July 7, 2026
A Nazi Tattoo, Offensive Posts, Now a Rape Allegation Against Maine Senate Candidate
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RSS Feed We are waiting for Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner to make it official, now that key supporters are lining up, publicly urging him to drop out of his race to unseat longtime Maine senator Susan Collins. Platner posted a 2 minute video denying explosive, new allegations from a former girlfriend who claims Platner raped her back in 2021 after showing up, uninvited to her home, violent and drunk. Platner cancelled multiple public events over the weekend and announced that he is taking time to reflect on the best path forward, while maintaining his innocence. This is the most egregious accusation against Platner, after several other women stepped forward in the days leading up to his primary, describing “unsettling” behavior from him.
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00:00:02
Speaker 1: Hey, folks, it is Tuesday, July seventh, and will this be the day that Graham Platner drops out of the race for Senate in Maine? And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ.
00:00:15
Speaker 2: Robes.
00:00:16
Speaker 1: The writing on the wall, clock ticking, whatever you want to call it. But it seems like it's going to be difficult for him to continue in a race of utmost importance Democrats.
00:00:25
Speaker 3: Yes, it seems utterly impossible at this point, as Democratic leader after former key supporter, after everyone is getting in line saying Graham Platner needs to drop out of this race.
00:00:40
Speaker 4: He has no support.
00:00:42
Speaker 3: The only person who hasn't spoken out yet, I believe is Bernie Sanders, but pretty much every other Democrat who had supported him has now publicly said I rescind my support.
00:00:53
Speaker 2: Robes.
00:00:53
Speaker 1: There was already a pretty high tolerance, right because Democrats were putting up with a lot because they were excited about the possibility of getting this seat away from Susan Collins been up there for thirty years. Could Democrats take this seat in Maine? Oh my goodness, Ropes. So they dealt with controversy after controversy after controversy with this guy. This one now sexual assault. When you're talking about a woman who says she was raped by Graham Platner, this is all bets are off.
00:01:21
Speaker 2: They have immediately run from this guy.
00:01:23
Speaker 3: Yes, and the woman who is accusing him is one of his former girlfriends. Her name is Jenny Rassacott, and she says that Graham Platner raped her in twenty twenty one.
00:01:35
Speaker 4: Now, she had.
00:01:36
Speaker 3: Previously spoken out to The New York Times. Remember they did that article on him in the weeks leading up to the primary, which, by the way, he won by seventy percent of the vote, despite some of these allegations by former girlfriends, but basically just describing his drunken behavior, his difficult comments, his unsettling behavior.
00:01:59
Speaker 4: So she was a part of that. She didn't say rape.
00:02:05
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, Even then, all of that looked bad, Yes, it sounded bad. It painted a picture of a bad dude, an angry dude, a dude with drinking problems, a guy even that had some PTSD.
00:02:17
Speaker 2: It did.
00:02:17
Speaker 1: It painted a bad picture and robes as bad as that all sounded, Democrats at the time stood by him still after all that. So with that context, the same woman who was a part of that complaint robes. It's worth wondering and asking why didn't she put this out the first time?
00:02:37
Speaker 2: And she does have an answer for that, h Yes.
00:02:39
Speaker 3: So she basically said that she wasn't ready to tell her full story, but she felt like at a certain point now that the voters of Maine needed to know the full story, so she shared it initially with Politico, and Politico claims that she corroborated her story by sharing emails with her therapist, a message to an acquaintance at the time warning her of him and his behavior. So at the time, she was telling people, including her therapist, Yeah.
00:03:09
Speaker 1: This was one of those stories when they come up like what's the evidence she has, like a very credibles.
00:03:16
Speaker 4: She does. She does.
00:03:17
Speaker 3: And then she also actually went on camera and spoke with CNN. So she describes her relationship with Platinus off and on, and she said she was casually dating him from twenty nineteen to twenty twenty one. But she says on this particular night, he was drunk texting her. She was already in bed and he said I want to come over, and she said, no, do not come over. I don't know why her door was unlocked, but her door was unlocked.
00:03:44
Speaker 4: He walks in. She claims he climbed.
00:03:45
Speaker 3: On top of her, grabbed her, and she said the struggle was so violent that a sewing cabinet of hers was knocked over while he.
00:03:53
Speaker 4: Was on top of her.
00:03:54
Speaker 3: And she said she actually had a needle stuck in her leg during the rape. She said, she repeatedly, she said, there were layers of non consent, telling him no, don't, telling him to stop.
