Top Graham Platner adviser threatened former aide over sexting stories

[WhiskeyGrinder]

https://www.bangordailynews.com/2026/05/31/politics/top-graham-platner-adviser-threatened-former-aide-over-sexting-stories/

An adviser to Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner warned a former aide she would be accused of lying and sabotage if she cooperated with news outlets reporting on sexually explicit messages Platner sent to women, according to a message reviewed by the Bangor Daily News.

Morris Katz, a strategist with the Platner campaign, delivered the Friday warning through an intermediary to former state Rep. Genevieve McDonald, who left the campaign last fall and spoke to The Wall Street Journal and New York Times. The outlets published stories in quick succession on Saturday about the messages that had been flagged by Platner’s wife at the outset of his campaign last summer.

“Just want to be clear on where we are right now,” Katz wrote in the message that McDonald shared exclusively with the BDN. “If the story goes in its current iteration we’ll communicate directly on the record, and by name, that Genevieve violated the personal trust of Amy and Graham and shared explicit falsehoods to sabotage the campaign.”

The Platner campaign has confirmed the existence of the messages. A campaign official told the Times that Platner had been communicating with up to six women, and that aides concluded when they learned of the matter that it was a private one the couple had addressed in counseling.

[RandySF]

1. And it gets worse.

[LisaL]

3. It always does.

NT

[Fiendish Thingy]

16. How is this worse?

McDonald betrayed a confidence.

She is also a lobbyist for conservative oriented industries.

[Quiet Em]

18. The WSJ already knew about it

McDonald and a current staffer on Platner's campaign confirmed it when asked by the WSJ.

I can tell you that I don't know what the WSJ knows or who they may be getting info from, e.g. one of the women in the sexting convos, but I'm going to guess the that WSJ and right wing operatives aren't done with their story yet.

[Fiendish Thingy]

20. Better now than in September

After a few news cycles, we will see if it’s a somethingburger, or the nothingburger it appears to be.

By no means do I see the current details dooming his campaign.

[Boo1]

25. OR

we could dump his ass and get somebody worthy of being a US Senator.

[Cosmocat]

31. Unfortunately it doesn't work like that

Hes it now gpr better or for worse.

[Boo1]

37. Ummm no

The primary hasn't been held yet.

We still vote in this country.

[LisaL]

2. They were going to accuse her of lying for telling the truth?

All righty then.

[jmbar2]

4. In other words...

shut up, or bad things might happen to you. Where have we heard that before?

[RandySF]

5. But it's ok.

He fights oligarchs.

[LisaL]

6. He is also in Maine.

And unless you live in Maine, you can't have an opinion. Or so I have been told. You can donate money to his campaign, but you can't have an opinion.
Makes total sense.

[MineralMan]

7. LOL!

I'm not really paying much attention to all of this. The voters in Maine will make their own decisions, no doubt.

[SSJVegeta]

8. ...Bill Clinton's campaign where far worse accusations came out?

[jmbar2]

10. To be fair...

We know more about Clinton's misbehavior than we do about what else Platner has been up to because the women are being told to STFU! By democrats.

[SSJVegeta]

11. Like Platners wife?

Surely anybody who told women to stfu should be fired. Nonetheless Susan Collins is still much worse. And Platner and Colliins for now are our options there

[RandySF]

13. The primary isn't over.

There are two other names on the ballot.

[SSJVegeta]

14. 3 if you include Mills. None are running a serious campaign.

Platner is the presumptive nominee until that changes

[Boo1]

26. Presumptions aren't facts

And he's not the only Democrat on the ballot

[SSJVegeta]

28. Theres 9 days left and nobody else has name recognition or established messaging. One has officially dropped out.

Last edited Mon Jun 1, 2026, 01:44 AM - Edit history (2)

[Boo1]

38. The other candidate

Is known in Maine.

[SSJVegeta]

45. While polling at 3% or less

Platner is at 76%

Crazier things have happened, but I dont think a person will magically go from low single digits to victory in 8 days.

[Boo1]

46. You're dsicounting

Mills being on the ballot and rcv in Maine.

A poll in the field a week ago doesn't mean anything today. A lot can happen in 9 days

[SSJVegeta]

48. Mills dropped out even though she is on the ballot

Unless she unsuspends her campaign RCV wont do a lot of good for anybody else at this point.

[Attilatheblond]

52. It's getting scary seeing the many ways many men are trying to silence people in this country

Trump, cabinet members, pols of questionable integrity, and possibly billionaire sponsors of same, want to gag federal workers, who are US citizens with rights, just to spare them being outed for malfeasance.

Free speech, my Aunt Fanny's fanny!

Libel should be dealt with thru the legal system. Squelching speech? Ah, no.

[Blue Full Moon]

9. Disgruntled ex employee makes sense. Mole hill into a mountain.

The real reason is he doesn't take AIPAC Epstein billionaires money.

[RandySF]

12. The employee was Platner's former political director

who resigned over Platner’s Reddit posts and Nazi tattoo.

[GPV]

19. She's a nice lady. Represented the town where I grew up.

She said herself on her Facebook page that she didn't just blow up her life for the fun of it.

[Boo1]

27. "It's the jews!"

[Irish_Dem]

15. Sending sex messages to at least SIX women?

[LisaL]

21. After being newly married.

Yep.

