"A repeated warning is that Collins and the GOP are just waiting for Platner to win the nomination and then they’ll hammer him about the Nazi tattoos and all the other weird stuff."
The GOP has a guy who proudly wears Nazi tattoos running a fictional Call of Duty Department.
Good point—if the Nazi tattoos were that fatal politically you’d think it’d be even more fatal in a primary than in a general election (Nazi loving voters are likely to sit out the Democratic primary). If Mills can’t crush this guy here, she’s toast against Collins.
My big concern is electability—Collins is hard to beat and a tired establishment pol seems unlikely to make it happen. Also, isnt Platner’s wife Jewish? Sure, an antisemite could be married to a Jew (bigots can twist themselves in knots to justify their inconsistency) but if all we have on Platner is that he got a dumb tattoo that he now regrets, I’ll just shrug. The bigger question is vetting him now so we don’t get any surprises after he gets the nomination (if he does get it).
Picking an unpopular governor to throw their money and power behind (and locking other challengers out) rather than pick a lesser known politician sounds like the Democratic establishment we all know and hate.
So now we're left with someone who is hopefully an ex-Nazi. I mean, it worked out well for the space program, I guess...
Well we see how this goes. I assume Platner is going to win the primary.
Platner is good at Saying the Pretty Words What Democrats Like and he's not an Old so let's hope we don't get the Cotham/Fetterman Effect again.
The mention of Schumer reminds me that I'm still not seeing someone declaring early to go for Schumer's seat (as he is an Old a lot of Democrats hate online). Time is running out to build the national profile.
The things people complain about with Schumer are also a function of him being in office in general, especially since he's Old. The name of the game now is "pit fighter" and "do more with less and be young while doing so." And Democrats show that they are actually capable of getting rid of Dems they don't like.
I distinctly remember in fact some people arguing that Schumer is insufficiently fighting because he is old and a product of a Senate that worked with some manner of agreement.
So I expect that if Dems are so dissatisfied, they can hound him out of office just like they did Joe Biden if they actually want to get something done. And then they can get in the Fighter who always has the right rhetoric to lead from behind and leave leadership to go to a Dem in another state.
I personally think Schumer should be replaced bc he is not a strong leader for the party. Some of that has to do with age, but only in the sense that age reflects years in office. He presents as someone out of touch with the average voter. He’s also been consistently wrong about political conditions on the ground — stating in 2016 that Dems would gain 2 suburban voters in PA for every working class vote they lost, which was not true.
Of course the big part of the problem with Schumer is his caucus—he is a symptom of this tired establishment nonsense more than the cause of it. Lots of these people (Kaine, Warner, etc) need to be primaried out.
Platner also worked for Blackwater, which (along with the nazi tattoos, yes there is another besides the one he covered up), would be pretty disqualifying for me, but I do not live in Maine. Surely there are more than two people running in this primary?
Janet Mills is my governor. She is terming out, nearly 80 and had zero interest in running for Senate until Chuck Schumer practically threw himself in front of her car to get her to run-Graham Platner had already declared. Mills' reluctant entry into the race effectively iced out any other Dems here who might have been interested, leaving it a race of two. So, I would say, for people unhappy with their choices here...blame the Dem establishment, who once again had their finger on the pulse of a corpse. Janet Mills, at the tail of a long career, as a viable Senate candidate was dead before she started.
Platner is likely going to win the primary here unless Mills really turns it around somehow. But Susan Collins is a force, so no matter who wins the primary it will be an uphill battle to win a statewide general. Stay tuned.
Schumer's push/endorsement ALONE will likely be enough to tank Mill's run...The majority of the the dem voter base rightfully hates that guy. Back during Mamdani's run, I pointed out that Schumer's refusal to endorse him actually HELPED Mamdani's campaign
Is there really no chance of someone else getting the nomination? Schumer's endorsement doesn't seem to be really helpful at this point. Mamdani sure didn't need the Dem establishment. I'm sorry, I know nothing about Maine politics but surely they can find someone better than an 80 year old and a cosplay (former) nazi.
One can hope, but unfortunately I have to go with Platner on this one. Mostly because he has a better chance at beating Collins, but also because if there was anything else beside the tattoo that could have tanked him, it would have surfaced by now. No doubt there is a continuing deep dive into his past by BOTH the Collins AND Mills campaigns
I honestly think the electorate is long beyond caring what somebody might have said on Reddit or pasted onto their body over a decade ago, especially when the stakes are this high. Old Dem establishment and a lot of bluesky types haven't quite caught up to this realization yet, only a decade after it became clear. His defiance on this is unquestionably part of his appeal.
IDK, the left is full of purity ponies, myself included on certain things. Like those that say we "just need to accept a few pro life Dems so we can have a majority" and I'm like IF YOU TAKE MY RIGHTS AWAY I DON'T CARE WHICH PARTY YOU ARE.
I'm no strategist, just someone who's sad to see how little value women, people of color, children and the disabled matter to the halls of power.
He's probably going to walk away with this.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5777212-sen-heinrich-endorses-platner/?fbclid=IwdGRjcAQgx01jbGNrBCDHP2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHoXE7z_jX8SiiEFxcaOgqyAtMahBUNXddJ-1DGfYAxFN_mLe_nUql1r-pZRq_aem_kP0JRSD-Vav8BO7yLa4O2w
"A repeated warning is that Collins and the GOP are just waiting for Platner to win the nomination and then they’ll hammer him about the Nazi tattoos and all the other weird stuff."
The GOP has a guy who proudly wears Nazi tattoos running a fictional Call of Duty Department.
Good point—if the Nazi tattoos were that fatal politically you’d think it’d be even more fatal in a primary than in a general election (Nazi loving voters are likely to sit out the Democratic primary). If Mills can’t crush this guy here, she’s toast against Collins.