00:04:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, this is one of those robes where that wasn't you didn't mishear it or confusion. She's the way she put it. You said, multiple layers, he violated, multiple layers of consent. And you help me, Robes, if you get a sense or an idea of how long like this went on before the actual quote unquote assault. It seemed like there was lack of better phrase here, robes, time to try to reason with him when he came in.
00:04:36
Speaker 3: Yes, but she said he was so drunk and she could tell. And she said the safest thing she felt like she could do at that moment was just to let it happen.
00:04:43
Speaker 4: She knew it was going to happen.
00:04:44
Speaker 2: That is interesting.
00:04:45
Speaker 1: We should get an expert in on that that idea I understand, because then what would a court or a jury later say to you if you say I decided to comply because it was safest. Well, that you complied, then it wasn't rape. Like that is a interesting to hear her say that. I'm sure many women feel.
00:05:02
Speaker 3: That women can understand where she was coming from. She just felt like at this point, if the more she fought, the more to be Yeah, and so she said she finally just complied. I thought this was interesting. She said, this was something she tried to forget for many years. I think a lot of women will understand that at well as well. But she said the next day he didn't remember anything. She said he had his arm around her and she was like, get off me, get out. Do you not remember what happened last night? And she said no. He claimed he did not remember. He left and he never spoke to her again. But CNN Jake Tapper specifically asked her on camera on live national television, did Graham Platner rape you? Her answer, by definition, yes, absolutely, that's I mean.
00:05:52
Speaker 2: That is that survivable in a campaign?
00:05:54
Speaker 1: Well, it's it's just a matter what the voters of Maine feel, what they think ultimately, but but gro you can't. That's a that's a woman who put her name in her face, sat down in front of a camera and said this guy raped her.
00:06:09
Speaker 2: That's uh. You got to listen to that.
00:06:11
Speaker 3: And I actually think too, yes, given that, but also the fact that she she kind of hinted at it or suggested it possibly earlier, and then finally got enough courage to say it outright. I mean, I actually think you could look at it as why would she Why wouldn't she have said it the first time?
00:06:28
Speaker 4: I actually think it makes sense.
00:06:30
Speaker 3: There is shame involved, there is a sense of responsibility oftentimes for rape victims.
00:06:34
Speaker 4: I could have done more, I should have done more, And.
00:06:37
Speaker 3: Maybe she was hesitant to just come forward with the full story until now.
00:06:42
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean I get that, and also understand when she says she didn't appreciate the way the story was covered the first time around, because it was a bunch of politics. It was a bunch of folks pointing at one of the accusers saying, ah, well, she was connected to the party to this other.
00:06:57
Speaker 2: Right, it kind of got lost and he's so.
00:07:01
Speaker 4: And that I think might be the key.
00:07:02
Speaker 3: He survived it and went on to win seventy percent of the vote on primary night despite those allegations and that article. So yes, Graham Platner has responded. He made a two minute or so video speaking to camera. He called the allegations troubling, serious and false.
00:07:21
Speaker 4: And this was his big sense.
00:07:23
Speaker 3: Any accusation of non consensual behavior is categorically false.
00:07:31
Speaker 2: What do you do? Right?
00:07:32
Speaker 1: He can't be having this discussion robes before a campaign. I don't know what his plan is, but he hasn't dropped out yet. But the party is running from him.
00:07:44
Speaker 4: Yes they are.
00:07:45
Speaker 3: And look, he canceled multiple public events over the weekend. And the other line that this is where he is right now as of this recording, he said, regardless of the inaccuracy of the reporting, but mindful of the political reality it will inflict. We are taking time to reflect on the best path forward. Certainly, that sounds like he's just getting his ducks in a row, yes, and making sure he's at peace with what he knows he has to do well just to drop out.
00:08:14
Speaker 2: Of the race.
00:08:15
Speaker 1: Saint Ropes here we go. What a mess for Democrats now in Maine. They were so so excited about the possibilities we know how close things are in the Senate.
00:08:24
Speaker 2: They were looking at the possibility robes.
00:08:26
Speaker 1: They could really take the Senate and give President Drum all kinds of hell his last two years. Ro This is high stakes stuff and they didn't necessarily need to have a perfect candidate, but you can't have one this flawed.
