Episode summary
Host Ben Shapiro dissects the implosion of Graham Platner's Democratic Senate campaign in Maine following new rape allegations reported by Politico. Jenny Raskott, 41, accused the Democratic nominee of forcing himself on her in late 2021 after entering her home uninvited while intoxicated. Raskott told Politico she repeatedly objected but felt the encounter became non-consensual, and she later cut off contact with Platner. Significantly, Raskott stated she initially withheld her story because she agreed with Platner's progressive politics and feared undermining his challenge to Republican incumbent Susan Collins. Shapiro argues that Democratic leadership abandoned Platner not due to moral principle but because a Fox News poll showed him losing to Collins by three points, threatening Democratic hopes of retaking the Senate. The episode reveals that Democratic leaders had previously embraced Platner despite his Nazi tattoo, bizarre sexual statements online, and earlier allegations of abusive behavior from another woman, Lindsay Fifield. Shapiro highlights what he characterizes as journalistic malfeasance by the New York Times, which according to Fifield ignored multiple corroborating witnesses and evidence she provided about Platner's alleged abuse, instead describing the relationships as merely 'unsettling and emotionally wrenching.' High-profile Democrats including Ro Khanna withdrew endorsements following the Politico report. Platner denied all allegations but stated he was reflecting on the best path forward and suggested he would only withdraw if replaced by a candidate aligned with his political vision. The episode concludes with Shapiro mocking conspiracy theories from Marjorie Taylor Greene and Cenk Uygur who blamed AIPAC and pro-Israel forces for the allegations, calling such claims absurd.
