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Elizabeth Warren shrugs off Graham Platner praise of Hamas

Warren lauded Platner’s economic populist message rather than address his extremist rhetoric

Brian Stukes/Getty Images for Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks during the Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator (VPA) Luncheon at Eaton DC on April 22, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) dismissed criticism of Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner’s scandals on Wednesday, after calling him “my kind of man” at his rally in Maine on Saturday.

“You care about character,” CNBC host Sara Eisen said to Warren. “This is a guy that had a chest tattoo with a Nazi symbol — OK, he apologized for it. It’s a guy that reportedly wrote that people concerned about rape should take some responsibility for themselves and not get so effed up that they wind up having sex with someone they don’t mean to. He praised military tactics used by Hamas, reportedly, in comments online when they were murdering Israeli soldiers. So I’m just curious why you think he’s ‘your kind of man’?”

Warren responded, “So, as you rightly point out, he has apologized. He’s out meeting with the people of Maine every single day so they can evaluate not who Graham Platner was but who Graham Platner is today.” She went on to say her comment was in reference to her experience reading an interview of Platner’s where he condemned the lack of consequences for bankers during the 2008 financial crisis.

Eisen said, “OK, well, ‘I dig it,’ next to a video of a bunch of terrorists killing five soldiers?” referring to a Jewish Insider report unearthing Platner’s 2014 Reddit comments. “I don’t know, I mean, you guys want to be the party of inclusivity, right?” 

“I want to be the party that stands up for hardworking people,” Warren answered. “I want to be the party that is transformative of an economy that right now is hip deep in corruption … and that’s what Graham Platner wants to do and I’m there to stand with him and to help in that fight.”

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