00:08:39
Speaker 3: No, And to that point, they stuck by him, despite the fact that he had a tattoo of a Nazi symbol on him, where he denied that he knew it. And then one of the girls, one of the women who spoke to The New York Times, said I'm sorry. He absolutely told me it was a Nazi tattoo, So that was concerning. Yes, And he had been previ dismissive ironically about rape on Reddit. He acknowledged it and said, please don't hold me accountable to the worst thing I said online fifteen years ago.
00:09:09
Speaker 4: But this is so ironic given these latest allegations.
00:09:13
Speaker 3: He literally put this on Reddit that people who were worried about rape shouldn't get so drunk that they quote wind up having sex with someone they don't mean to. Isn't that exactly what she just claimed he did to her while he was so drunk he forced sex, she claims, on someone who didn't want it. So his own words come back to haunt him specifically in this story as we.
00:09:37
Speaker 2: Say that that post didn't age well.
00:09:39
Speaker 3: It did not age well, and don't forget he also his wife came forward and before the campaign, even when public, let his campaign staff know that he yes, had been sending sexual messages to other women while they were married, and she was concerned. That was her big concern, that those women might come out and speak up and say, really, this family man was sexting me while married. So his wife actually made a very long video defending him, walking through the woods of Maine, saying, I love this man.
00:10:12
Speaker 4: He's a changed man. He's not who he used to be.
00:10:16
Speaker 3: I love him, and you know I support him.
00:10:18
Speaker 1: You know, soon people even applauded that a guy who was even struggled, maybe struggled mightily, and even that had done harm either to people around him or with words he said. A lot of people even looked and said, Okay, you can redeem yourself, you can apologize, you can as bad as a lot of that stuff was ropes and thrown to the fact that he was a military guy PTSD. Folks were willing ropes, and a part of that you have to look at and say, Okay, should we can we forgive? Yeah, does a candidate have to be perfect? You're not going to forgive somebody beating on a woman a rape. That's not what we're talking about. But those previous suggestions of bad behavior, nobody was looking past them robes, but we were a lot of folks were willing to listen to it in the context of what he was going through, what he had been through, where he was in his life at the time.
00:11:07
Speaker 3: Yes, So at that point, yes, his Democratic counter parts were so excited, as you pointed out about the possibility of unseating Senator Susan Collins, that they were willing to tolerate that, to look past that, to hope for better days and this redemptive man.
00:11:24
Speaker 4: But now when we come.
00:11:25
Speaker 3: Back, you won't believe the political reaction that Graham Platner is now receiving and certainly is going to lead to him dropping out of this race.
00:11:36
Speaker 4: And welcome back to this episode of Amy and TJ.
00:11:47
Speaker 3: We are literally waiting for word from Graham Platner. Most folks expect him to drop out of the race. If not today at least in the coming days. And look, the political reaction to this lady allegation of rape against a former girlfriend has been swift and steady.
00:12:06
Speaker 4: Senator Elizabeth Warren was one of his biggest supporters.
00:12:10
Speaker 3: She put out this statement, there can be no tolerance for sexual assault with so much at stake, the best path forward is for Graham Platner to step aside as the Democratic nominee and address these serious allegations outside the Senate race.
00:12:24
Speaker 1: That sounds like who did it for Swallwell, that's exactly what someone said a supporter. Yeah, I addressed this stuff, but not doing a campaign exactly.
00:12:33
Speaker 3: Congressman Roe Conna, again previously a key supporter, said Graham Platner should drop out from the race. I am withdrawing my endorsement.
00:12:42
Speaker 2: When Rowe does.
00:12:43
Speaker 1: You're like Roe has become a prominent voice and almost a voice of reason. And he's also Ro's been willing to got We've seen on Fox News, he's been willing to go do an interview, speak to anybody, exchange ideas. Wasn't he the one I can't remember who he teamed up with the Epstein fire.
00:12:58
Speaker 4: Yes, absolutely, And look he didn't not mince words there? How about this one?
00:13:02
Speaker 3: New York Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand put out a joint statement. They said, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee will not invest in the main Senate race if Platner remains on the ballot.
00:13:18
Speaker 4: That's significant.
00:13:19
Speaker 1: So how can he do this on his own? How can he do this without a single din, without any support? Look, it's a small state at this point. Does he need name recognition? No?
00:13:28
Speaker 4: No, everyone knows his name.
00:13:30
Speaker 2: How can he do this? Robes?
00:13:32
Speaker 1: What can they do to him if he says I did not do this, This is a lie. He's even gone as far having gotten into robes, the suggestion that this woman is being coached, the suggestion that all of this is a planned attack against him.
