Dem lawmaker says Graham Platner has disqualified himself amid mounting allegations

A Democratic lawmaker said Friday that her own party’s presumptive nominee for the US Senate seat from Maine, Graham Platner, has “disqualified himself” from serving in office as a cascade of allegations continues to engulf his campaign.Pennsylvania Rep.Madeleine Dean delivered the blunt assessment during an appearance on CNN, where she was asked whether she still supported Platner’s bid for the US Senate amid mounting scrutiny over his past conduct and personal behavior.“I think it’s so distressing all of the stories that are coming out, and they’re more and more it seems by the hour,” Dean told CNN host Boris Sanchez.“I’m not a voter in Maine, but he has disqualified himself in my eyes.

He is not qualified to be a representative, a senator.”Dean suggested the accumulating allegations had crossed a threshold that made Platner unfit for office.“We’ll see what Maine does about it,” she said on CNN.“And I know Governor Janet Mills remains on the ballot, but he has disqualified himself.”Dean stopped short of calling on Platner to withdraw from the race, but her comments underscored growing unease within parts of the party.Dean’s comments marked one of the strongest condemnations yet from a Democratic lawmaker as Platner faces growing pressure over a series of damaging reports that have rocked his campaign in recent weeks.The controversy intensified last week after the Wall Street Journal reported that Platner’s wife had previously informed campaign staffers that she caught him sending sexually explicit messages to other women early in their marriage.According to the report, the couple later attended counseling and worked through the episode.The revelations followed months of scrutiny surrounding Platner’s campaign, which has already been battered by controversy tied to a tattoo resembling a Nazi-linked Totenkopf symbol and resurfaced social media posts that prompted public apologies from the candidate.Fresh allegations emerged thi...