Aw shucks: Maine Oyster Man's senatorial campaign is suddenly just a shell of its former self

We’re witnessing an awesome display of Machiavellism politics at its full power unfolding up here in Vacationland, and it’s fascinating to watch. The protagonists: the Old Guard Democrat power players vs. the New Progressives. This week, just as it seemed as though the progressives would prevail, the master himself, Chuck Schumer, showed that he’s still capable of the hardball political tactics and strategy that have kept him and his cohort in control of their party for decades.

On August 19th, a Mainer named Gerald Platner, 41, announced that he would be contesting 77-year-old Janet Mills in the upcoming Democrat party’s primary to select a challenger to the incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins. Although Platner is the son of an Ellsworth lawyer, and the grandson of architect Warren Platner, designer of, among other projects, the original Windows of the World restaurant, he portrayed himself as a hard-working, man of the people “oystah fahma” from Frenchman’s Harbor:

”MEET GRAHAM

”Graham Platner is a Marine and U.S. Army veteran, oyster farmer, and a Democratic candidate running for U.S. Senate in Maine, running to defeat Susan Collins, defeat her billionaire backers, and win back the seat for the working Mainers being priced out of our homes”

Politico had the story, and pointed out the main problem Platner would face: As part of the Democrat’s grand plan to regain the Senate, the term-limited Governor Mills had been personally recruited by Chuck Schumer to run against Collins, and there was no room in that plan for upstarts:

Maine oyster farmer wants to upend Democratic politics with Senate bid

Graham Platner wants to oust Sen. Susan Collins — and disrupt national Dems’ plans to unite around Gov. Janet Mills.

Adding insult to hoped-for injury, Platner also vowed that he would not support Schumer as Senate Majority Leader should the Democrats regain control in 2026 — as Chuckles might have said, “if you challenge me, I have six ways from Sunday to get back at you”.

It was war. Platner was the creation of the “progressive” wing of the new Democrats, and even before they let him announce his candidacy they’d lined up $5 million in out-of-state cash and assigned him two political operatives, Morris Katz, a top admaker for New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani, and Joe Calvello, a former senior aide to Sen. John Fetterman who, along with other staffers, had deserted Fetterman’s camp in 2024 after the senator declared his support for Israel.

The battle was joined, and the Establishment Democrats went to work immediately, assigning their opposition research team to find dirt on the enemy. They found plenty, but delayed releasing it until Janet Mills officially announced her candidacy this past Tuesday. On Wednesday, Schumer’s team gave Politico the first shovelfuls of dirt: selected social media posts the Oyster Farmer had made a few years ago advocating armed rebellion, an admission that he was a communist, and denouncing Maine’s rural population as third-generation, imbecilic harelips. Politico ate it up:

Maine Senate candidate promoted violent political action in since-deleted online posts

That was Thursday morning, and that took care of Platner’s blue collar voters, but it was just a left hook. The knockout punch, aimed at his progressive backing, came with the release yesterday of additional posts on women and blacks. Progressives would see nothing wrong at all with a candidate who supported street violence and communism, but attacks on these sacred cows? Quell horror!

The Bangor Daily News duly summarized all the known (so far — there are probably more still held in reserve) offensive Platner posts, but led with the killer:

Graham Platner asked why Black people ‘don’t tip’ and referenced rape in old Reddit posts

In Reddit posts from 2013, Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner asked why Black people “don’t tip” and suggested people concerned about being raped shouldn’t be inebriated around people they don’t feel comfortable with.

Those posts, first reported on by the Bangor Daily News, add to previous coverage from CNN and Politico published Thursday about Platner’s writings on the social media site about his ideology and political violence. The BDN obtained more posts made under Platner’s handle, “P-Hustle,” through an online database. He posted on the social media site more than 1,800 times between 2009 and 2021.

Platner’s past comments came to light the same week that Gov. Janet Mills joined the Democratic primary for the right to face Republican Sen. Susan Collins in 2026. The posts threaten to upend an out-of-nowhere campaign that has generated grassroots momentum, raising roughly $5 million and signing up thousands of volunteers.

Platner responded to a 2013 post on Reddit entitled “What is one question you have always wanted to ask someone of another race,” writing, “Why don’t black people tip?” He worked as a bartender at Tune Inn on Capitol Hill, where he was a guest bartender last month. 

“I work as a bartender and it always amazes me how solid this stereotype is,” he wrote. “Every now and again a black patron will leave a 15-20% tip, but usually it [is] between 0-5%. There’s got to be a reason behind it, what is it?”

That same year, he also responded to a post about underwear designed to prevent sexual assault saying people should “take some responsibility for themselves and not get so f—-ked up they wind up having sex with someone they don’t mean to?” 

Platner also made references to political violence in several posts. In 2018, he said in response to a thread in which someone invoked leaving the U.S. due to Trump-era immigration policies: “Fight until you get tired of fighting with words and then fight with signs, and fists, and guns if need be.” 

In other 2018 posts first reported by Politico, Platner said those who “expect to fight fascism without a good semi-automatic rifle … ought to do some reading of history.” He also said “an armed working class is a requirement for economic justice.”

CNN focused on a series of posts from 2021 in which Platner also called himself a communist, said rural Americans are “racist” and “stupid,” called all cops “bastards” and used the word “retard” several times.

And it worked, or at least it’s working, and the end is near, as this morning’s news reveals.

Former Maine lawmaker resigns from Graham Platner’s campaign over Reddit posts

The political director for Graham Platner’s U.S. Senate campaign resigned Friday after Platner’s past online posts featuring numerous controversial remarks resurfaced this week.

Former state Rep. Genevieve McDonald of Stonington was one of the most prominent Maine Democrats who joined Platner’s campaign after a buzzy August launch saw the Sullivan oysterman and military veteran draw national attention in addition to big crowds at his town hall-style rallies. She sent her resignation letter exclusively to the Bangor Daily News.

The past week has dealt Platner, 41, the biggest test yet in his nascent campaign, and it coincided with Gov. Janet Mills joining the Democratic primary Tuesday for the chance to take on U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, in 2026. McDonald’s exit showed discord among the campaign that includes many progressive strategists from out of state.

….

McDonald, who was consulting for Preti Strategies before joining Platner’s team, wrote in Friday’s resignation letter the past statements “were not known to me when I agreed to join the campaign, and they are not words or values I can stand behind in a candidate.”

”While I am empathetic to Graham’s experiences and respect his personal journey and growth, I cannot overlook the volume and nature of his past comments, many of which were made as an adult, not as a young man,” McDonald wrote.

The Platner campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on McDonald’s resignation.

It is the first crack in the structure of Platner’s campaign that has otherwise enjoyed plenty of momentum, seen packed crowds at the town hall-style events, signed up about 11,000 volunteers and raised roughly $5 million in its first two months. 

That included raising $500,000 in donations in the 24 hours after Mills entered the race Tuesday with plenty of backing from national Democrats who believe the 77-year-old governor has the best chance of unseating the 72-year-old Collins.

The cut-off date for entering the Democrat primary was Wednesday the 15th, so there’s no time for the progressives to field a new challenger to replace this now-dead one. Schumer 1, Progressives 0.