00:13:50
Speaker 4: So he did say that.
00:13:51
Speaker 1: What if he pushes back and says, nope, this is false and you're not going to force me.
00:13:54
Speaker 3: And he's questioning the timing because look, the last set of allegations came out about a week or two before the primary. How about this for timing? Democrats only have until July twenty seventh, so the end of this month to replace him on the ballot, So time is ticking so once again, now you've got another deadline that he has to drop out by. So if anyone's trying to push him out, now would be the time because Democrats have they don't have time.
00:14:23
Speaker 2: He can wait. He can wait them out.
00:14:25
Speaker 4: He could And so look, here's the deal.
00:14:27
Speaker 3: If he didn't do this, if he is completely innocent, I don't think he should.
00:14:31
Speaker 1: Drop out, right rotalk, Can you make that argue if that is what he believes.
00:14:35
Speaker 3: Truly, if this is a political smear campaign based on lies, then absolutely he should stand his ground. Of Donna Brazil, how about this one former chair of the DNC. I'm sure pretty much everyone knows her name by now. She put this out on X sounds a little tongue in cheek. Sure, take the rest of the day and night tomorrow. We need a plan and mister Platner can step aside and focus on his family and well being.
00:15:00
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, take a beat, she said, exactly what we're saying.
00:15:05
Speaker 2: We're just waiting.
00:15:06
Speaker 4: Yes.
00:15:06
Speaker 3: Even his opponent, Senator Susan Collins, weighed in. She said the allegations are appalling, but added it's not up to me to choose the Democratic nominee for Senate.
00:15:17
Speaker 1: I could see her like smoking on a cigar as she was writing that statement, like, after all this, y'all really tried to write me off and look who you.
00:15:23
Speaker 4: Got, right, Like, good luck Democrats.
00:15:27
Speaker 3: And yes, as I mentioned at the top, the only person who we would have expected to hear from whom we have not yet is Senator Bernie Sanders. And this is a guy who has been by his side on the campaign trail, campaigning next to him at rallies. He has been radio silent, and that certainly is not something we are.
00:15:45
Speaker 4: Used to from Bernie Sanders.
00:15:47
Speaker 3: He usually says exactly what's on his mind, and so far he has not weighed in on the platnerm.
00:15:54
Speaker 1: Situation, you know, and he doesn't have to. He can let this play out, I suppose, and just wait for Platiner to do his thing. Is he's trying to do a service to Platiner by not piling on. But folks want to hear whether or not this prominent guy, mister Sanders, is still suggesting we should be supporting this guy.
00:16:12
Speaker 3: Yes, and I'm curious are there possible criminal charges here? Because we're talking twenty twenty one. You have a woman who apparently has receipts enough for Politico and several other news organizations to feel confident that she has valid claims and certainly a valid accusation against Graham Platner, and that is certainly a criminal act.
00:16:35
Speaker 4: That was a crime that she describes.
00:16:38
Speaker 3: So any word, I haven't seen anything yet for the main authorities or police about any possible criminal charges.
00:16:44
Speaker 2: But she didn't state she's going to the police, right.
00:16:47
Speaker 3: But at this point does she have to wance someone makes a public claim of rape for credibility and apparently has proof of said rape is a crime. It's not on her anymore. Now it's up to officials, the DA whoever is there in Maine, who wants to see if they pursue charges. And I would imagine that is a possibility given the severity of what she is saying.
00:17:09
Speaker 2: That's true. This doesn't this happened now?
00:17:10
Speaker 1: Inn with Swallwell, yeah, they did the press conference and say we are getting up and immediately going to the police station.
00:17:16
Speaker 3: Correct, And look, they don't have to have her press charges in this kind of a situation, but they would obviously need her cooperation. But for her to go public with this, I can't imagine why she would suddenly stop short of that if she in fact stands by the version of events that she described.
00:17:33
Speaker 1: But if she does, she has her own reasons, right, just like she had her reasons. We're holding on to this part of the story until now. Robes can't even imagine what that experience was like. What it's like to watch him be so prominent. What it's like, Robes, to see him be so prominent and be praised and then have very prominent national figures still support him.
00:17:59
Speaker 4: Well, that has all gone off.
00:18:00
Speaker 2: For a guy you say, raped you.
00:18:02
Speaker 1: To see him being celebrated like that, I'm sure did rub her the wrong way.
