I wish Janet Mills had a better chance of defeating Collins. I wish we had a better candidate.

Tattoos aside.

Best baked goods I ever had was from Portland.

I am resigned to Platner, obviously. I am not from Maine, but donated to Mills and will no longer. I think the simple optics of dermal ink is enough to win a certain percent.

Humbled. Often. Always.

I like Mills as a politician. She has been a good governor through really hard times. She steered us through the pandemic brilliantly and did some great progressive things, like free postsecondary education for covid-era kids, although she's too centrist for me. She is smart and honest and abrasive, is arrogant but genuinely cares for people. She is a very uncharismatic politician and a dull speaker. But decent and hardworking.

I think the rightwingers, the antivaxxers, hate her so much she can't beat Collins. Even liberals I know dislike her, influenced by gop disinformation.

And folks want a non establishment candidate. I get it. I had hopes for Fetterman once. Platner has a chance to defeat the soulless Collins, which is a reason to support him, but with no history of elected office outside of local harbormaster, he is simply not qualified. I like my representatives to have experience.

Of course congress is packed with unqualified, ignorant and corrupt people. I dream of better, but I don't have any suggestions.

Platner has some passionate supporters. I hope their faith is justified.

Platner should have followed the cursus honorum. Get elected in that 1 conservative distinct in ME to the House. He is young enough to serve a few terms before seeking more robust political offices. Had he done this, he would have earned my trust as a Democrat first and a reformer second. I, like many, am more concerned about the existential threat of Democratic electoral losses than spending, taxation, nuances of policy.

Will he be a Manchin or a Fetterman? He certainly isn't talking like a centrist. And main is more liberal than PA or WV, so I suspect he has a different incentive structure for his policy positions. His posture, however (currently), is winning me over.

His judgement is questionable, but his rhetoric at present is inspiring.

I doubt Collins has any passionate supporters anymore. Hell, didn't Olympia Snowe hate her?

2026 is going to be an election of passion. We feel it in our blood, no?

Sorry. Can’t help you. Good luck, though.

How does someone help you pick one? They seem to find you.

I want ya'll to have veto power. Don't want any problematic iconography in the future.

The Batman logo isn't really a batman logo. thats just my closest approximation. Hey, I was a kid. Kinda a stylized M?

I don't regret it, but I can be best.

for you, not me. I am, and will remain, uninked.

No chance he becomes a fascist icon in, say, 20 years?

Add in that you were drunk. That's always believable in how-I-got-my-tattoo stories.

Yeah... possib- I mean probably.

The source of many great stories and many greater mistakes.

And I’m covered in tattoos.

Greedy people like you.

Seems like something that was said in 1994 by an aging Silent Generation person. Tattoos are completely acceptable now. Probably half of Congress has at least one, we just don't know it.

Ted Cruz covering his prison tats?

Rand Paul has the letters "RAND" and "PAUL" on his knuckles?

LOL

'with devotion's visage, and pious action we do sugar o'er the devil himself'

He's made several derogatory and offensive comments, he has very poor judgment and it seems he is a habitual liar.

It appears he will be the nominee, however.

More problematic than the tattoo was the removing it so many years after getting caught.

But, real talk, he seems to be the stronger candidate than Mills.

I don't live in Maine but I have family there and have visited dozens of times over the years. Mainers are down to earth, practical people. I don't believe they will fall for this ridiculous showboat with tons of baggage.