Key Democratic figures call on Graham Platner to ‘immediately’ withdraw from Senate race – US politics live

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1h ago

Key Democratic figures call on Graham Platner to 'immediately' withdraw from Senate race

Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.

Maine’s Democratic party leadership has called for US Senate candidate Graham Platner to withdraw from the race, as the scandal-hit Marine veteran loses support from his previously most vocal backers.

It comes as Politico reported that Jenny Racicot, a 41-year-old Maine resident who previously dated Platner – whose insurgent rise has drawn comparisons to president Donald Trump – accused him of forcing her to have sex in late 2021.

Platner rejected the allegation and, in a video message posted to X after the report was published, called the allegations “troubling, serious and false.”

However, many top Democratic figures have called on the beleaguered nominee to step down. In a joint statement, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee chair Kirsten Gillibrand said Platner should “immediately withdraw”.

Ro Khanna, the California representative who has been one of Platner’s most vocal supporters, also said he should drop out. “I’ve been very clear that sexual assault or violence against women is a red line,” he wrote on X. “These allegations are very serious and credible. Graham Platner should drop out from the race. I am withdrawing my endorsement.”

Elizabeth Warren, the Massachusetts senator who endorsed Platner in March, said in a statement “there can be no tolerance for sexual assault”. She said: “With so much at stake, the best path forward is for Graham Platner to step aside as the Democratic nominee and address these serious allegations outside this Senate race.”

The allegation lands at a perilous moment for Democrats, who view Maine as a central battleground in their effort to regain control of the Senate in November’s midterm elections.

Read the latest story here:

In other developments:

Trump’s latest attempt to delay payment of a $5.8m judgment for defaming a magazine columnist whom a jury determined he sexually abused has been emphatically rejected by a federal court judge. More here.

Trump rang the bell of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) from the White House to mark the first trading day for Trump accounts, a government initiative that provides children with a $1,000 investment account. It is the first joint opening of the exchanges, and the first time the bell had been rung at the White House. More here.

National guard soldiers on patrol in Memphis shot and killed a man that authorities in the Tennessee city said turned and pulled a gun on the troops during a chase. The shooting took place at about 4am on Sunday as the soldiers responded to a report of gunfire. The Tennessee national guard was deployed controversially by the state’s governor, Bill Lee, in October to support the federal push by Donald Trump, his fellow Republican, to tackle perceived crime surges in Democratic-run cities. More here.

Key events

16m ago

Trump heads to Turkey for two-day Nato summit

1h ago

Key Democratic figures call on Graham Platner to 'immediately' withdraw from Senate race

George Chidi

Moments after Donald Trump rang the ceremonial opening bell on Monday, starting the trading day from the Oval Office, 232 miles north on Wall Street, the US senator Ted Cruz celebrated the president’s new savings accounts as his administration’s “New Deal”.

“But instead of having government taking care of everyone,” the Republican senator declared, “Trump accounts are about making every child and every American a capitalist.”

In the wake of primary election wins by democratic socialists and their close progressive allies in New York and elsewhere, Trump and his Republican allies are leading a broad push to brand Democrats as communists, using John Birch Society language that has grown dusty with disuse.

While Trump often conflates democratic socialism with communism – a well-worn Republican tactic that aims to weaponize voters’ fears of Marxism against liberal policies – he has increasingly made the accusation distinct and clear.

“Communism is the exact opposite of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It’s death, tyranny, and the pursuit of evil,” Trump said, speaking at Mount Rushmore for an address marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. “The godless communist morality states that anything is justified to bring about inhuman visions … They don’t want good. They don’t love God and they don’t want God. They don’t love religion and they don’t want religion, and they won’t have it, but we will not let them win.”

No president had rung the bell from the White House before Monday’s event, perhaps because no president had wanted to associate state power so closely with financial markets.

But while Trump has ramped up his attacks against communism, the self-styled business mogul president has overseen the most significant extension of government control over private industry since the start of the cold war, if not before.

Trump heads to Turkey for two-day Nato summit

President Donald Trump and his Nato counterparts are gathering in Turkey today for a two-day summit that comes at a turning point in the organization’s history as the United States steps back from its traditional security role in Europe.

Ahead of the meeting in Ankara, Trump has insisted on “loyalty” after some Nato countries balked at allowing U. forces to use their bases for attacks on Iran, AFP reports.

