{"id":1120,"date":"2026-07-06T23:13:39","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T23:13:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120"},"modified":"2026-07-06T23:13:39","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T23:13:39","slug":"with-graham-platner-democrats-got-drunk-on-the-beer-test","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120","title":{"rendered":"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Last September, the progressive strategist Morris Katz confessed to The New Yorker<\/em> that the process by which he decided that Graham Platner was qualified to run for U.S. Senate required less time than drinking a cup of coffee. Actually, it seems to have been less a confession than a boast. \u201cWithin a few minutes of talking to him, I was, like, \u2018This guy owes it to the country to run for Senate,\u2019\u201d Katz recalled.<\/p>\n

Read more FIFA\u2019s Lesson for Trump<\/a><\/p>\n

In the 10 months that have followed, a procession of unflattering stories have made clear how dreadfully irresponsible it was for Democrats to entrust the task of flipping what seems like the most necessary seat to secure their potential Senate majority to a man who had never run for office or led an organization of any size. The almost-certain final straw is a Politico<\/em> report that alleges Platner raped a woman named Jenny Racicot in 2021. The story includes messages referring to the incident sent by Racicot two years later, before Platner contemplated running for office. Platner called any allegation of nonconsensual behavior \u201ccategorically untrue.\u201d<\/p>\n

There is no longer much question as to whether Platner is suitable for public office, and even less question as to whether plucking him from political obscurity made any sense. A more pertinent question is: What could possibly drive a professional political strategist to support such a rapid promotion in mere minutes?<\/p>\n

One plausible reason appears to be political ideology. Katz and his allies have sought out candidates who are willing to castigate the Democratic Party for selling out the working class\u2014which necessitates, or at least militates toward, candidates who have no experience inside the party. And whereas this ideological orientation requires an intensity of commitment, it does not require a mastery of policy detail.<\/p>\n

Dan Moraff, one of the strategists who helped select and vet Platner, \u201cwants his candidates to back Medicare for All and characterize the Israel-Hamas conflict as a genocide, but beyond that, doesn\u2019t believe voters care about detailed proposals,\u201d The Wall Street Journal<\/em> reported last month. Having a policy agenda that could fit comfortably on a Post-it note without omitting any important details certainly speeds up the process. Platner, indeed, has boiled down nearly all political problems to the perfidy of sinister oligarchs. Whatever the merits of this worldview, it does not demand much knowledge.<\/p>\n

But a second, at least as important reason for Platner\u2019s lightning-fast ratification was that he has the desired look for the part. Donald Trump has described liking his appointees to come right out of \u201ccentral casting,\u201d by which he means that they look like a Hollywood version of the position they are filling.<\/p>\n

Katz and Moraff have taken an almost literal approach to this \u201ccentral casting\u201d criteria, searching for candidates whom the camera loves and then offering them to an adoring progressive fanbase. Platner\u2019s qualifications in this regard are obvious. He has a masculine baritone, and works with his hands. Last year, Katz filmed a video of his new prot\u00e9g\u00e9 shucking oysters, chopping wood, swinging kettlebells, and speaking directly to the camera in a muddy sweatshirt about how the oligarchy had screwed their beloved state.<\/p>\n

The performance helped make Platner a political star. \u201cI flew here to profile Graham Platner,\u201d wrote Ana Marie Cox in The New Republic<\/em> last September, \u201cbecause his announcement video for his Senate campaign (produced by the same company that\u2019s done work for Zohran Mamdani) struck the same deep chord in me as it did in the millions of others who watched it.\u201d A stream of adulatory profiles followed.<\/p>\n

Read more Atlantic Trivia: Mystery Meat<\/a><\/p>\n

It soon emerged that Katz\u2019s abbreviated assessment of Platner had missed, or overlooked, troubling details. He had posted inflammatory messages on Reddit and gotten a tattoo associated with Nazi war criminals. Platner claimed that his past indiscretions were the products of post-traumatic stress, and promised that he was a changed man with no additional skeletons to hide.<\/p>\n

