| Only an idiot would get a tattoo that [s]he had no idea of its meaning |
Platner’s former political director said her boss [Vorgesetzter] knew the meaning behind his Nazi tattoo and “exhibits a pattern of dishonest behavior.”
In an op-ed for The Washington Post, former Maine state representative Genevieve McDonald revealed that her blind enthusiasm for the Platner campaign hit a brick wall the moment reality intruded.
“Taking the job meant leaving a position as a senior policy adviser at a government relations firm in the state, but I thought that Platner and I shared the same goal: fighting for the working people of Maine,” she wrote on Monday. “I quit the campaign in October, disturbed by what I learned about the candidate and concerned about his potential impact on the Democratic Party’s prospects in my home state.”
The op-ed serves as a dire warning to the Democratic Party as voters head to the polls on Tuesday to nominate someone—anyone—to lose to incumbent Republican Senator Sudan Collins in November.
Back in September, Platner casually informed McDonald that he had a “problematic” tattoo that might raise a few eyebrows, but assured her it was just a “military thing.” [Actually, it was a Nazi thing.]
“I believed him,” she wrote in the WAPO. “Then, I began receiving calls from Washington warning me he was not who he seemed: ‘Have you read his oppo file?’ I had not. I trusted that his out-of-state consulting team had thoroughly vetted him.”
Her account lines up with New York Times reporting that Platner was fully aware of the meaning behind his infamous Nazi SS tattoo, the same one he previously pretended was some mysterious ancient Celtic symbol for “diversity is our strength,” when, in fact, it means more like: "killing Jews is our national sport."
McDonald finally jumped ship after old Reddit posts from 2013 resurfaced in which Platner downplayed sexual assault, because of course he did.
After departing, she turned down a $15,000 bribe to sign a nondisclosure agreement, proving she possesses more integrity than the entire DNC combined.
McDonald then took aim at the usual progressive suspects rushing to Platner’s defense, including Vermont Senator Comrade Bernie "Kill the Olagarks" Sanders, who shrugged, “Is he a saint? I guess not. I don’t know too many saints here.”
“His comment reflects one of the deepest problems in American politics today. We have learned to excuse what we should condemn,” McDonald wrote. “There are two other named candidates on Tuesday’s ballot. If Platner wins the nomination but later withdraws, Maine Democrats can hold a convention and choose a different nominee.”
“The answer to a broken political culture is not to accept it. Demand better from those entrusted with power or seeking it. Enough is enough,” she added.
Republicans, meanwhile, are sharpening their knives and stocking up on popcorn, fully prepared to turn every Platner scandal into a 30-second ad that writes itself.
With no serious opposition, Platner is heavily favored to cruise to victory in Tuesday’s primary. The only remaining mystery is how many Maine Democrats will hold their noses, vote for the guy anyway, and then spend the general election pretending they never heard of him while their Senate flip dreams go up in a cloud of swastika-shaped smoke.