To me, the biggest indictment of the Democrats here is that the only serious alternative to Platner is 78 years old with high name recognition and relatively low popularity in the state. Like Matt Iglesias mentions in his post, it shows a massive failure in candidate recruitment. I get that Maine is a smaller state than Georgia, but if the Democrats had an alternative candidate in Maine even close to Warnock or Ossoff's level of political skill, that person would be a no brainer.
First "sexting" is not a real clear description of Platner's behavior or issue. But I think G McDonald was simply wrong to dump crap on Platner . I don't know the details but I understand that Platner's wife told McDonald about some of the early marriage issues with Platner "in confidence". Some people love betraying friends. Vengeful, angry behavior. It is also not clear why McDonald left Platner's campaign staff last October. Another unknown. It's beyond me to judge since I don't understand what are the basic facts and motivations of people.
Staffers are neither priests nor therapists and should not be expected to circle the wagons to protect candidates. It is valid to hold prospective US Senate candidates to a relatively high standard of personal content. The standard doesn't have to be "completely above reproach," and if this were the first issue raised, maybe it goes away after a 24 hour Twitter news cycle. It isn't in this case though. It's annoying that Platner spun his other scandals off as youthful indiscretions from a decade+ ago, only for us to discover a new issue from the past 2-3 years.
I am not in Maine, so it ultimately doesn't matter to me, and I likely would vote for him over Collins even if I did live in Maine, but it speaks to a problem in the party that better candidates weren't recruited for this critical race. Party leaders throwing so much initial support behind Mills implies that they have learned nothing from the 2024 debacle.
I agree with a lot of what you said but really disagree with your first point: you're saying that if someone you hired to help asks you to share anything that might damage your campaign in the future you should expect to worry about *them* using whatever you say to damage your campaign themselves later? No way; it's a betrayal and unprofessional, and I hope (if this description of events is true) that that lady doesn't have a future in politics. This would be like if you hired a PR firm and then later that same firm released your private emails to attack your reputation. Why would anyone work with that firm ever again?
The GOP candidate in the 2024 race to be Governor of North Carolina was Mark Robinson, a sleazy he'er-do-well whose extremely Platner-esque activity on message boards (calling himself a Nazi and lurid sex discourse, et al.) led Republicans to buck him--he lost the race in NC by 15 points.
A year later it came out that Jay Jones, Dem candidate for Virginia's AG (and who even care's who the AG is?) (1) served community service hours he'd been sentenced to by a judge by working on his own PAC and (2) had text messages fantasizing about his political opponents suffering gun violence. It was a vile mixture of personal failings that *also had public/political* valence. Virginia made him AG anyway.
Look friend in a world Donald Trump is the president and the entire GOP (and media) is rallying behind Ken Paxton, I don’t really care to engage with randos online over this topic
(I am not a Maine voter.) It would be one thing if Platner were running against, like, Ken Paxton or someone else comparably "Trumpy" and personally reprehensible.
But I'm genuinely shocked at how the Left's thought-leaders are rallying around the Nazi tattoo guy to chuck *Susan Collins* out of the Senate.
Susan Collis, who's personally mild-mannered and who helped kibosh the attempts to repeal the ACA in 2017.
1. I think it's a little disingenuous framing to say that Gertner has been supportive of her husband and then *also* just so happens to have been paid $30k by the campaign. She's been paid by the campaign because, like her husband, it is currently her full-time job. Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but it seems like you're implying she's being paid *to be supportive* of her husband, which I think is kinda gross.
2. You're leaving out a *very* important detail that Gertner told McDonald the story about the texts in confidence and she betrayed that confidence long after leaving the campaign (which she did I think back in October). Katz's anger is rightfully based on that betrayal of trust. You could make the argument that McDonald simply didn't want that story unreported before the primary, but that doesn't square with someone who has known this since September 2025 or earlier and has been actively campaigning against Graham since. It reads like someone who has an axe to grind and withheld what they thought was a pivotal story until it could materially harm the campaign.
And on the subject of it being voter's business, this is admittedly my opinion, but Amy has forgiven Graham for all of this and did some time ago. Particularly with marital stuff, I think that if the offendee has forgiven the offender, notwithstanding something like abuse or assault (i.e. actual crimes), it is a private matter and should be treated as such.
I'm not a Maine voter. But this is between consenting adults with no coercive power differential. If it was sexual assault, or screwing one of his interns or employees, that's concerning. Sexting some rando on a dating app? Yawn, not my business, don't care
"There’s no particular reason for Collins to have leaned into her opposition research file while the Democratic primary is technically still unresolved."
I suspect this is Plattner's team strategically releasing this info now, so that if Collins brings it up they can say it is old news that the voters already considered before voting for him in the primary.
Something important to note, is people in Maine really do want to vote explicitly for other Mainers. It matters more that you seem like another one from the state rather than a political entity from elsewhere.
Gideon was dominating polls, but she was not a Mainer. That ultimately may have been the main thing that hurt her that polls couldn't capture.
