WASHINGTON — Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) is eviscerating his fellow Democrats for defending the “mess” of Graham Platner’s candidacy in Maine following mounting allegations of sexual misconduct.
“Every Democrat knows P-Hustle has Nazi ink, was Captain D–k-Pic on Kik, abusive towards women and slandered American soldiers online,” Fetterman told The Post Friday.
Members of his party are choosing instead “to suppress their gag reflex for the ‘greater good,’” he added, noting Platner’s upcoming Senate primary election on Tuesday, where the Maine candidate is expected to come out on top.
“P-Hustle?” Fetterman had responded when asked by reporters on Capitol Hill Thursday about the embattled Democratic candidate, who was recently revealed to have maintained an account by that name on the private messaging app Kik, which has been accused of enabling sexual predators and groomers.
“That’s what you’re calling him?” responded CBS News political correspondent Caitlin Huey-Burns.
“No … that’s how he described himself. That’s his name,” Fetterman deadpanned, before trolling MS Now: “You love P-Hustle? … Cause he’s awesome right? Was it the Nazi tattoo? Is it the insults and the Kik account?”
“Kik has serious issues, lack of kinds of controls, a lot of underage people. It’s really been controversial. Why was he on it for a decade? Why do you think, I mean, that’s the question, who’s investigating?” he also asked.
“Some Democrats will defend that mess. I will not,” he added. “So it’s really up to Maine voters.”
Fetterman pointed out that Platner had already “lied” about “his Nazi tattoo situation” when reports broke last fall on a “Totenkopf” he had inked to his chest, which he denied knowing was adopted by Hitler’s Schutzstaffel, or SS.
Platner had been vying with Maine Gov. Janet Mills for the race to unseat incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins.
Mills suspended her campaign, however, in April, leading to a surge in the polls for Platner, who has campaigned with socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and other left-wing lawmakers.
Here’s the latest on the bombshell sex allegations against lefty Senate candidate Graham Platner
There’s still been a whisper campaign to pressure Platner into stepping down so Mills — or another Democrat — could still be appointed before the general election as the Democrats’ Senate candidate to take on Collins, but party insiders noted it’s not politically viable — and is historically unprecedented in Maine.
Platner was exposed by The Wall Street Journal and New York Times for having sent “sexual” text messages last year to at least six women while he was married. The infidelity was first disclosed by his wife, Amy Gertner, to a campaign aide last August, and the couple later sought marital counseling.
“Amy and I went through something hard — because of me,” Platner admitted in a previous statement.
That sexting was also separate from his activities on Kik, where he maintained the account name “phustle0331” and a profile image of himself shirtless and wearing a white towel.
A Reddit profile under the similar name “P-Hustle” had also been uncovered by reporters last year, with several profane and offensive comments about sexual assaults in the military as well as rape being exposed.
On Thursday, three of his ex-girlfriends also spilled to The Times that he had displayed troubling behavior while they dated — including one who has long worked in Republican politics and described having her arm twisted before being locked in a room during an argument.
“Throughout this campaign, I’ve been open about what was a very dark period of my life where I struggled with undiagnosed PTSD, too often self medicated with alcohol, and was a far from perfect boyfriend,” Platner said in a statement.
“I take responsibility for all of that, and wish I had been better. Any characterization beyond that is false, and I believe, politically motivated. I’m not proud of who I was then, but I am proud of the work I’ve done since, and the movement we are building in Maine.”
A recent poll from the GOP firm Fabrizio, Lee & Associates showed that the race is now tied between Platner and Collins for the general election at 46% each.
Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate, but Democrats have been hoping their path to flipping the upper chamber would run through Maine.
