Dem Senate hopeful under fire for resurfaced comments calling cops ‘opportunistic cowards’
Embattled Senate candidate Graham Platner is facing backlash for calling law enforcement “opportunistic cowards” in a deleted Reddit post.
Platner, a far-left populist running to become Maine’s next senator, made the comments in June 2020 in response to a post criticizing the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department for seeking approval to purchase “riot gear.” At the time, Black Lives Matter protests were spreading across the state; Some demonstrations were turning violent, including the destruction of storefronts and looting.
Platner, then 35, rejected the sheriff’s request as “ridiculous.”
“I think the Sheriffs [sic] “The department is so full of overweight violets that they now need taxpayer money to protect themselves from George Stevens Academy sophomores and aging hippies,” he wrote.
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner speaks at a primary election event on June 9, 2026 in Blue Hill, Maine.
(Getty Images)
Vets Calling Military ‘Fat, Lazy Trash’ Keep Senate Hopeful, Mocked Soldier Shot Four Times
“Cops are opportunistic cowards.”
Current text Maine Monitor archive Some of Platner’s since-deleted but previously unreported messages were posted on the R/Maine Reddit forum under Platner’s name, “P-Hustle.”
Comment is the last comment in a thread anti-law enforcement statements Platner’s arrival into adulthood has raised questions about his fitness for office as he tries to unseat Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine.
“This shows a complete lack of understanding of the way law enforcement works,” State Rep. Donald Ardell, R-Maine, said in an interview on Fox News Digital. “They need to be prepared for the possibilities.”
Ardell, a retired federal special agent and criminal investigator, said interviews with current law enforcement officials and former colleagues reflect widespread disgust at Platner’s comments degrading men and women in uniform.
“This is a series of consistent bad decisions and it looks set to continue,” Ardell said.
Also in June 2020, Platner condemned a Maine police chief as “thin blue line trash” for refusing to kneel alongside demonstrators protesting the death of police. GeorgeFloyd.
That month, the first thing he said in his remarks was “all cops are bastards” CNN reported.
In a since-deleted post from April 2021, Platner questioned whether there was a problem with policing that “spreads across the profession as a whole.”
Platner also faced scrutiny for comments declaring himself a communist, disparaging rural whites as “racists” and “stupid” and mocking a teenage girl. suicide attempt.
Platner accused the Maine police chief of being “thin blue-striped trash” for refusing to kneel alongside demonstrators protesting the death of George Floyd.
#Metoo to Maine? Dem Pundits Discuss How Platner’s Ascension Tests Party Standards: ‘Pull the Plug’
Platner said many of his comments were taken out of context and he attributed some to dealing with the issues. PTSD after multiple overseas deployments.
“You have to read the comments in context. It’s obvious I’m joking,” he previously told Fox News Digital when asked about them. “This is called s-mailing. It’s when you argue with people on the Internet and try to annoy them.”
Ardell questioned whether Platner, who was mostly in his 30s during nearly a decade of online trash-talking, “could have made such a quick turnaround” over the last six years.
“If Graham Platner wants to work on himself, he can do it on his own time; not on Mainers’ time or in the U.S. Senate,” Ardell said. he said.
The Platner campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
The newly-surfaced Reddit post comes as Platner tries to dodge increased scrutiny about himself. past treatments of women, including his ex-girlfriend Lyndsey Fifield’s alleged harassment. In May, the campaign acknowledged a period of infidelity that involved sending sexually explicit messages to at least half a dozen women during Platner’s marriage to Amy Gertner, whom he married in 2023.
Platner also had an active account on Kik, a private messaging platform widely used for sexual encounters. His campaign said he deleted it from his phone a long time ago.
Adding to Platner’s problems is that the candidate has not given a clear explanation as to why several of his ex-girlfriends knew about his Nazi-related tattoo since it was covered up before he publicly revealed it last year.
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner and his wife, Amy Gertner, wave to supporters as they arrive at Platner’s primary election event on June 9, 2026, in Blue Hill, Maine.
An ex-girlfriend who dated Platner was revealed in 2021 New York Post Text messages he sent in September 2025 discussing the “Nazi tattoo on his chest.”
The Senate hopeful said he first learned of the black skull and crossbones tattoo’s connection to Nazi SS units in October 2025. He wore the tattoo for almost two decades after getting it while out drinking with sailor friends in Croatia.
Click Here to Download Fox News App
Asked if more negative information about Platner might emerge before November, Ardell did not hesitate.
“This is not a man with a skeleton in his closet,” he said. “This is a man with a huge cemetery.”
Original article source: Dem Senate hopeful under fire as comments calling cops ‘opportunistic cowards’ resurface
