Maine's Senate race is a study in how democracy can fail.
Susan Collins is still the least loyal Republican in the chamber....and still votes with Trump 95% of the time.
This tells you everything about the Senate Republicans - and that Collins, regardless of her performance to the contrary, is neither a moderate nor an independent.
Collins helped put Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court, which ended federal abortion rights.
Mainers have consistently voted against Trump 3-to-1.
All this set up the Democrats with only one job: run a sane, likeable, independent-minded moderate against her.
Instead, they nominated Platner after somehow failing to vet him at all.
He knew his tattoo was a totenkopf, a Nazi SS insignia, and lied about it. He has massive character failings.
I think Haviv Rettig Gur is right that if Platner's tattoo had been a confederate flag instead of Nazi SS insignia, Democrats would have remembered what they claim to believe in.
But it was just the symbol of a Nazi concentration camp guard, and it was mostly Jews who were upset, so he still gets to be the progressive hero this moment needs.
Platner is currently polling a little better than Collins in Maine, but I haven't been able to take polls seriously since 2016.
I understand why Mainers will likely put Platner in office. I also think that anything that impedes the march of Republican authoritarianism is good.
But holy shit has the bar been lowered in our expectations of US Senators that Democrats who falsely claim to have principles are defending Platner's obviously shitty character.
Whichever way Mainers vote, America loses.
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