Democratic Maine Senate hopeful Graham Platner expressed regret over getting a tattoo that appears similar to a Nazi symbol nearly two decades ago and plans to have it removed, his latest mea culpa after a week of damning headlines over resurfaced social media posts.
Platner’s campaign sought to front-run opposition research about his tattoo — which resembles a Nazi skull and crossbones — during an appearance on the liberal podcast Pod Save America on Monday, with his campaign sharing a video of him dancing shirtless. Platner said he had no idea of any Nazi link when he got the tattoo.
“It was not until I started hearing from reporters and DC insiders that I realized this tattoo resembled a Nazi symbol,” Platner said in a statement to POLITICO on Tuesday. “I absolutely would not have gone through life having this on my chest if I knew that — and to insinuate that I did is disgusting. I am already planning to get this removed.”
Platner reiterated that he got the tattoo while out drinking with fellow Marines in Croatia, choosing the skull and crossbones off a wall at the tattoo parlor. He said the similarity to Nazi iconography never came up, including when he underwent physical exams mandated by the U.S. Army, which prohibits tattoos of identified hate symbols.
“In the nearly 20 years since, this hasn’t come up,” Platner said. “I enlisted in the Army which involved a full physical that examines tattoos for hate symbols. I also passed a full background check to receive a security clearance to join the Ambassador to Afghanistan’s security detail.”
Platner’s statement that he would get the tattoo removed came after questions were raised, including from a former top campaign staffer, about how he could have been unaware of the tattoo’s connotations.
“Maybe he didn’t know it when he got it, but he got it years ago and he should have had it covered up because he knows damn well what it means,” Platner’s former political director, Genevieve McDonald, wrote on Facebook.
McDonald, a former Democratic state lawmaker, resigned from the campaign last week after revelations about Platner’s numerous controversial posts on Reddit.
Jewish Insider also reported on Tuesday that an acquaintance of Platner recalled him referring to the tattoo as “my Totenkopf,” though POLITICO has not independently verified the reporting.
“Totenkopf” is a German word typically referring to an image of a skull and crossbones. During the Nazi era, one form of the image was adopted by the Nazi police, leading to a lasting association with Nazism and continued use by white supremacists, according to the Anti-Defamation League. Platner’s campaign did not specifically answer whether he had ever used that term.
The tattoo revelation came after Platner apologized last week for a series of offensive Reddit posts, which he said came during a period in his life when he was disillusioned and disconnected from his community following his military service. Those include a 2013 post downplaying sexual assault in the military and a since-deleted 2018 post suggesting violence is necessary to enact social change. In a video last week, Platner, 41, said he regretted the comments and said they did not reflect the life he has now built.
Platner, previously a political unknown, has made a splash in Maine’s Senate race as several Democrats vie to take on Republican Sen. Susan Collins. His candidacy led some Senate Democrats to question whether Gov. Janet Mills should enter the race at all — although she did earlier this month.
One of Platner’s strongest supporters on the Hill was not wavering on him on Tuesday. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who rallied with Platner in Maine last month and has endorsed his campaign, defended the oysterman when asked about the tattoo on Tuesday.
“Look, I understand this whole platoon — I don’t know too much about it — got inebriated,” Sanders said. “He went through a dark period. He’s not the only one in America who has gone through a dark period. People go through that, he has apologized for the stupid remarks, the hurtful remarks that he made, and I’m confident that he’s going to run a great campaign and that he’s going to win.”
Mia McCarthy contributed to this report.
