Sexts
I don’t get “sexting”. It’s not that I’m against sex, that’s all well and good. But “remote sex” just seems like a weird thing, especially in today’s age where anything placed “out there” is ultimately available to all. Just like these essays: if it goes “out” on the internet or the airwaves, it becomes a public record. So if you don’t want some “things” made public, then don’t put them in a place they could be “aired out”. Or, maybe I’m just too old to get the sexual thrill of risking your privates possibly appearing in public.
But, it’s also not my job to govern the semi-private actions of consenting adults. So if they (adults) want to send or receive explicit texts, pictures, or videos; it’s not for me to judge. And if, for example, a man cheats on his wife by sexting with another woman; well, it’s disreputable, but it’s not illegal. The question in Maine, is should it be disqualifying for the Democratic candidate for Senate, Graham Platner.
The story goes like this. Platner sent “sexts” to women other than his wife. He and his wife dealt with this form of infidelity, including marriage counseling. None of the recipients of those “sexts” have come forward to complain. In fact, the only reason the world knows about any of this is that Platner’s wife came forward to the campaign staff, warning them of this impending risk to his political future. But again, what started as a private conversation ends up on the public record. This time, it was thanks to the New York Times.
Me Too
Democrats look back to 2018, the beginning of the first election cycle after the Presidency of Donald Trump. Senator Al Franken of Minnesota, a comedian by trade, was found to have questionable photographs taken a decade earlier. The pictures showed Franken on an aircraft, jokingly trying to touch the breasts of a female comedian asleep on the flight. They were juvenile, and stupid, and exactly the kind of humor that Franken’s career was all about.
But it was at the same moment that Alabama was trying to decide whether to elect a Republican, Judge Roy Moore, with credible charges of child sex abuse, or Democrat Doug Jones. And the Party in Washington wanted to make a strong point to the “ME TOO” movement and the good folks of Alabama, that Democrats were on the right side. The Senate Democrats, led by New York Senator Kristin Gillibrand, demanded Franken resign, and he ultimately did. (I wrote a couple essays about this during that time, Al Franken Did the Right Thing, and, It’s Not for Me to Say).
The Line
Jones won. So in the short run, the strategy absolutely worked. And it put Democrats in the position of holding to a higher moral and behavioral standard for their candidates than the Republicans, led by the “Grab them by the *****” President. Other Democratic candidates have fallen to that standard, most recently Congressman Eric Swalwell, poised to win the California Gubernatorial race. As much as Swalwell seemed like a “good guy”, it turned out he was a sleaze, using his political position to gain sexual favors from much younger staff women. His withdrawal leaves today’s primary choice for the top job up in the air.
Swalwell abused the power of his office to gain sexual gratification – in spite of his wife and family. He needed to go. Franken was in the wrong place, with the wrong pictures, at the wrong time. At that moment, he needed to go too, but that standard may have been too high.
Platner
So what about Grant Platner?
He’s a “rough” candidate. The “sexts” aren’t his only problem. But, the former oyster farmer and Marine has caught on in Maine, and he has created a stark contrast to the Republican incumbent, Susan Collins. Maine Democrats had the opportunity to pick a more “mainstream” candidate, Governor Janet Mills. But they did not – they chose Platner.
Platner’s wife wasn’t “outing” the “sexts” to the public. She was trying to further his candidacy by warning the staff. And, most importantly, no one is saying that they received the “sexts” unwillingly. Other than showing the bad judgment of “sexting” (in my opinion), is their even a “foul” here? Where should the Democratic line be?
In His Pocket
Republicans are going to call any Democratic candidate everything. Ask Sherrod Brown here in Ohio, whose last campaign was defeated by bogus charges that Brown supported “men in women’s sports”. And look at Texas, where impeached, indicted, and adultering Republican Senatorial candidate Ken Paxton claims that Democratic candidate James Talarico is gay, or trans, or, worse of all, a vegan (he’s none of the above).
Democrats need to take a breath, swallow hard, and hope Platner doesn’t have too many more skeletons in the closet. Because, the voters of Maine have decided that he is the best chance to oust Collins, and perhaps gain control of the Senate. If Dems decide that the voters are wrong, and abandon Platner, that message would most assuredly re-elect Maine’s current “great vacillator” to return to support Donald Trump.
Let’s just hope he can keep his phone in his pocket.
