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“The View” co-host Sunny Hostin called Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner “a liar, a racist, an anti-Semite” on Monday, but still defended supporting his run for office in order for Democrats to win the Senate majority in November’s midterm elections.
Platner has faced a series of controversies in recent weeks, including criticism over a tattoo with links to Nazi imagery, resurfaced Reddit posts in which he made inflammatory comments about veterans, sexual assault and political opponents, and reports about sexually explicit messages exchanged with other women during his marriage.
During a discussion of Platner’s latest scandal, Hostin admitted that she was conflicted due to her belief that the Democrats need to win back Congress.
“So he’s a liar, a racist, an anti-Semite. He’s a homophobe,” she said. “So he has all the things and character does matter. But we have someone that has almost unbridled power in the White House at this point. There are no checks and balances and the only way that we can maybe bring a bit of our democracy back is by having a Congress that functions and that has these checks and balances. And I do think one of the only ways is to win that seat in Maine.”
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Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin spoke out against Platner’s campaign earlier in the conversation.
“To be honest, his sexting is the least of my concerns with this guy,” she said. “Graham Plattner trashed a Purple Heart recipient, said he didn’t deserve to live, defamed fallen Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, downplayed how hard it is to report sexual assault in the military, repeatedly used anti-gay slurs and homophobic posts as recently as 2021, called himself an avowed communist, and has a Nazi tattoo for 20 years that he’s since covered up.”
“This guy just seems like a guy of not very good character, and there are a lot of options in this country. And by the way, there are other paths for Democrats to win,” Griffin added.
Fellow co-host Sara Haines agreed and said Platner was unfit for office.
“This is a problem,” she said. “The Purple Heart recipient, by the way, the video he insulted, was a man who took fire to save his team. And he said, this stupid guy should have died. It’s only because they didn’t have good aim that he’s here. If you were capable of saying that at any time in your life, you’ve shown me who you are, and I heard you.”
“This man should be nowhere near Congress,” Haines continued. “We’ve already got a wealth of people we need out. We’re not sending one like this in.”
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Platner’s campaign did not immediately return a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
The campaign confirmed the explicit text exchanges to Politico following a report from The Wall Street Journal that Platner’s wife, Amy Gertner, told a campaign aide about the texts after he launched his Senate bid as they began looking into potential political liabilities.
Gertner discovered the messages months after the couple married in 2024, the Journal reported.
Amid his many controversies, attention has turned to a little-known provision of Maine law that could allow Democrats to replace Platner on the general election ballot after the primary.
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“The View” co-host’s criticized Platner’s tattoo in October.
“Although everyone has a past, not everyone can whip up an antisemitic or racist tattoo that they accidentally got on spring break when they were drinking,” Haines said at the time. “You know, like the level of what you’re bringing up is not just a whoopsie. So, this is where I say there are just so many fish in the sea. In fact, there are 1.5 million people in Maine. I’m sure there is someone else they can get now.”
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Fox News’ Amanda Macias and Brie Stimson contributed to this report.
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