{"id":2495,"date":"2026-07-09T18:09:57","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T13:09:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=2495"},"modified":"2026-07-09T18:09:57","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T13:09:57","slug":"the-brief-two-and-a-half-week-race-to-replace-graham-platner-begins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=2495","title":{"rendered":"The Brief: Two-and-a-Half-Week Race to Replace Graham Platner Begins"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-content\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h2-e04ff4dd-d06c-4e59-9bd6-5ad63cec90f3\">Maine Dems Piece Together Plan to Help Party Hold Senate<\/h2>\n<p>Graham Platner is finally out. In a defiant statement last night, he once again denied the sexual assault allegations against him, but conceded what his allies had been telling him for days: it was time to leave the race. He called for an \u201copen\u201d and \u201cdemocratic\u201d process to replace him, <a href=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/news\/graham-platner-drops-out-maine-senate-replacement\" target=\"_blank\">Kate Riga reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The Maine Democratic State Committee voted overwhelmingly to hold a 600-person nominating convention, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pressherald.com\/2026\/07\/08\/maine-democrats-plan-600-person-convention-to-replace-platner-once-he-drops-out\/\" target=\"_blank\">Portland Press Herald<\/a>, which broke the news. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ms.now\/news\/news-analysis\/for-democrats-replacing-platner-the-how-will-be-as-big-as-the-who\" target=\"_blank\">MS NOW<\/a> reported that, per one proposal discussed Wednesday, county committees would convene in the next few days to choose their delegates to the convention. The new candidate must be chosen by July 27 \u2014 19 days from yesterday, when Platner dropped out. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are of course going to require folks to talk to Maine voters in some way that is going to qualify them to be our U.S. Senate nominee beyond just declaring their intent,\u201d Maine Democratic Party Executive Director Devon Murphy-Anderson said in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Hc7zzOkRcyQ\" target=\"_blank\">an MS NOW interview last night<\/a>. \u201cWhat that will most likely look like is petition collection from Maine Democratic voters across the state.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Former state Senate president and candidate for governor Troy Jackson is already running to replace Platner, as is Jordan Wood, who lost a congressional primary last month, and brewer Dan Kleban, who ran in the Senate primary before dropping out to endorse Mills. Shenna Belows and Nirav Shah, other also-rans in the Maine gubernatorial primary, are expected to enter the race soon. Hannah Pingree, Bellows, Jackson and Shah each got between 20 and 25% of the vote, but, after ranked choice results were tabulated, Pingree emerged as the winner.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pressherald.com\/2026\/07\/08\/why-im-not-running-for-us-senate-patrick-dempsey\/\" target=\"_blank\">Actor Patrick Dempsey<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reels\/DagwSJax0M6\/\" target=\"_blank\">historian-writer Heather Cox Richardson<\/a> will <em>not<\/em> be running \u2014 just in case you were wondering. <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h2-d0e999a1-fab3-4fe6-b4c3-496784b6688d\"><strong>New U.S. Attorney Ready to \u2018Destroy the Left\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<div class=\"GalleryImageWrapper\">\n<h2 class=\"GalleryImageWrapper__Title\"\/>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"536\" width=\"804\" src=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?w=804\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1551761\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg 7861w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?resize=804,536 804w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?resize=1000,667 1000w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2201503507.jpg?resize=98,64 98w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 804px) 100vw, 804px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>UNITED STATES \u2013 FEBRUARY 26: Aaron Reitz, nominee to be an assistant attorney general, testifies during his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen building on Wednesday, February 26, 2025. (Tom Williams\/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>While campaigning for Texas Attorney General last year, Aaron Reitz promised to use the job, should he win it, to \u201cto destroy the left.\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/projects\/elections-2026\/texas-primary-attorney-general\/\" target=\"_blank\">He came in last place<\/a>. But now, through an unusual process, he\u2019s reportedly become U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, a job that will imbue him with tremendous power to carry out the Trump administration\u2019s retribution.\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/news.bloomberglaw.com\/litigation\/reitz-slated-to-be-next-us-attorney-in-texas-southern-district\" target=\"_blank\">Bloomberg Law<\/a> broke the news yesterday, writing that the district\u2019s judges voted to appoint Reitz to the role, \u201caccording to a person familiar with the matter.\u201d That means Reitz will not need to be confirmed by the Senate.