The media has learned nothing from the Graham Platner scandal. Having promoted this guy before he even announced his run and gone along with his silly redemption arc story line for months, you'd think this might be a moment for reflection.
But no. Instead the Washington Post just published a story about how people in Platner's hometown of Sullivan, Maine feel about all the embarrassing revelations about him. And the gist seems to be that a lot of them wonder why he got into this given his baggage.
Greg Ring, 64, a landscaper and member of the Sullivan select board, remembered how Platner told him he was running for Senate before officially launching his campaign. Ring thought it was an odd choice for someone who wanted to start a family. “I don’t know why he’d want to put himself through this,” Ring said.
As Platner’s campaign accumulated controversies — including his tattoo resembling a Nazi symbol and alleged sexting with women other than his wife — he turned off some of his supporters...
Another neighbor in the area — a summer visitor to Maine for the past 35 years — said he knew Platner from his daily dog walks and fully endorsed Platner’s politics. Still, he was floored by the cascade of revelations during the campaign.
“Everything is going to be dug up, every little thing,” said the man, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect his privacy. Maybe Platner didn’t think his past would be picked over, he added. “But why would you expose yourself like that?”
His tattoo "resembling" a Nazi symbol? It was a Nazi symbol. Why are they still pretending there's some doubt? He covered it up for a reason. Regardless, Platner still has fans.
An older woman in a Platner campaign T-shirt — “Voted most likely to start a revolution,” it said, a high school-era description of Platner — drove up and approached the front door. In her hand, she held a note sealed with a blue heart-shaped sticker. She left shortly after.
Some are just tuning out the bad news.
Katie Nichols, 61, a store employee, remembers thinking that was when she realized Platner’s campaign was the real deal.
Now she’s trying to stay away from the torrent of news about Platner. Her impression of him is as a nice person and a good customer. “I want to keep it that way,” Nichols said Wednesday.
The comments are more interesting than the article in this case. The Post's comments are routinely full of far-let people shouting down any opinions they don't like. So it's no surprise the top comment is about moving on.
We are no longer interested in Platner, so you can drop these articles. We are interested in stopping the Republicans from turning the U.S. into a dictatorship.
Lots of Trump comparison as well.
Let's get real. Platner was no more than one single nominee for 1 Senate seat — and the Democrats forced him out before he could even run. In contrast, the Republicans continue to support Trump in spite of his own history of sexual assault, his corruption and authoritarianism, his undermining the rule of law and our Constitution, and his erratic behavior and mental decline.
But I was surprised by how many of the comments were negative about Platner and the party that promoted him.
I don't know what this guy had in mind, but a Nazi tattoo, cheating on your wife and rape are the sort of things that will get exposed along the way.
This comment sort of captured my feelings about the absurdity of the article itself.
Life is weird sometimes. You can be a beloved local and all it takes is a nazi tattoo, extramarital sexting, a history of abhorrent Reddit posts, a kik account, and a couple of rape accusations, and BAM! All of a sudden people see you differently.
You have to get about 10 comments in to find someone suggesting maybe the Democrats made a mistake.
I don’t know why Platner or anyone else thought he was suitable to be a senator. He had scant qualifications to run for the House. Maybe we should consider voting for boring qualified people and get our excitement and entertainment from sports.
And another:
How about not putting yourself out as a candidate when you know that pile of dirty laundry has a good chance of coming to light? How about not make not yourself a victim when the truth about you surfaces? How about political parties rigorously vetting their potential candidates rather than hoping nothing bad pops up?
And maybe Platner was just an arrogant jerk:
If Platner had been truly humble and contrite, if he had asked forgiveness and received it before even entering the race, if he had talked openly about his PTSD and struggles with alcohol, and if he had covered or removed the tattoo years and years ago.…then maybe none of this would have happened. His farewell speech exposed an arrogant and entitled guy who fails to understand that American do not want a guy like him in our Senate.
Anyway, if he couldn't win universal plaudits from Post readers, he really had no chance to win.