00:18:08
Speaker 3: I'm sure it was part of the reason why she decided to come forward and tell her full story. All right, well, we will continue to keep our eye on this developing story. But in the meantime, thank you as always for listening to us, every one. I'm Amy Roeboch alongside TJ.
00:18:21
Speaker 4: Holmes. We'll talk to you soon.
Speaker 1: Hey, folks, it is Tuesday, July seventh, and will this be the day that Graham Platner drops out of the race for Senate in Maine? And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ.
00:00:15
Speaker 2: Robes.
00:00:16
Speaker 1: The writing on the wall, clock ticking, whatever you want to call it. But it seems like it's going to be difficult for him to continue in a race of utmost importance Democrats.
00:00:25
Speaker 3: Yes, it seems utterly impossible at this point, as Democratic leader after former key supporter, after everyone is getting in line saying Graham Platner needs to drop out of this race.
00:00:40
Speaker 4: He has no support.
00:00:42
Speaker 3: The only person who hasn't spoken out yet, I believe is Bernie Sanders, but pretty much every other Democrat who had supported him has now publicly said I rescind my support.
00:00:53
Speaker 2: Robes.
00:00:53
Speaker 1: There was already a pretty high tolerance, right because Democrats were putting up with a lot because they were excited about the possibility of getting this seat away from Susan Collins been up there for thirty years. Could Democrats take this seat in Maine? Oh my goodness, Ropes. So they dealt with controversy after controversy after controversy with this guy. This one now sexual assault. When you're talking about a woman who says she was raped by Graham Platner, this is all bets are off.
00:01:21
Speaker 2: They have immediately run from this guy.
00:01:23
Speaker 3: Yes, and the woman who is accusing him is one of his former girlfriends. Her name is Jenny Rassacott, and she says that Graham Platner raped her in twenty twenty one.
00:01:35
Speaker 4: Now, she had.
00:01:36
Speaker 3: Previously spoken out to The New York Times. Remember they did that article on him in the weeks leading up to the primary, which, by the way, he won by seventy percent of the vote, despite some of these allegations by former girlfriends, but basically just describing his drunken behavior, his difficult comments, his unsettling behavior.
00:01:59
Speaker 4: So she was a part of that. She didn't say rape.
00:02:05
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, Even then, all of that looked bad, Yes, it sounded bad. It painted a picture of a bad dude, an angry dude, a dude with drinking problems, a guy even that had some PTSD.
00:02:17
Speaker 2: It did.
00:02:17
Speaker 1: It painted a bad picture and robes as bad as that all sounded, Democrats at the time stood by him still after all that. So with that context, the same woman who was a part of that complaint robes. It's worth wondering and asking why didn't she put this out the first time?
00:02:37
Speaker 2: And she does have an answer for that, h Yes.
00:02:39
Speaker 3: So she basically said that she wasn't ready to tell her full story, but she felt like at a certain point now that the voters of Maine needed to know the full story, so she shared it initially with Politico, and Politico claims that she corroborated her story by sharing emails with her therapist, a message to an acquaintance at the time warning her of him and his behavior. So at the time, she was telling people, including her therapist, Yeah.
00:03:09
Speaker 1: This was one of those stories when they come up like what's the evidence she has, like a very credibles.
00:03:16
Speaker 4: She does. She does.
00:03:17
Speaker 3: And then she also actually went on camera and spoke with CNN. So she describes her relationship with Platinus off and on, and she said she was casually dating him from twenty nineteen to twenty twenty one. But she says on this particular night, he was drunk texting her. She was already in bed and he said I want to come over, and she said, no, do not come over. I don't know why her door was unlocked, but her door was unlocked.
00:03:44
Speaker 4: He walks in. She claims he climbed.
00:03:45
Speaker 3: On top of her, grabbed her, and she said the struggle was so violent that a sewing cabinet of hers was knocked over while he.
00:03:53
Speaker 4: Was on top of her.
00:03:54
Speaker 3: And she said she actually had a needle stuck in her leg during the rape. She said, she repeatedly, she said, there were layers of non consent, telling him no, don't, telling him to stop.
00:04:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, this is one of those robes where that wasn't you didn't mishear it or confusion. She's the way she put it. You said, multiple layers, he violated, multiple layers of consent. And you help me, Robes, if you get a sense or an idea of how long like this went on before the actual quote unquote assault. It seemed like there was lack of better phrase here, robes, time to try to reason with him when he came in.