> “Part of Platner’s appeal, I think, is that he doesn’t come across as a partisan in a state that’s famously nonpartisan.”
Exactly right. What confounds me about the discourse around Platner’s candidacy is that it’s being conducted through a totally partisan lens. Mainstream GOP types think Collins has a shot because Platner is too progressive. Establishment Dems worry Collins has a shot because of the Nazi stuff and adultery.
Has no one in New York or Washington considered that Maine voters might like a weird mix of economic populism and retrograde cultural politics? Have they ever been to rural New England?
"While I personally don’t care much about a candidate’s personal conduct, so long as it doesn’t impact his performance in office."
The problem with this reasoning is that a person with poor personal conduct is susceptible to influence and pressure from those who know their secrets. So, it ends up impacting their performance in office, like it or not.
Thanks for covering this story given all the sports news going on as it's all my friends in Maine want to talk about right now. I wonder how this generally relates to some of the anti-incumbency bias that was seen around the world in 2024 elections due to hyper inflation? In other words, while Susan Collins has overperformed in the past, does this become less important given affordability and gas prices are a massive issue for folks who are lower on the income scale.
I was a political consultant (media buyer) for ten races in Maine (governor, many ballot props, etc). It is as good as it gets for economically reaching voters. Big bucks are spent and they flood the state with ads.
This guy is a complete disaster, and that was before the latest revelations. It's absolutely puzzling why Maine Democrats flocked to this clown over their actually competent sitting Governor. Susan Collins might be a Republican, but she's not very MAGA and she has already beaten higher quality Democrat candidates in the Trump era. I'd make her a small favorite in this race, with room to grow. It seems that White men basically have no floor, in either party. The times, they haven't changed all that much!
Can’t articulate exactly why this doesn’t concern me for Platner’s chances, but it doesn’t. Maybe it’s because Susan Collins is 72 years old and has been in office for many years - like Mills, she has some Biden-gunk on her. And I think the electorate is just fed up with older politicians who don’t know when it’s time to quit, no matter which party they’re from. Unless something REALLY egregious emerges about Platner (like if he actually unapologetically CHEATS on his wife between now and Election Day), I still predict a comfortable win for him in November.
To me, the biggest indictment of the Democrats here is that the only serious alternative to Platner is 78 years old with high name recognition and relatively low popularity in the state. Like Matt Iglesias mentions in his post, it shows a massive failure in candidate recruitment. I get that Maine is a smaller state than Georgia, but if the Democrats had an alternative candidate in Maine even close to Warnock or Ossoff's level of political skill, that person would be a no brainer.
First "sexting" is not a real clear description of Platner's behavior or issue. But I think G McDonald was simply wrong to dump crap on Platner . I don't know the details but I understand that Platner's wife told McDonald about some of the early marriage issues with Platner "in confidence". Some people love betraying friends. Vengeful, angry behavior. It is also not clear why McDonald left Platner's campaign staff last October. Another unknown. It's beyond me to judge since I don't understand what are the basic facts and motivations of people.
Staffers are neither priests nor therapists and should not be expected to circle the wagons to protect candidates. It is valid to hold prospective US Senate candidates to a relatively high standard of personal content. The standard doesn't have to be "completely above reproach," and if this were the first issue raised, maybe it goes away after a 24 hour Twitter news cycle. It isn't in this case though. It's annoying that Platner spun his other scandals off as youthful indiscretions from a decade+ ago, only for us to discover a new issue from the past 2-3 years.
I am not in Maine, so it ultimately doesn't matter to me, and I likely would vote for him over Collins even if I did live in Maine, but it speaks to a problem in the party that better candidates weren't recruited for this critical race. Party leaders throwing so much initial support behind Mills implies that they have learned nothing from the 2024 debacle.
I agree with a lot of what you said but really disagree with your first point: you're saying that if someone you hired to help asks you to share anything that might damage your campaign in the future you should expect to worry about *them* using whatever you say to damage your campaign themselves later? No way; it's a betrayal and unprofessional, and I hope (if this description of events is true) that that lady doesn't have a future in politics. This would be like if you hired a PR firm and then later that same firm released your private emails to attack your reputation. Why would anyone work with that firm ever again?
Nazi Tattoo? I sleep.
Cheating on his wife: Real Shit??
Democrats have to overcome both gerrymandering and the insane double standard for personal conduct it’s wild
What "double standard"?
The GOP candidate in the 2024 race to be Governor of North Carolina was Mark Robinson, a sleazy he'er-do-well whose extremely Platner-esque activity on message boards (calling himself a Nazi and lurid sex discourse, et al.) led Republicans to buck him--he lost the race in NC by 15 points.
A year later it came out that Jay Jones, Dem candidate for Virginia's AG (and who even care's who the AG is?) (1) served community service hours he'd been sentenced to by a judge by working on his own PAC and (2) had text messages fantasizing about his political opponents suffering gun violence. It was a vile mixture of personal failings that *also had public/political* valence. Virginia made him AG anyway.
