Dem Senate hopeful under fire for resurfaced comments calling cops 'opportunistic cowards'

By Fox News · Fox News

Embattled Senate candidate Graham Platner is facing backlash for calling law enforcement "opportunistic cowards" in a since-deleted Reddit post. Platner, a far-left populist vying to become Maine’s next senator, made the comments in June 2020 in response to a post criticizing the Hancock County Sheriff's Department for seeking approval to purchase "riot gear." At the time, Black Lives Matter protests were spreading around the state, with some demonstrations turning violent, including vandalized storefronts and looting. Platner, then 35, dismissed the sheriff’s request as "ridiculous." "I guess the Sheriffs [sic] Department is so full of overweight pansies that they now need taxpayer dollars to protect themselves from George Stevens Academy sophomores and aging hippies," he wrote. VETS TORCH DEM SENATE HOPEFUL WHO CALLED ARMY ‘FAT, LAZY TRASH,’ MOCKED SOLDIER SHOT FOUR TIMES "Cops are opportunistic cowards," he continued. The post, which is available in The Maine Monitor’s archive of Platner’s since-deleted messages, but has not been previously reported, was published under Platner’s handle "P-Hustle" on the Reddit forum R/Maine. The comment is the latest in a string of anti-law enforcement remarks Platner made well into adulthood that have raised questions about his fitness for office as he seeks to unseat Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine. "It just shows a complete lack of understanding of the way law enforcement operates," state Rep. Donald Ardell, R-Maine, told Fox News Digital in an interview. "They have to be prepared for eventualities." Ardell, a retired federal special agent and criminal investigator, said conversations with current law enforcement officers and former colleagues reflected widespread disgust with Platner’s comments disparaging men and women in uniform. "It's a series of consistent bad decisions, and it seems to be continuing," Ardell said. Also in June 2020, Platner denounced a Maine police chief as "thin blue line trash" for declining to kneel wit…