I've only lived in Maine just under five years, so I am still learning a lot about this state's very unique political culture. I think this article sums up quite nicely what I see as the pros/cons of both candidates in the Dem primary. I read that Platner's supporters often say that he has changed, but as a voter, I can only go off of his public record and it is very thin. I'm not willing to condemn him or excuse him at this moment. I don't know enough about him. I won't be voting based on campaign promises and vibes (for either candidate), so it will be interesting to see how it plays out. I have heard from the moderate Rs and independents in my life who were turned off by Trump's overreach that they really want to be able to vote for Collins. Most of them have been voting for Dems in the presidential race in the past two cycles and they did so against their actual beliefs about economic policy, but because they were alarmed by Trump. They are not reading Collins's cabinet votes the same way as progressive and liberal voters are...mainly because they see her as someone who reflects their moderate views on business/economic policy. They are less likely to hold those cabinet confirmation votes against her. I know they will be turned off both by Platner's ties to Bernie Sanders and his self-description as a communist/socialist. Collins, I assume, will hammer those posts hard in a campaign against him. I am a pragmatist...as you say, Platner's strength might be his ability to hold progressives together and win back Trump voters motivated by his populist message. Mills's might be that she is so well-known here in Maine and could be more palatable to moderate liberals, conservatives, and independents in a race against Collins. I don't think Trump voters like her very much. I don't know enough about politics here to know which coalition has the potential to be bigger than Collins's, so I hope you keep writing, Amy! Thanks for your work!
I'm letting this whole thing upset me more than it should , but I really hope he drops out. I'm not interested in making an absolute statement if he's bad or good, but he's not ready to beat Collins. I do wish him grace and i love seeing people change... but blaming "The DNC" or "Mills people" for this Reddit or tattoo information, is sour grapes! Collins people and Republican groups will totally roast him for this, if he becomes the runner. We all have politics and issues we want to see promoted, but its not politically or morally correct to go into an election with a zero percent chance to win. Younger versions of myself thought being loud and ignoring coalition work was the way to change politics, but that stuff never works in America! Its so frustrating to me, its pure idealism that any random person can promote left wing slogans and change the course of national politics... I can picture myself at Umaine about 15 years ago with Professor Doug Allen trying to convince me slogans are a massive issue for the left. His point didn't click with me until much later, but it is true :) We need serious runners and serious politics! Maine is a purple state and I'm pretty sure we can elected decent people, but life doesn't have shortcuts :)
My concern is the combinations of we've learned about his state of mind while he was also working for Blackwater (I think?), and the fact that he's new to politics means that just all of this has not not been aired out in the public square.
It seems like Platner is a ticking time bomb. We don't need a perfect candidate, but we do need someone normal who reflects the majority. Sad to see this happen to Platner but it was self-inflicted.
I'm not here to endorse or condemn Graham Platner, but I think that the sooner Democrats divorce themselves from the "perfect candidate" mentality the more elections they will win. We witnessed what happened in 2024 when Kamala Harris wouldn't say anything unless that comment was focus-group-tested beforehand. On the other side, the PEDOPHILE would spew out whatever random thoughts happened to coalesce in his cranium at that particular moment, and the MAGAt crowd enthusiastically cheered it on, even those most of it was neither accurate or made much sense.
If anyone in the LGBTQ+ community even associates with someone under 18 years old, the Right accuses them of "grooming" that person towards being gay. The Democratic Party today is essentially seeking out that groomed person - someone who, since reaching adolescence, has never said or tweeted anything controversial, has attended the right colleges, has advocated for the right causes, has dated the right person, etc, etc. Their candidate criteria is more stringent than the Catholic Church has when selecting a new Pope.
And in this endless search for the perfect candidate, numerous other candidates that could win elections are passed over, and their perfect candidate ends up losing the election. The purity test needs to stop. If America can elect a convicted criminal and PEDOPHILE as its Dictator-In-Chief, an average Joe candidate - warts and all - at least deserves a look.
Without delving into the specifics in your comment, I absolutely agree that there is no perfect candidate. In this race, an awful lot of voters will go for someone who has some things about them that they don't like. Also, putting political figures on a pedestal can become cult-like.
Excellent piece- very careful unpacking of the Platner controversy. It seems clear that he rings the bell for many Mainers despite his shocking early rhetoric. I can’t really wrap my head around that. His statements were warmongering and misogynistic, posted repeatedly. That seems like a character flaw whether retracted now or not. Hard to see him as Socialist with that baggage.
