Obama Ex-Aides Criticize Maine Senate Candidate Graham Platner Amid Rape Allegation
Former aides to President Obama, now hosting a podcast, criticized Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner following a rape allegation. Tommy Vietor, co-host of “Pod Save America” and former Obama spokesman, commented on the serious nature of the allegations.
Vietor stated, “The allegations in the story are really bad and troubling. They seem credible. They’re backed up by documentation. And so, the impact politically is not just what’s in the story. It’s this cumulative impact of a series of articles and allegations about him.”
Maine resident Jenny Racicot accused Platner of rape in interviews with Politico and CNN, alleging that five years ago, Platner entered her home uninvited, intoxicated, and assaulted her.
“I remember the specific moment where I thought to myself, like, ‘This is no longer my choice,’” Racicot said, describing her decision to end contact with Platner after the incident.
Jon Lovett, also a former Obama aide, suggested that Platner should withdraw from the race. “He has to end the campaign so that we have a chance of defeating Susan Collins,” said Lovett, emphasizing the importance of transparency and trustworthiness.
Platner had been involved in controversies before, including Reddit posts and a tattoo story. These incidents added to the challenges he faced in maintaining voter support. Lovett acknowledged that while some voters supported Platner as a signal of their dissatisfaction with the establishment, ongoing scandals compromised his candidacy.
Vietor noted, “The challenge is going to be, you had all these voters who turned out and voted for Graham Platner despite the controversies. They wanted something different.”
The co-hosts agreed that Platner’s campaign faced difficult prospects. The recent allegations, supported by contemporaneous evidence, compounded existing doubts about his past behavior.
Platner’s denial of the allegations, according to Lovett, was not convincingly supported. “Even here in the story, backed up by evidence, it comports with what he said, which is that he was drinking a lot,” Lovett commented.
As Vietor added, the latest allegations are significant because they add to a series of articles and allegations about Platner. Lovett concluded that Platner should step aside for the sake of the campaign and the race’s integrity.