Maine Senate Candidate Platner Questioned Armenian Genocide Label in 2016 Reddit Comment

Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner questioned whether the mass killing of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century "was in fact genocide" in a now-deleted 2016 Reddit comment. The revelation of the post, first reported by the Washington Free Beacon on Friday, came amid national scrutiny into Platner's past comments on social media. " Platner added, "I'm no fan of Turkey.

Aram Hamparian, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of America, told the Washington Examiner: "This is an opportunity for Graham to codify his view on the Armenian genocide. " In other posts, Platner mocked an American soldier shot four times during a Taliban firefight as a "fat a" who "didn't deserve to live" and recalled his experience masturbating in a public toilet while deployed to Afghanistan.

" Platner leads Susan Collins by 9 points in a Maine Senate race poll.

The Cook Political Report rates the race against the five-term Republican incumbent as a toss-up. In a Monday CNN interview, Massachusetts Rep. Jake Auchincloss refused to endorse Platner. "I find that tattoo and his commentary about it to be personally disqualifying," Auchincloss said.