More skeletons kept turning up, though. Platner had sexted with at least half a dozen women after he was married, and reportedly lied about what he knew about his tattoo. He assured Senate backers that no additional negative stories would come out, only for his promise to crumble again.<\/p>\n

Platner\u2019s enthusiasts initially continued to support his campaign and reject the evidence of his misconduct. When The New York Times<\/em> reported that a past girlfriend alleged he had physically abused her, the paper dismissed her testimony on account of her being a Republican, ignoring the discrepancies in Platner\u2019s own defense.<\/p>\n

Matt Stoller, a researcher at the left-wing American Economic Liberties Project, wrote on X, \u201cGraham Platner represents a rejection of Dem HR lady politics.\u201d In a follow-up post, Stoller apologized for the impolitic term, but explained that he meant the party had fallen prey to a form of corporate rule that had especially harmed men. Human-resources departments, he wrote, \u201cincreasingly were forced to become bagmen for monopolists who hated labor.\u201d Despising these departments, he reasoned, was actually progressive, because they represented the interests of the oligarchy.<\/p>\n

At the risk of apologizing for the corporate power structure, one function of the HR department is to ensure the company does not hire somebody whose background contains multiple firing offenses.<\/p>\n

In reality, Platner was the Democratic-candidate equivalent of the grinning empty suit who gets the job after a handshake because the boss likes the cut of his jib. He looked like the authentic working-class hero so many progressives wanted, so he had to be one. George Burns once quipped, \u201cWhen you\u2019re playing a role you\u2019ve got to be honest. And if you can fake that, you\u2019ve got it made.\u201d In politics, people call this \u201cauthenticity.\u201d But maybe looking and sounding like a working-class dude who hates big corporations is not adequate qualification for high office\u2014or even proof that you can be taken at your word.<\/p>\n

Read more A Sad Kind of Convenience<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

He said there wouldn\u2019t be any more scandals, but a new <em>Politico<\/em> report threatens to end his Senate campaign in Maine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1119,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1120","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nWith Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test - Commercial Relocation Pros<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test - Commercial Relocation Pros\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"He said there wouldn\u2019t be any more scandals, but a new <em>Politico<\/em> report threatens to end his Senate campaign in Maine.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Commercial Relocation Pros\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-06T23:13:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3a3374a445f1b5d4852b1d7c15b9fe3a\"},\"headline\":\"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-06T23:13:39+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120\"},\"wordCount\":1011,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/5b0b1904c908918e69b5425c91d8b944.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"Politics\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120\",\"name\":\"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test - Commercial Relocation Pros\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/5b0b1904c908918e69b5425c91d8b944.avif\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-06T23:13:39+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3a3374a445f1b5d4852b1d7c15b9fe3a\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/5b0b1904c908918e69b5425c91d8b944.avif\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/5b0b1904c908918e69b5425c91d8b944.avif\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":625},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?p=1120#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Commercial Relocation Pros\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3a3374a445f1b5d4852b1d7c15b9fe3a\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/commercialrelocationpros.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test - Commercial Relocation Pros","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test - Commercial Relocation Pros","og_description":"He said there wouldn\u2019t be any more scandals, but a new <em>Politico<\/em> report threatens to end his Senate campaign in Maine.","og_url":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120","og_site_name":"Commercial Relocation Pros","article_published_time":"2026-07-06T23:13:39+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3a3374a445f1b5d4852b1d7c15b9fe3a"},"headline":"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test","datePublished":"2026-07-06T23:13:39+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120"},"wordCount":1011,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5b0b1904c908918e69b5425c91d8b944.avif","articleSection":["Politics"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120","url":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120","name":"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test - Commercial Relocation Pros","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5b0b1904c908918e69b5425c91d8b944.avif","datePublished":"2026-07-06T23:13:39+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3a3374a445f1b5d4852b1d7c15b9fe3a"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5b0b1904c908918e69b5425c91d8b944.avif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5b0b1904c908918e69b5425c91d8b944.avif","width":1200,"height":625},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?p=1120#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/","name":"Commercial Relocation Pros","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3a3374a445f1b5d4852b1d7c15b9fe3a","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com"],"url":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1120"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1120\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1119"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commercialrelocationpros.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}