00:04:36
Speaker 3: Yes, but she said he was so drunk and she could tell. And she said the safest thing she felt like she could do at that moment was just to let it happen.
00:04:43
Speaker 4: She knew it was going to happen.
00:04:44
Speaker 2: That is interesting.
00:04:45
Speaker 1: We should get an expert in on that that idea I understand, because then what would a court or a jury later say to you if you say I decided to comply because it was safest. Well, that you complied, then it wasn't rape. Like that is a interesting to hear her say that. I'm sure many women feel.
00:05:02
Speaker 3: That women can understand where she was coming from. She just felt like at this point, if the more she fought, the more to be Yeah, and so she said she finally just complied. I thought this was interesting. She said, this was something she tried to forget for many years. I think a lot of women will understand that at well as well. But she said the next day he didn't remember anything. She said he had his arm around her and she was like, get off me, get out. Do you not remember what happened last night? And she said no. He claimed he did not remember. He left and he never spoke to her again. But CNN Jake Tapper specifically asked her on camera on live national television, did Graham Platner rape you? Her answer, by definition, yes, absolutely, that's I mean.
00:05:52
Speaker 2: That is that survivable in a campaign?
00:05:54
Speaker 1: Well, it's it's just a matter what the voters of Maine feel, what they think ultimately, but but gro you can't. That's a that's a woman who put her name in her face, sat down in front of a camera and said this guy raped her.
00:06:09
Speaker 2: That's uh. You got to listen to that.
00:06:11
Speaker 3: And I actually think too, yes, given that, but also the fact that she she kind of hinted at it or suggested it possibly earlier, and then finally got enough courage to say it outright. I mean, I actually think you could look at it as why would she Why wouldn't she have said it the first time?
00:06:28
Speaker 4: I actually think it makes sense.
00:06:30
Speaker 3: There is shame involved, there is a sense of responsibility oftentimes for rape victims.
00:06:34
Speaker 4: I could have done more, I should have done more, And.
00:06:37
Speaker 3: Maybe she was hesitant to just come forward with the full story until now.
00:06:42
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean I get that, and also understand when she says she didn't appreciate the way the story was covered the first time around, because it was a bunch of politics. It was a bunch of folks pointing at one of the accusers saying, ah, well, she was connected to the party to this other.
00:06:57
Speaker 2: Right, it kind of got lost and he's so.
00:07:01
Speaker 4: And that I think might be the key.
00:07:02
Speaker 3: He survived it and went on to win seventy percent of the vote on primary night despite those allegations and that article. So yes, Graham Platner has responded. He made a two minute or so video speaking to camera. He called the allegations troubling, serious and false.
00:07:21
Speaker 4: And this was his big sense.
00:07:23
Speaker 3: Any accusation of non consensual behavior is categorically false.
00:07:31
Speaker 2: What do you do? Right?
00:07:32
Speaker 1: He can't be having this discussion robes before a campaign. I don't know what his plan is, but he hasn't dropped out yet. But the party is running from him.
00:07:44
Speaker 4: Yes they are.
00:07:45
Speaker 3: And look, he canceled multiple public events over the weekend. And the other line that this is where he is right now as of this recording, he said, regardless of the inaccuracy of the reporting, but mindful of the political reality it will inflict. We are taking time to reflect on the best path forward. Certainly, that sounds like he's just getting his ducks in a row, yes, and making sure he's at peace with what he knows he has to do well just to drop out.
00:08:14
Speaker 2: Of the race.
00:08:15
Speaker 1: Saint Ropes here we go. What a mess for Democrats now in Maine. They were so so excited about the possibilities we know how close things are in the Senate.
00:08:24
Speaker 2: They were looking at the possibility robes.
00:08:26
Speaker 1: They could really take the Senate and give President Drum all kinds of hell his last two years. Ro This is high stakes stuff and they didn't necessarily need to have a perfect candidate, but you can't have one this flawed.
00:08:39
Speaker 3: No, And to that point, they stuck by him, despite the fact that he had a tattoo of a Nazi symbol on him, where he denied that he knew it. And then one of the girls, one of the women who spoke to The New York Times, said I'm sorry. He absolutely told me it was a Nazi tattoo, So that was concerning. Yes, And he had been previ dismissive ironically about rape on Reddit. He acknowledged it and said, please don't hold me accountable to the worst thing I said online fifteen years ago.
