bothered to care if he'd done some really terrible things. And we rightly excoriated them for it.

And now folks are engaging in that same behavior because Platner's on our team, so... that pretty eloquently illustrates what I was saying about values being slippery, I'd say.

[LAS14]

46. My values.

My values include understanding that humans are fallible. Understanding that, of course, a skull and crossbones can be perceived as just that. Believing someone who lives in a half-Jewish extended family. Understanding that relationships can get physical without descending to abuse.

I'm sick of this holier-than-though judgement that has pervaded the left as well as the right.

Get real.

[Jedi Guy]

50. "Get real."

Last I checked, I inhabit reality. And yes, people are indeed fallible creatures and I'm cognizant of that, not least because I'm very aware of my own flaws and foibles.

But I've yet to get a Nazi tattoo despite my raucous college daze. I was never so falling-down drunk that I looked at a literal Nazi symbol and said "You know what, I want that etched into my flesh". I got some piercings that I probably shouldn't have gotten but I didn't get a literal Totenkopf inked into my skin.

And relationships can get physical without descending to abuse? He's accused of literally putting his hands on a woman hard enough to leave marks, shoving her into a room, and keeping her there against her will by holding the door closed. That's abusive behavior, period, and chemical analysis of your "physical without descending to abuse" thing reveals it to be pure copium.

So yeah, I'm going to question it when people jettison values and support a guy they'd roundly condemn if only he wasn't running for a Senate seat we'd really like to add to our column.

Get real, indeed...

[LAS14]

54. Why is it so hard?

Why is it so hard to believe that a guy thought a skull and crossbones was just that, a common image signifying nothing. I heard a scholar on Nazism say he didn't recognize it. I sure wouldn't have before all this rucus.

[Jedi Guy]

57. I don't bill myself as a scholar on Nazism but I recognized it as soon as I saw it.

My grandfather fought in WWII, was in the Battle of the Bulge, helped liberate the Mauthausen death camp. I've read enough on WWII and seen enough pictures to look at that skull and crossbones and say "Yep, that's a Totenkopf all right". Your mileage may vary.

And as has been pointed out, the Totenkopf was not exclusive to the Nazis and had a history in the German armed forces that predated them.

So sure, let's set aside the tattoo altogether and chalk it up to a mix of youthful ignorance and the exuberance of young Marines getting inked together.

We still have to extend a very generous amount of grace in light of the accusations of the borderline-violent behavior towards women. We wouldn't accept or dismiss this behavior from anyone else. If we accept or dismiss it in Platner, we're setting aside a value for political convenience, as I see it, and I'm not particularly comfortable with that.

[LAS14]

58. What makes it different from other skulls and crossbones? nt

[WSHazel]

43. I was anti-Platner until the latest ratf***

This feels choreographed now.

[LAS14]

44. Two possible reactions to the latest Platner news.

1 - The right wing operative happened to be telling the truth. So physical interactions between couples can happen in anger as well as affection without crossing over into abuse. If what she described was "abuse" we're in big trouble.

2 - The right wing operative was lying, or grossly exaggerating, so the when Platner denies "physical things" he's telling the truth. (I don't remember his exact denial on Chris Hayes last night, but that's close.)

In either case there's no way I wouldn't fight like hell to get Platner elected to the senate if I lived in Maine.

[CivicGrief]

51. Fuck this shit.

Even IF the accusations are true, they are not disqualifying. I am not in Maine, but I would rather have him in the Senate than the concern troll who just voted to give tens of BILLIONS of dollars to a lawless agency that abducts, imprisons, and tortures children right here in the good ole US of A. Collins may not have had a nazi tattoo, but she would fall in line in a heartbeat.

[ExtraGriz]

55. Maine here...

I'm voting for Platner.

Enough of these Platner Shit posts, fuck these tattoo bull shit, and fuck the hearsay from these women.

ENOUGH!!!!!

[Emile]

82. +1

[delisen]

56. Useful Rules for Fielding/Supporting Candidates

1. Know your candidate
2. know the constituency
3. Know the battleground
4. Be prepared for the attacks of the opposition, fair and foul.
5. Have a realistic Plan B ready, when the opposition bombs are exploding.
6. Acknowledge your failures
7. Never tell voters they have no choice but to vote for your candidate. Many democrats are true believers in the promise of democracy and equality and may well feel that their best choice is to leave a ballot unmarked rather than vote against these strongly held beliefs.

[CivicGrief]

59. That and a nickel will get you a

a gum ball. Oh, and maybe a complete shit for a Senator.

[delisen]

74. Thanks for your response.