Free Republic

Yesterday, Graham Platner denied allegations made by Jenny Racicot of rape, but then announced that he would take some time to mull over his options. At the time, Platner had already cancelled his upcoming events before the July 13 deadline to withdraw his nomination as the Democrat candidate for US Senate from Maine. His withdrawal from the race appeared imminent, so much so that Polymarket actually shut down the betting pool on it.Well, it has been 24 hours since then, and ... all is quiet on the Totenkopf Front. Platner has lost almost every endorser in the race, and the...

Embattled U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner was hit with a second explosive allegation of sexual impropriety only about 24 hours after he was accused of rape — all while a major campaign decision deadline looms. In a new report published by The Washington Post, the candidate from Maine was accused of removing condoms during sex with his ex-girlfriend Lyndsey Fifield after she explicitly directed him to wear them. "He would pull condoms off," she told The Washington Post. "He would do it in a sneaky way. He wouldn’t tell me." Fifield, 41, previously accused Platner of physical misconduct during their...

On the heels of Atlantic magazine's prominent writer Jonathan Chait panicking about communists taking over the Democrat party, he went full blast five days later on Monday torching the party enablers of Graham Platt in "With Graham Platner, Democrats Got Drunk on the Beer Test." Specifically Chait blasted those who performed the laughably lame vetting of Platner as well as those who continued to promote him despite the many scandals that erupted around him.Chait's first blast was directed at Morris Katz, whose unbelievably weak vetting of Platner in the first place ultimately led to the Democrats being in the unenviable...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As rumors continued to swirl throughout the nation's capital regarding his status, Senator Mitch McConnell's staff assured the public that his death would not prevent him from finishing his term. News broke last week that the longtime Kentucky senator had been hospitalized after being found unresponsive in his Washington, D.C., home. Despite the uncertainty about his well-being, however, McConnell's staff said he would be more than fit to serve the remainder of his term even if he were dead. "No one would know the difference," one McConnell staffer said. "Whether he's alive or not, the next several...

Maine Democratic candidate Graham Platner appears to be holding the Democratic Party hostage — refusing to drop out after he was accused of rape unless he gets to approve his successor to run for the Senate, The Post has learned. A source familiar with the campaign discussions said Platner, his campaign and political strategist Morris Katz are deliberating about the Maine Democrat dropping out but only if his replacement shares his left-wing values. And the clock is ticking for Dems — there’s a deadline of Monday for the 41-year-old oyster farmer to withdraw and be replaced on the ballot, according...

Good morning. For many Democrats, Graham Platner represented something much bigger than a fresh face to take on the seemingly unbeatable Republican Sen. Susan Collins. He was blue collar, progressive, and—seemingly—a true Mainer. For many, he seemed too good to be true. Maybe he was. On Monday, Politico dropped a bombshell report about a past girlfriend alleging sexual misconduct by Platner. Platner denied the report, but—for the first time—suggested he might be exiting the race against Collins. “Regardless of the inaccuracy of the reporting but mindful of the political reality it will inflict, we are taking the time to reflect...

Nearly a dozen members of the wealthy Soros family collectively poured more than $1.6 million to Congressional candidates’ midterm campaigns so far, The Post has learned. The donations suggest the clan’s grip on American politics extends even beyond patriarch George Soros and his son Alex, who took control of his father’s $25 billion empire ahead of the 2024 presidential election. Topping the list of the other members of the clan was George’s son from his first marriage, Jonathan Soros and his wife Jennifer Allan Soros, who together donated $380,000 to House and Senate races all over the country. Jonathan, 55,...

Democrats are competitive in six key Senate battlegrounds, but Republicans still hold the edge in the fight for the upper chamber, according to new polling from The New York Times and Siena. The New York Times/Siena Polls found Democrats leading the Senate races in North Carolina, where Democrat Roy Cooper is battling Republican Michael Whatley to replace retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and in Maine, where progressive Graham Platner hopes to oust Sen. Susan Collins (R). Cooper boasts the biggest lead among the six battlegrounds surveyed, with 50 percent to Whatley’s 43 percent. Platner, at 49 percent, was up 2...

NEW YORK CITY — According to sources, a radical Islamist terrorist felt torn between two possible career paths: leading the next violent jihad against the infidels or becoming a Democratic senator of the United States. Abdullah bin Khalid Al-Makki reportedly took time off from his busy schedule to give serious thought to his future. Would he lead an Islamic Jihad with the goal of killing millions, or become a Democrat and get elected to the American Senate with the goal of killing millions? "Decisions, decisions," said Al-Makki, holding his bazooka. "There are pros and cons. It will take a lot...

