SouthernWorldwide.com – A campaign staffer for congressional candidate Stefany Shaheen was seen obstructing a reporter’s camera with a pastry while being questioned about her stance on Graham Platner’s U.S. Senate campaign. Shaheen herself did not offer a response to the inquiries.
Platner, who is the Democratic nominee for Maine’s open Senate seat, has been embroiled in several controversies over the past year. Reports from the previous month indicated that he had exchanged sexually explicit messages with numerous women while he was married. This scandal followed earlier scrutiny regarding inflammatory posts he had made on Reddit and a tattoo of the Nazi-era Totenkopf symbol, which Platner claimed he did not recognize as being associated with the SS at the time he got it.
Shaheen is currently running for New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District. This seat was vacated by Rep. Chris Pappas, who is now seeking a Senate seat, succeeding her mother who is retiring. Although neither Stefany Shaheen nor her mother, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., have publicly declared their support for Platner, Republicans have highlighted Shaheen’s silence on the matter.
Despite the ongoing controversies surrounding Platner, a number of prominent Democrats have continued to stand by him. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Senator Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., have all maintained their support for Platner’s campaign. Their stance is based on the argument that securing control of the Senate remains the party’s highest priority heading into the November elections.
Sanders commented on the sex scandal affecting Platner’s campaign, stating, “The issue right now is not Graham Platner’s marriage. The issue right now is how we address the crises facing working families in this country.”
Sanders had endorsed Platner just two weeks after Platner launched his campaign. Throughout his campaign appearances, Platner has echoed Sanders’ calls to challenge billionaires, though he has not explicitly labeled himself as a Democratic Socialist.
Schumer’s endorsement of Platner came only a few hours after Maine Democratic Governor Janet Mills withdrew from the race and suspended her campaign in April.
Democratic leaders have continued to back Platner while emphasizing the critical importance of Democrats regaining control of the Senate. Booker expressed that “so much is riding on Democrats taking control of the Senate,” and Schumer has consistently framed the election as an opportunity to defeat Susan Collins and win back the chamber.
