Sen. Bernie Sanders lashed out at a reporter for Fox News Digital when pressed on Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner’s resurfaced vulgar Reddit posts, telling the reporter to “get a better job.”
“Who do you work for?” Sanders asked when questioned about Platner’s posts. When told Fox News Digital, Sanders replied, “Why don’t you talk to your owner Mr. Murdoch and ask him for a raise so you can get a better job.”
Sanders endorsed Platner in August 2025.
Several other Democratic senators also declined to weigh in on Platner’s resurfaced Reddit posts and what they could mean for his Senate bid. Some said they had not seen the posts, while others declined to comment altogether.
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“I haven’t seen it,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said. “I’m not following it. Sorry.”
“I’m not going to take any position in that election,” Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said. “That’s my practice since I’ve been in the Senate.”
“On whose?” Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, said when asked to comment on Platner’s posts. “No, I’m not gonna get into that.”
Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore, said the viability of Platner’s candidacy should be left to Maine voters to decide.
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“The people of Maine get to choose who they want to represent them in the U.S. Senate,” Merkley said. “And so I encourage you to interview the people in Maine, because that’s what a democracy is all about.”
“I have not seen his post, so I’m not going to be able to be in a position to evaluate them.”
Platner has faced increasing scrutiny after since-deleted Reddit posts resurfaced online, ranging from talking about masturbating in portable toilets to mocking a wounded Purple Heart U.S. soldier.
These posts are among the newest discoveries from his past Reddit history, with previously exposed posts revealing him on rape victims to take responsibility and praising Hamas’ tactics.
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“I still have to jerk off every time I sit in a portas—-er… that blue water smell conditioned me,” Platner wrote in one resurfaced post.
Platner has publicly addressed some of the posts in the past, attributing them to a troubling time in his life after being in the military and suffering from PTSD. He served three tours in Iraq for the Marine Corps and one tour in Afghanistan for the U.S. Army.
The comments were made under the Reddit account “P-Hustle,” which Platner has acknowledged owning. The posts range from 2009 through as recently as 2021. The entire archive of more than 2,000 posts is available on the Maine Monitor database.
“He’s explained his journey and his evolution and his PTSD from the war, and again, I think it’s a judgment that should be rendered by the people of Maine,” said Merkley.