00:09:09
Speaker 4: But this is so ironic given these latest allegations.
00:09:13
Speaker 3: He literally put this on Reddit that people who were worried about rape shouldn't get so drunk that they quote wind up having sex with someone they don't mean to. Isn't that exactly what she just claimed he did to her while he was so drunk he forced sex, she claims, on someone who didn't want it. So his own words come back to haunt him specifically in this story as we.
00:09:37
Speaker 2: Say that that post didn't age well.
00:09:39
Speaker 3: It did not age well, and don't forget he also his wife came forward and before the campaign, even when public, let his campaign staff know that he yes, had been sending sexual messages to other women while they were married, and she was concerned. That was her big concern, that those women might come out and speak up and say, really, this family man was sexting me while married. So his wife actually made a very long video defending him, walking through the woods of Maine, saying, I love this man.
00:10:12
Speaker 4: He's a changed man. He's not who he used to be.
00:10:16
Speaker 3: I love him, and you know I support him.
00:10:18
Speaker 1: You know, soon people even applauded that a guy who was even struggled, maybe struggled mightily, and even that had done harm either to people around him or with words he said. A lot of people even looked and said, Okay, you can redeem yourself, you can apologize, you can as bad as a lot of that stuff was ropes and thrown to the fact that he was a military guy PTSD. Folks were willing ropes, and a part of that you have to look at and say, Okay, should we can we forgive? Yeah, does a candidate have to be perfect? You're not going to forgive somebody beating on a woman a rape. That's not what we're talking about. But those previous suggestions of bad behavior, nobody was looking past them robes, but we were a lot of folks were willing to listen to it in the context of what he was going through, what he had been through, where he was in his life at the time.
00:11:07
Speaker 3: Yes, So at that point, yes, his Democratic counter parts were so excited, as you pointed out about the possibility of unseating Senator Susan Collins, that they were willing to tolerate that, to look past that, to hope for better days and this redemptive man.
00:11:24
Speaker 4: But now when we come.
00:11:25
Speaker 3: Back, you won't believe the political reaction that Graham Platner is now receiving and certainly is going to lead to him dropping out of this race.
00:11:36
Speaker 4: And welcome back to this episode of Amy and TJ.
00:11:47
Speaker 3: We are literally waiting for word from Graham Platner. Most folks expect him to drop out of the race. If not today at least in the coming days. And look, the political reaction to this lady allegation of rape against a former girlfriend has been swift and steady.
00:12:06
Speaker 4: Senator Elizabeth Warren was one of his biggest supporters.
00:12:10
Speaker 3: She put out this statement, there can be no tolerance for sexual assault with so much at stake, the best path forward is for Graham Platner to step aside as the Democratic nominee and address these serious allegations outside the Senate race.
00:12:24
Speaker 1: That sounds like who did it for Swallwell, that's exactly what someone said a supporter. Yeah, I addressed this stuff, but not doing a campaign exactly.
00:12:33
Speaker 3: Congressman Roe Conna, again previously a key supporter, said Graham Platner should drop out from the race. I am withdrawing my endorsement.
00:12:42
Speaker 2: When Rowe does.
00:12:43
Speaker 1: You're like Roe has become a prominent voice and almost a voice of reason. And he's also Ro's been willing to got We've seen on Fox News, he's been willing to go do an interview, speak to anybody, exchange ideas. Wasn't he the one I can't remember who he teamed up with the Epstein fire.
00:12:58
Speaker 4: Yes, absolutely, And look he didn't not mince words there? How about this one?
00:13:02
Speaker 3: New York Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand put out a joint statement. They said, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee will not invest in the main Senate race if Platner remains on the ballot.
00:13:18
Speaker 4: That's significant.
00:13:19
Speaker 1: So how can he do this on his own? How can he do this without a single din, without any support? Look, it's a small state at this point. Does he need name recognition? No?
00:13:28
Speaker 4: No, everyone knows his name.
00:13:30
Speaker 2: How can he do this? Robes?
00:13:32
Speaker 1: What can they do to him if he says I did not do this, This is a lie. He's even gone as far having gotten into robes, the suggestion that this woman is being coached, the suggestion that all of this is a planned attack against him.
00:13:50
Speaker 4: So he did say that.
00:13:51
Speaker 1: What if he pushes back and says, nope, this is false and you're not going to force me.