The House Freedom Caucus is publicly calling on the Senate to return to work, as the upper chamber is now in a two-week Independence Day recess. President Donald Trump and many Republicans still want to find a way for the SAVE America Act to get passed in the Senate. “The Senate sucks. I’m just going to come out and say it - they suck. This is not hard!” Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) said during a Thursday news conference. The federal elections bill already cleared the House, but it is struggling for support among a handful of Republicans and all Democrats...

Rep. Keith Self (R-TX) has introduced a resolution to repeal the 17th Amendment. The 17th Amendment to the United States Constitution established the direct election of U.S. senators in each state. Before, senators were appointed by state legislatures. The 17th Amendment reads: The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures. When vacancies happen in the representation of...

Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin suggested Thursday that it may be time for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to step aside for new Democratic leadership. The Democratic Party hasn’t “fully recovered” since being “soundly defeated in 2024,” Slotkin, a Democrat , argued during an appearance on SiriusXM’s “Straight Shooter with Stephen A” – hinting that Schumer (D-NY) and Jeffries (D-NY) are to blame. “To me, the lesson was simple. Democrats had too many priorities. They tried to make everyone happy and answer every question. When you prioritize everything, no one knows what you actually stand...

Delaware Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester avoided answering where socialism has been “beneficial” when giving her thoughts on the recent New York primary elections. **SNIP** Rather than comment on what impact this could have on the broader Democratic Party, Blunt Rochester celebrated the wins as a whole. “I think that, first of all, the fact that people are engaged at a level they’ve never been engaged before is a positive thing, especially in the 250th anniversary of this country,” Blunt Rochester said. “We want people to participate. What I can say, though, about Democrats, and as someone who is working to...

Ed Morrisey wrote a couple of posts about the Democratic candidate for the Senate in Texas, James Talarico. I can't add much to his reporting, but I thought I would throw in my 2 cents regarding the Democrats' miscalculations in choosing their candidates for seats they hope to pick up this year. You can read Ed's posts here and here. The first goes through Talarico's desperate attempts to cover up his "progressive" image, and the second shows the peril of not being "progressive" enough to satisfy the even more whacko leftists out there, who want to focus on racial politics....

The Republican-controlled US Senate passed a legislative measure on Tuesday aimed at stopping American military operations against Iran, Reuters reported. The direct impact on the ground remains uncertain as President Donald Trump's administration actively works to hammer out a peace accord with Tehran. The concurrent resolution cleared the chamber in a tight 50-48 vote, following its approval by the House of Representatives earlier in the month. The final tally fell mostly along party lines, though four Republicans crossed the aisle to vote alongside almost every Democrat. Two Republican senators sat out the vote entirely. The approved text orders the president...

The Senate on Tuesday adopted a resolution instructing President Trump to end the war in Iran or seek congressional authorization to continue it, delivering the most significant bipartisan rebuke yet of the conflict. The resolution does not have the force of law and is therefore unlikely to compel an immediate change in policy. But the 50-to-48 vote — in which four Republicans joined Democrats in favor — marked a striking break by the G.O.P.-led Congress with a president who has faced little resistance from his party on any topic, particularly matters of war and national security. It underscored a growing...

Paxton 43, Talarico 42

A newly surfaced video shows Democrat U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico welcoming a climate activist organization to Texas and praising its work, a position that appears at odds with his campaign’s efforts to portray him as a supporter of the state’s energy industry. In a June 2024 video promoting the expansion of Third Act into Texas, Talarico thanked the group for coming to the Lone Star State and said he looked forward to working “alongside” the organization. “I’ve been fighting climate change my entire career,” Talarico said. Calling Texas “the front line in the fight to save democracy and our...

U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody leads Democrat Alex Vindman in Florida’s U.S. Senate race, according to a new poll released by the Associated Industries of Florida (AIF) Center for Political Strategy. The survey found Moody, the AIF-endorsed candidate, with 47% support among likely general election voters, compared with 40% for Vindman. Fourteen percent of respondents were undecided. The poll also found Moody’s support to be firmer than Vindman’s. While Vindman drew support from 40% of respondents overall, 29% said they were “definitely” voting for him. By comparison, 35% of voters said they were definitely backing Moody. AIF said Moody leads in...

Left-wing candidate Abdul El-Sayed is now leading Michigan’s Democratic Party primary for U.S. Senate. El-Sayed is campaigning for the seat held by Democrat Gary Peters. Michigan’s primary is Aug. 4, and the winner will likely compete with Republican Mike Rogers in the Nov. 3 general election.