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>A veteran of Ken Paxton\u2019s state attorney general office, Reitz briefly led the Trump DOJ\u2019s Office of Legal Policy. He left that role to run in the race to replace Paxton; his old boss endorsed him, but he only got 14% of the vote.<\/li>\n<li>During that race, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.texastribune.org\/2026\/02\/16\/aaon-reitz-texas-attorney-general-2026-primary-gop\/\" target=\"_blank\">the Texas Tribune<\/a> reviewed some of his tweets to get a sense of his views. He mused that he was a part of \u201ca civilizational battle with anti-American forces on the left.\u201d He called Kwanzaa \u201cANTI-USA and ANTI-CHRISTIAN,\u201d promising to \u201crun out all Kwanzaa-aligned elements poisoning our state.\u201d He wrote that \u201cIslamism is incompatible with American civilization. \u2026 When I\u2019m AG, I\u2019m going to wage counter-jihad against them.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Unfortunately, all this extreme rhetoric will put him right at home leading prosecutions for the Trump administration which, under NSPM-7, has made a priority of targeting groups on the left and others who, in the vague words of the White House directive, espouse <a href=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/news\/the-trump-admins-mostly-unnoticed-move-to-crack-down-on-the-opposition\" target=\"_blank\">\u201canti-Americanism, anti-Capitalism, and anti-Christianity.\u201d<\/a>\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h2-6eacb3ba-b9ff-44b6-bd29-c746ef75fe69\">Tabs<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Last week, Trump rejected $227 million in disaster aid requests from New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Rhode Island as they repair from a major snowstorm earlier this year, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2026\/07\/08\/donald-trump-denies-disaster-aid-democratic-states-00989418\" target=\"_blank\">Politico<\/a> reports.<\/li>\n<li>\u201cKentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) formally requested an update on Sen. Mitch McConnell\u2019s (R-KY) health on Wednesday amid the senator\u2019s recent and ongoing hospitalization,\u201d Emine Y\u00fccel reports for <a href=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/news\/kentucky-gov-requests-mcconnell-update-the-public-on-his-health-amid-weeks-long-hospitalization\" target=\"_blank\">TPM<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h2-a21f2b6a-3499-43e4-83ae-480563d39215\"><strong>Man of the Hour<\/strong><\/h2>\n<div class=\"GalleryImageWrapper\">\n<h2 class=\"GalleryImageWrapper__Title\"\/>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"536\" width=\"804\" src=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?w=804\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1551756\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg 4785w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?resize=804,536 804w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?resize=1000,667 1000w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w, https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284665240.jpg?resize=98,64 98w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 804px) 100vw, 804px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN \u2013 JULY 8: U.S. Vice President JD Vance speaks at the Wisconsin Air National Guard facility at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport on July 8, 2026, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Vance traveled to Milwaukee to deliver remarks on the Trump administration\u2019s anti-fraud initiatives. (Photo by Mark Schiefelbein-Pool\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>It\u2019s <strong>JD Vance<\/strong>, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/atrupar\/status\/2074922304463622503?s=46\" target=\"_blank\">offering up this deeply confusing sentiment<\/a>: \u201cI ask you a very simple question: When you come to vote in November, are you gonna vote for the pro-fraud party? Are you gonna vote for the party that is sending your tax dollars to the fraudsters?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n    window.fbAsyncInit = function() {\n      FB.init({\n        appId: \"101800829865996\",\n        xfbml: true,\n        version: ' v2.6'\n      });\n      window.fbAsyncInit.__didInit = true;\n    };\n    (function(d, s, id) {\n      var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];\n      if (d.getElementById(id)) {\n        return;\n      }\n      js = d.createElement(s);\n      js.id = id;\n      js.src = \"https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/sdk.js\";\n      fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);\n    }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));\n  <\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Maine Dems Piece Together Plan to Help Party Hold Senate Graham Platner is finally out. In a defiant statement last night, he once again denied the sexual assault allegations against him, but conceded what his allies had been telling him for days: it was time to leave the race. He called for an \u201copen\u201d and&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2496,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2273514334.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-political-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2495","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2495"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2495\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}