I've only lived in Maine just under five years, so I am still learning a lot about this state's very unique political culture. I think this article sums up quite nicely what I see as the pros/cons of both candidates in the Dem primary. I read that Platner's supporters often say that he has changed, but as a voter, I can only go off of his public record and it is very thin. I'm not willing to condemn him or excuse him at this moment. I don't know enough about him. I won't be voting based on campaign promises and vibes (for either candidate), so it will be interesting to see how it plays out. I have heard from the moderate Rs and independents in my life who were turned off by Trump's overreach that they really want to be able to vote for Collins. Most of them have been voting for Dems in the presidential race in the past two cycles and they did so against their actual beliefs about economic policy, but because they were alarmed by Trump. They are not reading Collins's cabinet votes the same way as progressive and liberal voters are...mainly because they see her as someone who reflects their moderate views on business/economic policy. They are less likely to hold those cabinet confirmation votes against her. I know they will be turned off both by Platner's ties to Bernie Sanders and his self-description as a communist/socialist. Collins, I assume, will hammer those posts hard in a campaign against him. I am a pragmatist...as you say, Platner's strength might be his ability to hold progressives together and win back Trump voters motivated by his populist message. Mills's might be that she is so well-known here in Maine and could be more palatable to moderate liberals, conservatives, and independents in a race against Collins. I don't think Trump voters like her very much. I don't know enough about politics here to know which coalition has the potential to be bigger than Collins's, so I hope you keep writing, Amy! Thanks for your work!
Obviously I wrote this before news broke of Platner’s Nazi tattoo. It’s a hard no for me.
I'm letting this whole thing upset me more than it should , but I really hope he drops out. I'm not interested in making an absolute statement if he's bad or good, but he's not ready to beat Collins. I do wish him grace and i love seeing people change... but blaming "The DNC" or "Mills people" for this Reddit or tattoo information, is sour grapes! Collins people and Republican groups will totally roast him for this, if he becomes the runner. We all have politics and issues we want to see promoted, but its not politically or morally correct to go into an election with a zero percent chance to win. Younger versions of myself thought being loud and ignoring coalition work was the way to change politics, but that stuff never works in America! Its so frustrating to me, its pure idealism that any random person can promote left wing slogans and change the course of national politics... I can picture myself at Umaine about 15 years ago with Professor Doug Allen trying to convince me slogans are a massive issue for the left. His point didn't click with me until much later, but it is true :) We need serious runners and serious politics! Maine is a purple state and I'm pretty sure we can elected decent people, but life doesn't have shortcuts :)
My concern is the combinations of we've learned about his state of mind while he was also working for Blackwater (I think?), and the fact that he's new to politics means that just all of this has not not been aired out in the public square.
It seems like Platner is a ticking time bomb. We don't need a perfect candidate, but we do need someone normal who reflects the majority. Sad to see this happen to Platner but it was self-inflicted.
I'm not here to endorse or condemn Graham Platner, but I think that the sooner Democrats divorce themselves from the "perfect candidate" mentality the more elections they will win. We witnessed what happened in 2024 when Kamala Harris wouldn't say anything unless that comment was focus-group-tested beforehand. On the other side, the PEDOPHILE would spew out whatever random thoughts happened to coalesce in his cranium at that particular moment, and the MAGAt crowd enthusiastically cheered it on, even those most of it was neither accurate or made much sense.
If anyone in the LGBTQ+ community even associates with someone under 18 years old, the Right accuses them of "grooming" that person towards being gay. The Democratic Party today is essentially seeking out that groomed person - someone who, since reaching adolescence, has never said or tweeted anything controversial, has attended the right colleges, has advocated for the right causes, has dated the right person, etc, etc. Their candidate criteria is more stringent than the Catholic Church has when selecting a new Pope.
And in this endless search for the perfect candidate, numerous other candidates that could win elections are passed over, and their perfect candidate ends up losing the election. The purity test needs to stop. If America can elect a convicted criminal and PEDOPHILE as its Dictator-In-Chief, an average Joe candidate - warts and all - at least deserves a look.
Without delving into the specifics in your comment, I absolutely agree that there is no perfect candidate. In this race, an awful lot of voters will go for someone who has some things about them that they don't like. Also, putting political figures on a pedestal can become cult-like.
Platner has grown and changed over time. Mills has her veto record and she will never change. This 74 year old is voting for Platner.
Thank you for your comment. Indeed, Mills is a known quantity, for better and worse.
Excellent piece- very careful unpacking of the Platner controversy. It seems clear that he rings the bell for many Mainers despite his shocking early rhetoric. I can’t really wrap my head around that. His statements were warmongering and misogynistic, posted repeatedly. That seems like a character flaw whether retracted now or not. Hard to see him as Socialist with that baggage.