My big concern is electability—Collins is hard to beat and a tired establishment pol seems unlikely to make it happen. Also, isnt Platner’s wife Jewish? Sure, an antisemite could be married to a Jew (bigots can twist themselves in knots to justify their inconsistency) but if all we have on Platner is that he got a dumb tattoo that he now regrets, I’ll just shrug. The bigger question is vetting him now so we don’t get any surprises after he gets the nomination (if he does get it).
Great analysis, and the icing on the cake is the clip of Barnabas Collins arriving at Collinwood.
Picking an unpopular governor to throw their money and power behind (and locking other challengers out) rather than pick a lesser known politician sounds like the Democratic establishment we all know and hate.
So now we're left with someone who is hopefully an ex-Nazi. I mean, it worked out well for the space program, I guess...
God help us all.
Well we see how this goes. I assume Platner is going to win the primary.
Platner is good at Saying the Pretty Words What Democrats Like and he's not an Old so let's hope we don't get the Cotham/Fetterman Effect again.
The mention of Schumer reminds me that I'm still not seeing someone declaring early to go for Schumer's seat (as he is an Old a lot of Democrats hate online). Time is running out to build the national profile.
You shouldn’t need to unseat Schumer to remove him from leadership.
The things people complain about with Schumer are also a function of him being in office in general, especially since he's Old. The name of the game now is "pit fighter" and "do more with less and be young while doing so." And Democrats show that they are actually capable of getting rid of Dems they don't like.
I distinctly remember in fact some people arguing that Schumer is insufficiently fighting because he is old and a product of a Senate that worked with some manner of agreement.
So I expect that if Dems are so dissatisfied, they can hound him out of office just like they did Joe Biden if they actually want to get something done. And then they can get in the Fighter who always has the right rhetoric to lead from behind and leave leadership to go to a Dem in another state.
I personally think Schumer should be replaced bc he is not a strong leader for the party. Some of that has to do with age, but only in the sense that age reflects years in office. He presents as someone out of touch with the average voter. He’s also been consistently wrong about political conditions on the ground — stating in 2016 that Dems would gain 2 suburban voters in PA for every working class vote they lost, which was not true.
Of course the big part of the problem with Schumer is his caucus—he is a symptom of this tired establishment nonsense more than the cause of it. Lots of these people (Kaine, Warner, etc) need to be primaried out.
Oh Christ, I'd forgot about Cotham...What a sneak
Democrats need someone who isn’t a fossil practically. Time for a changing of the guard.
Platner also worked for Blackwater, which (along with the nazi tattoos, yes there is another besides the one he covered up), would be pretty disqualifying for me, but I do not live in Maine. Surely there are more than two people running in this primary?
My old coworker was briefly a candidate but dropped out. Part of the problem is you need a lot of resources when running statewide.
It sucks that this is the reality of it
Nope, just the two really
Janet Mills is my governor. She is terming out, nearly 80 and had zero interest in running for Senate until Chuck Schumer practically threw himself in front of her car to get her to run-Graham Platner had already declared. Mills' reluctant entry into the race effectively iced out any other Dems here who might have been interested, leaving it a race of two. So, I would say, for people unhappy with their choices here...blame the Dem establishment, who once again had their finger on the pulse of a corpse. Janet Mills, at the tail of a long career, as a viable Senate candidate was dead before she started.
Platner is likely going to win the primary here unless Mills really turns it around somehow. But Susan Collins is a force, so no matter who wins the primary it will be an uphill battle to win a statewide general. Stay tuned.
Schumer's push/endorsement ALONE will likely be enough to tank Mill's run...The majority of the the dem voter base rightfully hates that guy. Back during Mamdani's run, I pointed out that Schumer's refusal to endorse him actually HELPED Mamdani's campaign
Maine doesn't focus too much on Schumer, so that won't matter. The issues Stephen brings up in his article will.
Is there really no chance of someone else getting the nomination? Schumer's endorsement doesn't seem to be really helpful at this point. Mamdani sure didn't need the Dem establishment. I'm sorry, I know nothing about Maine politics but surely they can find someone better than an 80 year old and a cosplay (former) nazi.
There’s no chance because those are the only two running, and the clock is ticking down.
According to Ballotpedia, there are others running. Whether or not they are electable is another question. But there are more than two options.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5777212-sen-heinrich-endorses-platner/?fbclid=IwdGRjcAQgx01jbGNrBCDHP2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHoXE7z_jX8SiiEFxcaOgqyAtMahBUNXddJ-1DGfYAxFN_mLe_nUql1r-pZRq_aem_kP0JRSD-Vav8BO7yLa4O2w
Be that as it may, they are afterthoughts (I *live* in Maine and couldn't tell you another serious candidate). This race is between Platner and Mills.
One can hope, but unfortunately I have to go with Platner on this one. Mostly because he has a better chance at beating Collins, but also because if there was anything else beside the tattoo that could have tanked him, it would have surfaced by now. No doubt there is a continuing deep dive into his past by BOTH the Collins AND Mills campaigns
I honestly think the electorate is long beyond caring what somebody might have said on Reddit or pasted onto their body over a decade ago, especially when the stakes are this high. Old Dem establishment and a lot of bluesky types haven't quite caught up to this realization yet, only a decade after it became clear. His defiance on this is unquestionably part of his appeal.
yup...kinda where I am now
IDK, the left is full of purity ponies, myself included on certain things. Like those that say we "just need to accept a few pro life Dems so we can have a majority" and I'm like IF YOU TAKE MY RIGHTS AWAY I DON'T CARE WHICH PARTY YOU ARE.
I'm no strategist, just someone who's sad to see how little value women, people of color, children and the disabled matter to the halls of power.
It's grim.