I flagged that at the time btw:
https://natesilver.substack.com/p/a-1010-night-for-democrats?r=ehflg&utm_campaign=comment-list-share-cta&utm_medium=web&comments=true&commentId=173989025
Look friend in a world Donald Trump is the president and the entire GOP (and media) is rallying behind Ken Paxton, I don’t really care to engage with randos online over this topic
If you’re gonna tolerate garbage conduct from your guy, you can’t really complain about the other guy’s conduct IMO.
(I am not a Maine voter.) It would be one thing if Platner were running against, like, Ken Paxton or someone else comparably "Trumpy" and personally reprehensible.
But I'm genuinely shocked at how the Left's thought-leaders are rallying around the Nazi tattoo guy to chuck *Susan Collins* out of the Senate.
Susan Collis, who's personally mild-mannered and who helped kibosh the attempts to repeal the ACA in 2017.
Two things worth noting here:
1. I think it's a little disingenuous framing to say that Gertner has been supportive of her husband and then *also* just so happens to have been paid $30k by the campaign. She's been paid by the campaign because, like her husband, it is currently her full-time job. Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but it seems like you're implying she's being paid *to be supportive* of her husband, which I think is kinda gross.
2. You're leaving out a *very* important detail that Gertner told McDonald the story about the texts in confidence and she betrayed that confidence long after leaving the campaign (which she did I think back in October). Katz's anger is rightfully based on that betrayal of trust. You could make the argument that McDonald simply didn't want that story unreported before the primary, but that doesn't square with someone who has known this since September 2025 or earlier and has been actively campaigning against Graham since. It reads like someone who has an axe to grind and withheld what they thought was a pivotal story until it could materially harm the campaign.
And on the subject of it being voter's business, this is admittedly my opinion, but Amy has forgiven Graham for all of this and did some time ago. Particularly with marital stuff, I think that if the offendee has forgiven the offender, notwithstanding something like abuse or assault (i.e. actual crimes), it is a private matter and should be treated as such.
I'm not a Maine voter. But this is between consenting adults with no coercive power differential. If it was sexual assault, or screwing one of his interns or employees, that's concerning. Sexting some rando on a dating app? Yawn, not my business, don't care
"There’s no particular reason for Collins to have leaned into her opposition research file while the Democratic primary is technically still unresolved."
I suspect this is Plattner's team strategically releasing this info now, so that if Collins brings it up they can say it is old news that the voters already considered before voting for him in the primary.
Something important to note, is people in Maine really do want to vote explicitly for other Mainers. It matters more that you seem like another one from the state rather than a political entity from elsewhere.
Gideon was dominating polls, but she was not a Mainer. That ultimately may have been the main thing that hurt her that polls couldn't capture.
> “Part of Platner’s appeal, I think, is that he doesn’t come across as a partisan in a state that’s famously nonpartisan.”
Exactly right. What confounds me about the discourse around Platner’s candidacy is that it’s being conducted through a totally partisan lens. Mainstream GOP types think Collins has a shot because Platner is too progressive. Establishment Dems worry Collins has a shot because of the Nazi stuff and adultery.
Has no one in New York or Washington considered that Maine voters might like a weird mix of economic populism and retrograde cultural politics? Have they ever been to rural New England?
"While I personally don’t care much about a candidate’s personal conduct, so long as it doesn’t impact his performance in office."
The problem with this reasoning is that a person with poor personal conduct is susceptible to influence and pressure from those who know their secrets. So, it ends up impacting their performance in office, like it or not.
Thanks for covering this story given all the sports news going on as it's all my friends in Maine want to talk about right now. I wonder how this generally relates to some of the anti-incumbency bias that was seen around the world in 2024 elections due to hyper inflation? In other words, while Susan Collins has overperformed in the past, does this become less important given affordability and gas prices are a massive issue for folks who are lower on the income scale.
Idk, I am actually pretty confident Platner is gonna screw it up
I was a political consultant (media buyer) for ten races in Maine (governor, many ballot props, etc). It is as good as it gets for economically reaching voters. Big bucks are spent and they flood the state with ads.
This guy is a complete disaster, and that was before the latest revelations. It's absolutely puzzling why Maine Democrats flocked to this clown over their actually competent sitting Governor. Susan Collins might be a Republican, but she's not very MAGA and she has already beaten higher quality Democrat candidates in the Trump era. I'd make her a small favorite in this race, with room to grow. It seems that White men basically have no floor, in either party. The times, they haven't changed all that much!
Can’t articulate exactly why this doesn’t concern me for Platner’s chances, but it doesn’t. Maybe it’s because Susan Collins is 72 years old and has been in office for many years - like Mills, she has some Biden-gunk on her. And I think the electorate is just fed up with older politicians who don’t know when it’s time to quit, no matter which party they’re from. Unless something REALLY egregious emerges about Platner (like if he actually unapologetically CHEATS on his wife between now and Election Day), I still predict a comfortable win for him in November.