[pinkstarburst]

30. Imperfections! /s

[Nixie]

35. Wow , six women?? That's one for every day almost.

His wife got the 7th day? That’s a lot of activity to account for and then you have to assume that one of these multiple sexters might want their 15 minutes. We’ll see if more shoes drop.

[Irish_Dem]

41. More shoes will drop. 100% guaranteed.

[LisaL]

42. Why are you assuming he can't multi-task?

He could be texting multiple women on the same day. And if he calls them all "honey" he doesn't have to keep their names straight.

[Nixie]

44. True! He must be great with time management.

That’s a lot of balls in the air to juggle, so to speak.

Actually, I do feel pretty sorry for his wife of less than three years. This had to hurt.

[sop]

51. Looks like Platner's been eating a lot of oysters...

[LetMyPeopleVote]

17. Who is surprised by this?

I have not been impressed by the current Plantar’s campaign

[Nixie]

36. It's a real head scratcher. Just when I think I'm caught up on

all the angles, more strange things come out.

[betsuni]

22. What would be ironic is if Republicans/Independents voted for him because of these things.

Might be familiar and attractive for them. When you're an oysterman, they let you do it....

[Nixie]

24. I loved your oysters and sausage comment but the thread was

locked and couldn’t reply. Hilarious….

[Nixie]

23. Wait, wait. To unpack this-- Platner's own wife told someone about

the sexts.

Then that person told the media what his wife said.

Now they are going to call the “someone” a liar?

How does that make Platner’s wife look who brought this all up in the first place?

[delisen]

29. Platner is done. Democratic Party is being damaged.

I believe that he and his wife should be treated with compassion.

I think this has been a manufactured astroturfed campaign run by marketers who have been selling a false narrative for the sake of their own ideologies and ambitions.

I hope Katz makes a statement tomorrow explaining his actions. I think both Bernie and Elizabeth Warren need to address the situation.
The longer this plays out the more damage to the Democratic Party.

If Mills is out there is a vetted , experienced candidate in the race who has received little press. Costello is pro Medicare for All. Maybe he will be satisfactory to the voters in Maine.

Of course everything is up to Platner and nd the people of Maine.

[mr715]

32. Huh?

What are you smoking?

[delisen]

33. Truth and Politics.

[mr715]

34. We'll see.

[Nixie]

40. Astroturfed is a great word for what we're likely seeing.

Things just don’t add up.

Great post.

[Nanjeanne]

39. Im getting Linda Tripp vibes from this Genevieve McDonald. Sexting - yeah that's a shame he did

that when newly married. And im glad he and his wife got counseling and are reconciled. But it sure as shit doesn’t affect me any more than Clinton’s infidelities or Kennedys or FDR’s. Not on the scale of the destruct the Rs are perpetrating on us daily.

[intheflow]

49. Why weren't those politicians indescretions nothingburgers?

Because it was consensual (as far as we know) between adults.

Trump = pedo = not sex between adults
Trump = rapist = not consensual
Swalwell = harassing texts to women = nonconsensual

Clinton/Lewandowsky - consensual adults
JFK and *waves broadly* - consensual adults
Gary Hart - consensual adults

Platner? Also consensual adults as far as we know. No one has come forward to say they weren't willing participants, or were underage. I never knew DU had so many Puritans until now.

[Nanjeanne]

50. That's how I feel.

[jmbar2]

53. Thought experiment...

Fairly newly married Platner working on an oyster farm, wife is school teacher. Not wealthy folks... But he is a glib talker with leadership capabilities. Locals nominate him to local positions.

- About three years ago, he decides to run for office in a grassroots bid. Likely invests their limited marital assets to run. Wife believes in him. Others in town believe in him. Folks volunteer to help.

- As he gets national publicity for saying all the right things, gets a big infusion of cash and hires professional campaign workers. You are one of those enthusiastic workers - female.

- One day, he starts sexting you. Disgusting stuff. Why me? You're creeped out.
"WTF!? He's married, he's a candidate and he's doing this? This guys a jerk. I'm out!"

- These women did not want to be sexted. This was not consensual. They bailed because of it. If you've ever been sexually harassed on the job, you know how creepy it is. You cannot remove that from your mind.

- Stories reach the paid staff and they start resigning well-paid jobs. They are willing to give up paid work, either because they're repulsed, or see writing on the wall and expect the campaign to collapse.

- Resignations of paid staff hits national media, rumors are flying, donations dropping. Remaining loyals are now scrambling to come up with a strategy for controlling the bad publicity. Say that it's all lies. Have the wife say she still loves him. It was in the past, when he was a kid of 37.

- He tries to get remaining supporters/staff to sign NDAs. "Shut up about it!"

- You are one of the women who got the texts. You know his wife and like her. She is devastated, and faces financial ruin if his candidacy collapses. Their entire worldly savings are invested. What choices does she have? Try to resuscitate his reputation or face financial ruin.

In short: Many people are in turmoil due to his poor judgment, lack of self-control. The women who got the trashy sexts, people losing their jobs, his wife, donors, volunteers. So many people affected.

Why should we elect this guy to an important public office? He is destroying everyone around him. He's a loose cannon.

[duckworth969]

43. Maine voters decide

Not the pundits on DU