Scarcely had voters in Maine digested the full extent of Graham Platner's many and varied Reddit posts, and the question of whether or not he was aware of the Nazi origins of his skull and cross bones tattoo, when an entirely new controversy erupted. A former campaign director leaked to the papers that Platner's wife, Amy Gertner, had confided in her last year that in the early days of their marriage Graham had been sexting multiple women.

The news provided a whole new avenue of attack for the Republicans who had already been busy Swiftboating him over Memorial Day--and lambasting him over his own insults of military veterans. But this attack came from within his own party--actually within his own campaign!

Is this latest controversy a flash in the pan? Is this revelation just personal business--between Amy and Graham? And not for public consumption? Or is it proof positive that Platner is, as many Democrats have worried , a wild card, untested, unknown, and possibly badly vetted?

And yet....the crowds keep coming. The town halls are still overflowing. What will voters do with a candidate that seems to be saying what they want to hear, and saying it inspirationally, while at the same time suffering from repeated revelations from his past that cast doubt on his character?

Platner immediately doubled down, continuing his brazening-it-out strategy.

The Two Broke Woke Blokes chew over all of these events ask what they mean for the campaign, and try to clear the decks for discussions of larger themes of the campaign should the angsty news cycle ever calm down.

Welcome back to Gramerica.

After Governor Janet Mills’ abrupt exit from the field, oyster farmer and Marine veteran Graham Platner stands as the presumptive Democratic nominee in a fierce, one-on-one contest against the Republican incumbent, Senator Susan Collins.

Following intense social media speculation, Collins has revealed she has been living with a neurological condition—a benign essential tremor—throughout her time in the Senate.

Though she insists it won't impact her service, it creates a stark contrast with Platner's youthful, barnstorming campaign.

Yet Platner continues to face scrutiny of his own over past Reddit posts, his working-class bona fides, and a recently covered-over Nazi Totenkopf tattoo from his days as a young Marine.

In our second episode, the Two Broke Woke Blokes explore the tectonic shifts in this wild race, sifting through the scandals that supporters have made peace with and opponents refuse to let go.

For a full list of sources, video clips, and reading materials cited in this episode, visit our show notes at:

⁠https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LArCxINrHuKCh6OZHjCBB18NrS1XiBNqsFn_CVGQ_HM/edit?usp=sharing⁠⁠

Welcome to Gramerica, a new series following the high-stakes Senate campaign of Graham Platner. In our premiere episode, Pip and Adrian unpack the improbable rise of this Maine oyster farmer and Marine veteran as he takes on the Titan of the Senate, Susan Collins.

From launching a viral July video to quickly dispatching Democratic primary opponent Governor Janet Mills, Platner has completely upended the status quo. To his supporters, he is the long-awaited antidote to a calcified political system that has abandoned everyday people.

To his critics—who weaponize his offensive, decade-old social media posts and a covered-over Nazi tattoo from his youth—he is a walking paradox, drawing contradictory barbs like “communist,” “Nazi,” “racist,” and “homophobe.”

Yet through it all, he keeps on rolling.

The Two Broke Woke Blokes are not Platner “fanboys,” nor do we pretend to be political experts. But like so many in Maine, we are energized by this race and ready to grapple with its many questions and contradictions.

To help us set the table and make sense of it all, we’re joined by University of Maine Professor Emerita of Political Science, Amy Fried.

For a full list of sources, video clips, and reading materials cited in this episode, visit our show notes at:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LArCxINrHuKCh6OZHjCBB18NrS1XiBNqsFn_CVGQ_HM/edit?usp=sharing