Fetterman says he’ll wear suits if Platner releases private messages

Fetterman on Platner: “He has [said] so many offensive things that it’s hard to keep up with it.”

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., intensified his criticism of Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, urging him to release messages linked to a Kik account that has become a source of controversy in the campaign and questioning whether Democrats should continue backing his candidacy.

Speaking to Fox News host Sean Hannity, Fetterman contrasted criticism Platner had directed at him over his attire with allegations surrounding the Maine candidate’s online activity.

Kik, a mobile messaging app, allows users to chat privately using usernames rather than phone numbers.

“This is a guy that had a problem with me, how I dress, but he seemed to have no problem posing in a towel at a disgusting website that consistently had serious problems about that kinds of depravity,” Fetterman said.

The Pennsylvania senator challenged Platner to make public messages allegedly exchanged with women through the platform.

“Let me make a deal. I’ll tell P-Hustle, I’ll wear a suit every day, if he releases all those texts and messages that he’s had… [with] the dozen women,” he said, referring to Platner’s reported username.

Fetterman also questioned the identities of the individuals involved in the conversations.

“You can prove [to] America… what’s [in] these conversations. Can P-Hustle prove how old these people are?” he said.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Platner’s campaign acknowledged that the Kik account belonged to him.

The campaign said the account was created in 2016 and that while Platner deleted the application from his phone, he did not deactivate the account.

Fox News Digital reported that Platner’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Fetterman also cited a series of other controversies surrounding the candidate, including Reddit posts, a video appearing to accuse late Navy SEAL Chris Kyle of inflating his record by killing civilians and a Totenkopf tattoo that has since been covered.

“As a Democrat, I’m never going to carry water for a guy that calls an American hero a dumb MFer, or someone that smears Chris Kyle… and claimed that he’s shooting innocent civilians. You’ve literally lost count…” Fetterman said.

“He has [said] so many offensive things that it’s hard to keep up with it,” he added.

Despite Fetterman’s criticism, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., has defended Platner, while Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., have endorsed his campaign against incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins.

Platner previously said he received the Totenkopf tattoo in 2007 and was unaware of its Nazi association at the time. He later apologized for past social media controversies and said he hoped voters would “judge me on the person I am today,” explaining that he was “having a difficult time settling into society” after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.