On Tuesday, Lawrence O’Donnell, host of MS NOW, expressed a longstanding belief regarding Graham Platner, a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate from Maine. Platner, who works in the oyster industry, was accused on Monday of sexually assaulting a woman in 2021. O’Donnell stated unequivocally that he “cannot believe him.”
Last year, Platner gained popularity among progressives with his advocacy for universal healthcare and economic populism. Despite navigating multiple controversies, there is increasing pressure from Democrats for him to withdraw from the race.
“Whenever an unknown candidate who hasn’t been vetted starts gaining traction and generating media excitement, I tend to stay silent and wait for the vetting process,” O’Donnell mentioned on Tuesday.
The host of “Last Word” continued, “I anticipated that with a candidate like Graham Platner, the media would handle the vetting. And it has happened. Every stage of that vetting has been unsettling.”
Platner’s campaign has faced several scandals, including a skull-and-crossbones tattoo with Nazi associations, which he covered up, explicit messages allegedly sent to women outside his marriage, and online comments about rape.
The combat veteran explained last year that these comments were made during a period of depression, and he denied sending explicit texts or comprehending the tattoo’s symbolism at the time. On Tuesday, he described the assault allegation as “categorically false.”
O’Donnell was straightforward, stating, “I didn’t think any of his answers were credible.”
He continued, “I cannot say who is truthful in the accounts about Graham Platner from those who knew him or women alone with him. I don’t know what happened, but I’ve always known that I cannot believe him.”
O’Donnell pointed out that it wasn’t just the scandals that made him skeptical, but also the image Platner crafted with assistance from the media as a modest oyster farmer familiar with the struggles of Maine’s working class, entering politics to make a difference.
O’Donnell noted, “But he didn’t. He’s never known those struggles. His most glaring credibility issue from the start was claiming, ‘I’m a working-class guy living a working-class life.’ He also said, ‘I’ve never been close to money and power.’ And that was false.”
The MS NOW host noted Platner went to private school and was raised by a wealthy lawyer. He added that Platner’s mother’s restaurant is “the biggest customer for his oysters” and that tax and property records show Platner’s father provided him with a $200,000 mortgage loan for a $205,000 home.
“So his father bought him a house and his mother buys his oysters,” O’Donnell remarked. “I found it very difficult to take Graham Platner’s claims about himself seriously after reading those facts about him — publicly available facts. Yet the enthusiasm continued to grow.”
This enthusiasm collapsed on Monday, when Politico reported that Jenny Racicot, a 41-year-old resident of Maine, alleged that Platner, her on-again, off-again boyfriend at the time, entered her home without permission one night in 2021 and sexually assaulted her.
“And so it’s over tonight,” O’Donnell stated. “Graham Platner is desperately holding onto what remains of his campaign, foolishly delaying the announcement that there is no viable path forward for his candidacy.”
Watch the full “Last Word” segment on MS NOW’s YouTube account.