He listed big European members Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain for criticism.

The summit is a symbolic moment when the 32 member countries of the world’s biggest military alliance underline their unshakeable commitment to one another’s security.

Shrai Popat

In a video message on Monday published after the Politico report, Platner again said the accusations were false, but that he was mindful of the political reality the accusation will carry.

“We are taking the time to reflect on the best path forward for the state that I love, the people that I love, the movement I belong to and the goal of defeating Susan Collins,” Platner said.

He thanked the voters who helped propel him to the nomination as a political newcomer.

“You never turned your back on me, and I will not turn my back on you now,” he said. “Every one of you deserves to see that vision come to fruition, and see Susan Collins defeated, and we will use every tool at our disposal to do so. As Maine goes, so goes the nation.”

Collins herself weighed in on social media: “These allegations are appalling. Nevertheless, it is not up to me to choose the Democratic nominee for Senate.”

Shrai Popat

In the Politico report, published on Monday, Jenny Racicot, 41, who previously dated Platner, said he forced her to have sex despite repeated objections.

Platner denied the claims in a statement to Politico. “These allegations are troubling, serious, and false. Any accusation of non-consensual behavior is categorically untrue,” he said.

Racicot told the outlet she had an on-and-off relationship with Platner for more than two years. She alleges that in late 2021, an intoxicated Platner entered her home uninvited and forced himself on her. Racicot said she terminated contact after the encounter.

The report cited accounts from a man Racicot later confided in, as well as recent therapist emails, and messages where she warned an acquaintance about Platner in 2023.

Platner, an oyster farmer and former marine veteran, who secured the Democratic nomination and faces the Republican senator Susan Collins in the general election, has faced a series of scandals before this week.

Platner has cast himself as a populist everyman with an anti-oligarchy message. Before his run for public office, he made controversial comments on social media and got a Nazi-linked tattoo, which has since been covered up. Platner has said he did not initially understand the meaning of the tattoo.

Key Democratic figures call on Graham Platner to 'immediately' withdraw from Senate race

Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.

Maine’s Democratic party leadership has called for US Senate candidate Graham Platner to withdraw from the race, as the scandal-hit Marine veteran loses support from his previously most vocal backers.

It comes as Politico reported that Jenny Racicot, a 41-year-old Maine resident who previously dated Platner – whose insurgent rise has drawn comparisons to president Donald Trump – accused him of forcing her to have sex in late 2021.

Platner rejected the allegation and, in a video message posted to X after the report was published, called the allegations “troubling, serious and false.”

However, many top Democratic figures have called on the beleaguered nominee to step down. In a joint statement, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee chair Kirsten Gillibrand said Platner should “immediately withdraw”.

Ro Khanna, the California representative who has been one of Platner’s most vocal supporters, also said he should drop out. “I’ve been very clear that sexual assault or violence against women is a red line,” he wrote on X. “These allegations are very serious and credible. Graham Platner should drop out from the race. I am withdrawing my endorsement.”

Elizabeth Warren, the Massachusetts senator who endorsed Platner in March, said in a statement “there can be no tolerance for sexual assault”. She said: “With so much at stake, the best path forward is for Graham Platner to step aside as the Democratic nominee and address these serious allegations outside this Senate race.”

The allegation lands at a perilous moment for Democrats, who view Maine as a central battleground in their effort to regain control of the Senate in November’s midterm elections.

Read the latest story here:

In other developments:

Trump’s latest attempt to delay payment of a $5.8m judgment for defaming a magazine columnist whom a jury determined he sexually abused has been emphatically rejected by a federal court judge. More here.

Trump rang the bell of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) from the White House to mark the first trading day for Trump accounts, a government initiative that provides children with a $1,000 investment account. It is the first joint opening of the exchanges, and the first time the bell had been rung at the White House. More here.

National guard soldiers on patrol in Memphis shot and killed a man that authorities in the Tennessee city said turned and pulled a gun on the troops during a chase. The shooting took place at about 4am on Sunday as the soldiers responded to a report of gunfire. The Tennessee national guard was deployed controversially by the state’s governor, Bill Lee, in October to support the federal push by Donald Trump, his fellow Republican, to tackle perceived crime surges in Democratic-run cities. More here.