that it's a fair assessment that whoever replace Platner can still win.

Weren't those committee members elected by Maine Democrats somehow?
or does it not work that way in Maine?

If they WERE elected to their committee seats,
seems to me that a choice by them would at least have some validity
as coming from a representative body--- ?

Anyway, please explain your opinion since I don't understand it at all...

If someone is selected by committee, there will be people who feel "the party" is forcing someone one them.

If it is caucuses or a convention, the process is more open.

As we now see.

Has anybody asked Stephen King? He's a good resister.

people making the selection as they can arrange for. They should avoid a situation where it looks like only insiders are making the selection as was the case with the national Dems in selecting Harris to replace Biden, which I think hurt Harris.

He has a week to drop out, then they have to nominate somebody quickly.

For another 6 years.

Who would ever think that is a good idea, under any circumstances?

It makes about as much sense as an entry level worker applying to be ceo.

to challenge the 'concerned senator[---

So Platner got in first, and built his own movement in Maine---
while Gov. Mills had to be dragged in kicking and screaming
(very quietly, because she's old), but came too late in the primary campaign...


Donald Trump, through his two presumed victories in presidential elections,
has made it quite clear, and was presumably validated by the voters
that "previous experience in public office"
is no longer a valid requirement for a candidate for ANY office whatsoever!

Yeah, one could mention that one candidate or another
"has no previous experience in office",
but that argument is "lost in the noise" if they are out working the campaign trail...


(There may have been some other Democrats on the Maine primary ballot,
but I didn't hear enough about them to have any idea now who they were,
other than Janet Mills, of course..)

Practically 'obligatory' according to a lot of voices that we're hearing from .. ? Yes ?

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Swagger does not equal competence.

Would you book a flight with a pilot who had never flown before, or schedule open heart surgery with someone who had never attended medical school?

We need qualified leadership in Washington, as well.

One of AOC’s staffers was running for senate until Mills declared, then they dropped out to run for congress- was it Wood?

Wood later on worked for the Biden-Harris administration as a Special Assistant to the President.

He could bring some unique fire with what happened on January 6. And youth.

It leaves the choice with the voters. Also, removing direct election of senators is what many republicans want.

Sounds like a solid choice for a replacement candidate

Or just tally up planters ranked choice and pick the next winner.

Not DU pundits

on our Discussion board.

Don't know much about Jordan Wood or David Costello but they seem good.
I think Dr. Shah would make a great Surgeon General.

That person will lose to Collins, imho. I live here in ME and from my talks that seems pretty clear to me.

So pissed stuck with her for another 6 yrs. Ugh!

As usual, Democrats have self-annihilated

Not the party. Party leaders urged Mills to run.

I have to say they have a less than impressive track record at this point. We are the minority in the House, and Senate. We have a Republican President who has been convicted of 34 felonies. We have failed to stop radical right-wing Justices from being appointed to the USSC. (they stole one or two nominations from us.)

That's just the political stuff. Economically...don't get me started.

I want to see this Party and its candidates succeed. If that means bucking the leaders, so be it.

And people, even knowing his problems wanted him. So thats what democrats got.

Here we are.

People still Attempting to justify to themselves how they could potentially support a rapist.

It is crazy.

with Platner. I have said this for a long time, not just recently.

Mills was unpopular with Dem voters for reasons far beyond just her advanced age (and that was a real issue as well, as she would have been the oldest first time elected Senator in US history, 85yo at the end of her first term).

Mills is pro filibuster, she is anti-decriminalisation for small personal use amounts of drugs, she is anti red-flag laws for guns, she has vetoed collective bargaining rights (so is anti-union to a noticeable degree), vetoed a moratorium on data centers in Maine, vetoed wealth taxes, vetoed protections for renters, and vetoed some tribal sovereignty laws, etc.

Those are very unpopular stances and actions inside our Party, yet Schumer, Gillibrand, and the Maine state Dem apparatus etc, etc picked her to be leadership's chosen candidate.

For some time. Yet people made excuses. Mills seems like the better choice even if there were some things that people people disagreed with. I think people need to tale a look at what they were able to over look.

The leadership discussed above should have picked a better candidate to oppose Platner.

They should have found and supported someone who did not have Mills's record of taking actions and supporting things that the vast majority of Democratic voters oppose.

The Democratic voters of Maine made that very clear in the primary. Even with Platner already mired in multiple scandals, they thoroughly rejected Mills. Mills was clearly a poor candidate when it came down to opposing Platner. Mills also polled worse, (and this is before Mills suspended her campaign) against Collins than Platner did.

I so do hope that (assuming Platner drops out, which he MUST do ASAP) the Dem Maine leadership finds someone who can still defeat the horrid Rethug Collins.

And what you said does not sound encouraging.

and because I rail against moderate and progressive Democrats fighting among themselves, so I will post this carefully.

It seems to me that Maine is looking for #1 a fighter, and maybe #2 a progressive, but what do I know?

With that said, I support Democrats.

To Susan Collin’s voters… I like to think it can be done!!

credible for Dems like Ro Kanna to retract their endorsements.

And, Planter to lay out his conditions for withdrawal. Why would he do that instead of another denial?

It seems to me like he's had sme serious talks with top endorsers

supported by selective email/facebook msgs, friend recollections and Ms Racicot's own description of at least one therapy session. It's not like Ms Racicot walked away from a relationship with Platner right away as she reportedly dated him on and off for 3 years (2019-2021).

But, pols don't need actual evidence to get skittish and run away especially if it looks like they might get splashed by some bad PR. This behavior is not good or bad, it just is.

Mainer's overwhelmingly voted for the ideas Platner articulated in his campaign. Why shouldn't he protect what they voted for by conditioning his withdrawal? Schumer would love to replace Platner with Mills, his preferred candidate, even though Maine's Dem primary voters soundly rejected her.

For Maine to go Forward.

Like I said.. overwhelming.

Jmho, but Platner's core anti-establishment and populist message is what propelled his rise. It's not that Platner himself was especially scary, but the profound resonance of his message shook the "centrists", "moderates", "establishment" - whatever term you care to use - to it's core. That is message is the thing to be destroyed, Platner was just in the way, so he had to be destroyed, too. These women accusers were merely pawns to be sacrified in the game. No one is going to give a rat's behind about them after presumably Platner drops out.

Bernie supports everything Platner campaigned on, but he also needs to keep his credibility so he can keep fighting for his beliefs. The same with Warren. Neither can risk credibility by continuing to support Platner and that's the road each took.

I am a vote blue no matter who kind of person. Platner has had multiple chances to get everything out in the open to clear the air and avoid surprises and every time he fails to do so. Much rather this happen now than in October, but none of this needed to happen. How are you a serious candidate for office and not scrub your socials, get tattoos removed, address your past comments and actions against women? Just pathetic all the way around.

RESIDENTS ONLY?

DU OUGHT PICK A LANE.

What I think it means is another 6 years of, “I am concerned!”

I could be wrong, but I don't look for this to happen. I look for them to pick a centrist, and lose.