00:13:54
Speaker 3: And he's questioning the timing because look, the last set of allegations came out about a week or two before the primary. How about this for timing? Democrats only have until July twenty seventh, so the end of this month to replace him on the ballot, So time is ticking so once again, now you've got another deadline that he has to drop out by. So if anyone's trying to push him out, now would be the time because Democrats have they don't have time.
00:14:23
Speaker 2: He can wait. He can wait them out.
00:14:25
Speaker 4: He could And so look, here's the deal.
00:14:27
Speaker 3: If he didn't do this, if he is completely innocent, I don't think he should.
00:14:31
Speaker 1: Drop out, right rotalk, Can you make that argue if that is what he believes.
00:14:35
Speaker 3: Truly, if this is a political smear campaign based on lies, then absolutely he should stand his ground. Of Donna Brazil, how about this one former chair of the DNC. I'm sure pretty much everyone knows her name by now. She put this out on X sounds a little tongue in cheek. Sure, take the rest of the day and night tomorrow. We need a plan and mister Platner can step aside and focus on his family and well being.
00:15:00
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, take a beat, she said, exactly what we're saying.
00:15:05
Speaker 2: We're just waiting.
00:15:06
Speaker 4: Yes.
00:15:06
Speaker 3: Even his opponent, Senator Susan Collins, weighed in. She said the allegations are appalling, but added it's not up to me to choose the Democratic nominee for Senate.
00:15:17
Speaker 1: I could see her like smoking on a cigar as she was writing that statement, like, after all this, y'all really tried to write me off and look who you.
00:15:23
Speaker 4: Got, right, Like, good luck Democrats.
00:15:27
Speaker 3: And yes, as I mentioned at the top, the only person who we would have expected to hear from whom we have not yet is Senator Bernie Sanders. And this is a guy who has been by his side on the campaign trail, campaigning next to him at rallies. He has been radio silent, and that certainly is not something we are.
00:15:45
Speaker 4: Used to from Bernie Sanders.
00:15:47
Speaker 3: He usually says exactly what's on his mind, and so far he has not weighed in on the platnerm.
00:15:54
Speaker 1: Situation, you know, and he doesn't have to. He can let this play out, I suppose, and just wait for Platiner to do his thing. Is he's trying to do a service to Platiner by not piling on. But folks want to hear whether or not this prominent guy, mister Sanders, is still suggesting we should be supporting this guy.
00:16:12
Speaker 3: Yes, and I'm curious are there possible criminal charges here? Because we're talking twenty twenty one. You have a woman who apparently has receipts enough for Politico and several other news organizations to feel confident that she has valid claims and certainly a valid accusation against Graham Platner, and that is certainly a criminal act.
00:16:35
Speaker 4: That was a crime that she describes.
00:16:38
Speaker 3: So any word, I haven't seen anything yet for the main authorities or police about any possible criminal charges.
00:16:44
Speaker 2: But she didn't state she's going to the police, right.
00:16:47
Speaker 3: But at this point does she have to wance someone makes a public claim of rape for credibility and apparently has proof of said rape is a crime. It's not on her anymore. Now it's up to officials, the DA whoever is there in Maine, who wants to see if they pursue charges. And I would imagine that is a possibility given the severity of what she is saying.
00:17:09
Speaker 2: That's true. This doesn't this happened now?
00:17:10
Speaker 1: Inn with Swallwell, yeah, they did the press conference and say we are getting up and immediately going to the police station.
00:17:16
Speaker 3: Correct, And look, they don't have to have her press charges in this kind of a situation, but they would obviously need her cooperation. But for her to go public with this, I can't imagine why she would suddenly stop short of that if she in fact stands by the version of events that she described.
00:17:33
Speaker 1: But if she does, she has her own reasons, right, just like she had her reasons. We're holding on to this part of the story until now. Robes can't even imagine what that experience was like. What it's like to watch him be so prominent. What it's like, Robes, to see him be so prominent and be praised and then have very prominent national figures still support him.
00:17:59
Speaker 4: Well, that has all gone off.
00:18:00
Speaker 2: For a guy you say, raped you.
00:18:02
Speaker 1: To see him being celebrated like that, I'm sure did rub her the wrong way.
00:18:08
Speaker 3: I'm sure it was part of the reason why she decided to come forward and tell her full story. All right, well, we will continue to keep our eye on this developing story. But in the meantime, thank you as always for listening to us, every one. I'm Amy Roeboch alongside TJ.
00:18:21
Speaker 4: Holmes. We'll talk to you soon.