AUGUSTA — Only a day after Graham Platner reversed his Nazi symbol stance and decided the tattoo design is “eminently reasonable”, he suffered his first smackdown from Gov. Janet Mills’ campaign this morning as his suggestions that women are the ones at fault for sexual assault resurfaces.
The Mills campaign posted its first coordinated attack on Platner on X as developments accelerated this week. The contest between the oyster farmer and the bureaucrat is intensifying ahead of the June 9 Democratic primary for a seat held by Republican Sen. Susan Collins.
This morning, the official X account for Gov. Janet Mills posted a targeted campaign ad that highlighted Graham Platner’s statements last year, putting the responsibility on women for sexual assault, featuring disgusted reactions by female voters.
Governor Mills’ decision to deploy a digital attack at sunrise this morning also shifts her strategy into direct confrontation as she weaponizes uncovered comments from now-deleted Reddit posts by Platner in 2013.
Just yesterday, March 16, Platner had amended his original position regarding his Totenkopf chest tattoo — a skull-and-crossbones design that was historically worn by Nazi S.S. soldiers. His choice transition reverses his prior statements where he characterized the tattoo as a drunk mistake while serving our country abroad.
The 24-hour sequence is not ideal for the oysterman, as converging pressures on Platner arrive just as the primary campaign gains steam. What was once written off as conservative trash talk about the young socialist has now transformed into a full blown institutional response from the sitting governor in Maine.
Platner faces a multi-front battle as rapid succession in campaign issues arise surrounding his once-disavowed Nazi tattoo and now sexism worries regarding his historical beliefs on sexual assault. As Mills begins opening her institutional toolbox, Maine voters still weigh the odd matchup between a veteran governor and the young revolutionary socialist.
