If you are Graham Platner, the Bernie Sanders endorsed candidate trying to unseat Susan Collins in Maine, your week just went from bad to catastrophic. As USA Journal reported, Cheyenne Hunt, the attorney and progressive influencer whose work helped expose the sexual harassment allegations that ended Eric Swalwell's congressional career, is now working with multiple women who had personal relationships with Platner. Her organization, Reckoning Action, is providing pro bono legal counsel and helping these women deal with media attention.
Let's just review the Platner highlight reel so far, because it reads like someone designed a candidate in a lab specifically to lose a Senate race. There is a Nazi tattoo. There is a sexting scandal. There are domestic abuse allegations from a former girlfriend. And there is a New York Times story that, according to widespread reporting, was allegedly softened after Platner's legal team got to the paper in the 24 hours before publication and pressured them to remove the more explosive details.
That last part is doing a lot of heavy lifting. A Democratic Senate candidate's legal team is credibly accused of running an active suppression campaign against women trying to tell their stories to the press. The same political party that spent years building its brand around believing women and holding powerful men accountable apparently has no problem when the powerful man in question is on their team. Funny how that works.
The polls are starting to reflect reality. Susan Collins has taken a three point lead for the first time. Even a separate poll that still showed Platner slightly ahead contained what Politico described as massive warning signs, with a majority of voters saying his controversies have shaken or outright destroyed their support for him. Collins is pulling ten percent of voters who actually want Democrats to win the Senate back. People who want a Democratic majority are choosing a Republican over this guy. That is not a warning sign. That is a five alarm fire.
Hunt's involvement signals that additional allegations exist that have not yet been published. She does not organize pro bono legal teams for women who have nothing to say. She does not insert herself into Senate races in the final weeks as a recreational activity. There are stories sitting with media outlets, and Platner's lawyers are allegedly working overtime to keep them from seeing daylight.
Here is the part that should have every Democrat in Maine sweating through their shirt. July 14th is the last day Platner can legally withdraw from the race and allow the party to replace him on the ballot. After that date, whatever comes out (and based on everything swirling around this race, something is coming) Maine Democrats are stuck with him. No substitutions. No emergency replacements. Just a candidate with a Nazi tattoo, alleged abuse accusations, and a legal team allegedly focused on silencing women, limping toward November.
The Democrats saw the warning signs. They ignored them. They bet the Senate on this guy. Now the woman who helped take down Eric Swalwell has shown up with a team of lawyers, and the clock is ticking toward a deadline that nobody can extend. Somewhere Susan Collins is sipping coffee and watching this unfold with a calm that can only come from knowing your opponent is doing all your campaign work for you.
Read more conservative news commentary at: USA Journal News
