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Graham Platner, the Democrat’s presumptive nominee for Senate in Maine, described the United States Army as “absolute trash” and “full of fat, lazy trash who would rather not be in uniform” in posts on his now-deleted Reddit account.
“I spent another 4 in the Army after the Corps, and while I was very lucky to serve in some sh–t hot units with good dudes, as a whole the organization is absolute trash,” Platner wrote in April 2019. “I am not one to totally bad mouth the Army. It does have some squared away fighting units and good guys, as well as some better doctrine here and there. But it is absolutely lacking in the warrior ethos and leadership obsession that the Corps has, and generally attracts a lower standard of person.”
The resurfaced posts include a separate 2019 comment about wounded Army veteran Teddy Daniels, who was shot by the Taliban and later awarded the Purple Heart. In that post, Platner criticized Daniels’ battlefield tactics and wrote that the “dumb motherf—er didn’t deserve to live.”
Platner’s comments about Daniels and other now-deleted Reddit posts — including posts in which he used slurs, demeaned white rural Americans and identified as a Marxist — have become a major campaign issue in the Maine Senate race, where he seeks to unseat GOP incumbent Sen. Susan Collins.
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Senate candidate Graham Platner, D-Maine, speaks at a town hall at the Franco Center in Lewiston, Maine, on Oct. 15, 2025. (Libby Kenny/Sun Journal via AP)
Platner served in the Marine Corps and the Maryland Army National Guard, where he completed multiple combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is not uncommon for members of one branch of the armed forces to be harshly critical of other branches.
“The Army does things differently, and as a whole, they do things much worse,” Platner wrote in March 2019. “As an organization it’s awful. Full of fat, lazy trash who would rather not be in uniform.”
Platner wasn’t exclusively negative, as he praised the Army for having “some solid light infantry, reconnaissance, and SOF units that are s— hot, as well as access to some great schools.”
He was also open about the necessity of internal criticism within the armed forces.
“Civilians can be as dumb f–k ret—ed as they want, but WE have a duty to be brutally honest,” Platner wrote in 2013. “I want civilians to think our ability to fight is unmatched, but I also want us to be brutal in our internal criticism.”
Graham Platner, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, speaks at a news conference Thursday, April 30, 2026, in Lewiston, Maine. (Robert F. Bukaty/AP PHoto)
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The Washington Free Beacon first reported on Platner’s disparaging comments directed towards the Army.
The posts were made under the Reddit account “P-Hustle,” which Platner has previously acknowledged as his.
“I’m sorry for this. Just know that it’s not reflective at all of who I am,” Platner said of his resurfaced Reddit posts back in October. “I don’t want you to judge me on the dumbest thing I ever wrote on the internet. I would prefer if people could judge me on the person I am today.”
Graham Platner, a U.S. Marine and Army veteran and oyster farmer, launched a Democratic run for the U.S. Senate in Maine in August. (Graham Platner campaign)
In 2019, Platner reacted to a video of an American soldier being shot by the Taliban by stating that the “dumb motherf—er didn’t deserve to live.” Platner’s post criticized the soldier, who was later awarded the Purple Heart, for utilizing poor tactics.
The Senate hopeful’s commentary has attracted criticism from some other veterans.
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“We don’t make jokes about our brothers and sisters dying, that’s not something we do, that’s not normal,” Adam Schwarze, a former Navy SEAL and Marine veteran running for Senate as a Republican in Minnesota, said of Platner.
Graham Platner, left, pictured alongside Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, right. (Graeme Sloan/Getty Images; Heather Diehl/Getty Images)
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Platner attributes his behavior to psychological trauma he developed from being deployed to the Middle East, as well as the “crude humor” he had gotten used to while in the Marines.
The Senate hopeful’s controversial statements about the military haven’t been confined to Reddit.
During a 2024 podcast interview, Platner implied that deceased Navy SEAL Chris Kyle killed civilians to inflate his numbers.
“[Kyle’s] stories about how many people he was shooting certainly tracked with the behavior I witnessed,” Platner said. “It’s relatively easy to get high numbers like that if you’re a little less discriminating in your fire than, say, a more professional unit would be.”
He also accused Navy SEALs of being generally incompetent on his Reddit account, though he had kind words for the Army Rangers.
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“Graham Platner’s vicious attacks on wounded service members and open contempt for the Army are disgusting and disqualifying,” National Republican Senatorial Committee press secretary Bernadette Breslin told Digital. “The more we learn about him, the more his top Democrat allies like Elizabeth Warren are forced to dodge questions on why they ever supported him in the first place.”
The Platner campaign did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Digital on Thursday.
