Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is downplaying outrage against Graham Platner, who he is backing in the Democratic Senate primary in Maine, over Platner’s controversial posts on Reddit and a tattoo that resembles a Nazi “totenkopf.”
Sanders said there are “more important issues” than Graham’s decision to get a tattoo while serving in the Marines.
“He went through a dark period in his life. I suspect that Graham Platner is not the only American to have gone through a dark period,” the Vermont senator said during an appearance Tuesday on “The Axios Show.”
“But what he did was, he has expressed his darkness on the internet, probably not a brilliant thing to do, all right, and he said things that are stupid, things that were hurtful. He has apologized for it,” he added.
Sanders said Platner told him at one point he was suffering from PTSD.
“This is a guy who will tell you, who has served four tours of duty with the United States military, he was in the middle of some heavy-duty combat. He was a machine gunner, he mowed down people, you know?” he told Axios.
“He went through some very difficult experiences in the military as a machine gunner seeing his friends killed, came out of the military, he will acknowledge — I’m not telling you what he doesn’t say — he had PTSD. He went to the VA and, by the way, he says they rebuilt his life,” Sanders added.
In spite of the controversies, Platner holds a strong lead over primary challenger, Gov. Janet Mills (D-Maine), who’s been endorsed by both EMILY’s List and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).
Still, Vermont Republican Party Chair Paul Dame called on Sanders to retract or explain his endorsement of Platner, echoing EMILY’s List President Jessica Mackler, who characterized Platner’s comments as “unacceptable and disqualifying,” according to the Vermont Daily Chronicle.
