SouthernWorldwide.com – A former press secretary for First Lady Jill Biden, Michael LaRosa, has expressed shock at the level of Democratic support for Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, viewing it as a sign of a dangerous internal conflict within the party.
Platner, despite facing widespread criticism for past sexually explicit and vulgar online posts, including one that mocked a Purple Heart veteran, and a tattoo of a Nazi symbol, continues to lead in the polls.
LaRosa accused the Democratic Party of overlooking serious concerns about Platner’s controversial history.
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“Democrats are playing a really dangerous game,” LaRosa stated. “It’s really funny to me how selective and how short memories are in politics.”
He further elaborated that he personally draws a line at supporting “a Democrat who has Nazi tattoos,” indicating that Platner is not a candidate he can endorse.
“I get it,” he said. “I want the Senate seat, I want Democrats to win, I want Chuck Schumer to be the majority leader, but I’m not willing to take anybody off the street to run just because they arouse some vibes in a few portions of the Democratic Party.”
LaRosa contrasted Platner with the incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins, whom he described as “much more my style than somebody who I consider kind of a performative economic populist like Graham Platner.” He also pointed out the irony of Platner criticizing “the elite” given his education at elite New England prep schools, which LaRosa’s family could not afford.
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“It’s his own behavior that disqualifies him. It’s his own history of rhetoric, of advocating for political violence, of mocking wounded U.S. soldiers shot by the Taliban. All of that stuff, it’s just not worth it for me as a Democrat,” LaRosa explained.
He emphasized that being a registered Democrat does not automatically qualify someone for a U.S. Senate seat.
“That does not make him a good candidate. It won’t make him a good senator. It just makes him a D. What’s the point in having a party if you don’t have standards anymore?” he questioned.
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Despite Platner’s strong polling numbers, LaRosa referenced the 2020 campaign of former Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon as a cautionary tale. Gideon had consistently led Collins in polls before ultimately losing the election in one of the most expensive races in state history.
“Susan Collins did not trail Sara Gideon in a single poll,” LaRosa recalled. “Six years ago, our Democrat outpolled, outraised and outspent Susan Collins, and the state of Maine on Election Day chose both Joe Biden and Susan Collins by 9 points.”
Platner secured the Democratic nomination for the Senate race against Collins in November after Governor Janet Mills withdrew her candidacy last month.
LaRosa noted that stances previously considered mainstream within the Democratic Party, such as Senator John Fetterman’s support for Israel following the Hamas attacks and criticism of the Biden administration’s border security policies, are now being used to disqualify strong candidates.
“We’re going to do to John Fetterman exactly what Trump is doing to candidates who opposed him or aren’t with him 100% of the time, and I don’t like it. I don’t like that my party is going to target John Fetterman for simply having, holding and defending views that were extremely normal or mainstream in the Democratic Party,” he expressed.
He warned that Democrats could face a “major disappointment” and stated his personal refusal to “publicly support, give money to, contribute to or work for” Platner.
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“My party seems to think that this guy represents what the rest of America wants or what Maine voters want or what people outside of the Beltway actually want,” LaRosa commented. “Democrats believe that Graham Platner seems to represent what people are yearning for and wanting outside of Manhattan and D.C.”
Ultimately, LaRosa stated that the decision rests with the voters of Maine, who now have the opportunity to choose whether Platner’s values align with theirs.
“They now have the opportunity to vote for him or Susan Collins, and we, the Democratic Party, have given and provided Maine that choice for them, and so now they’re going to decide,” he concluded.
