Maine AFL-CIO spokesperson Andy O’Brien on Tuesday called for the summary execution by firing squad of Democratic politicos who refused to back accused domestic abuser and Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Graham Platner.
According to O’Brien’s post, Democratic consultants — such as the author of a recent op-ed at TheHill.com — would be “first up against the wall when the revolution comes” — an overt reference to the kind of violent revolutions that communists and socialists, like Platner and O’Brien, have fantasized about for decades.
Prior to embracing the man with the most famous Nazi tattoo in America, O’Brien fashioned himself as an amateur “Nazi hunter,” regularly exposing individuals throughout the state who held what he viewed as unsavory or vile opinions.
Now that’s he’s joined forces with a Totenkopf-bearing communist revolutionary, though, it seems he’s developed a taste for the kind of fascistic political violence he once claimed to abhor.
O’Brien’s call for the execution of a Democratic consultant came appeared above a link to a Hill opinion piece titled, “I’m a Democratic strategist. I won’t stay silent about Graham Platner,” written by Democratic strategist Laurie A. Watkins, according to a syndicated listing of the article.
In the visible preview of the article shared by O’Brien, Watkins wrote that she has dedicated much of her career to advancing causes she believes make the country stronger, but that she has never believed a candidate deserves her vote simply because they have a “D” next to their name.
O’Brien’s response was not to rebut Watkins’ argument, defend Platner’s record or grapple with the allegations against him. Instead, the official spokesman for Maine’s largest labor federation fantasized about putting a bullet into Democrats who disagree with him.
The threat may be more than idle internet posting considering Platner’s role in starting and leading the Maine Socialist Rifle Association (SRA), a far left paramilitary group that has posted images of its firing range activities in the past. Those images include at least two that appear to show Platner himself serving as a range officer.
According to the Maine AFL-CIO, O’Brien is the organization’s communications director and handles internal and external communications for the union. The AFL-CIO’s website also lists him as the contact for press inquiries.
While the AFL-CIO, with O’Brien as figurehead, plays an outsized role in the Maine Democratic Party, the organization is more of a political action committee than a pro-workers’ rights group. In Maine, less than seven percent of workers belong to the union, and those numbers have been steadily declining.
The weakness of the AFL-CIO in Maine stems, in part, from the organization of Maine’s largest construction firms as employee-owned corporations — an arrangement that is better and more lucrative for employees and avoids having union dues pay for operatives like O’Brien to publicly screech about murdering heretics.
The comment offers a revealing glimpse into the political culture now surrounding Platner’s campaign. For the far left, Platner is not merely a flawed nominee who survived a messy primary. He is a revolutionary vessel. Criticism of him is not just wrong. It is betrayal. And betrayal, in the revolutionary imagination, earns a place against the wall — that is, a death sentence.
Platner’s campaign for Senate has been shadowed by a series of scandals, including allegations from a former girlfriend that he repeatedly grabbed her hard enough to leave marks, pulled her from a cab by the wrist and once twisted her arm behind her back and held her in a room.
Platner has denied allegations of domestic abuse. However, he has acknowledged serial infidelity, including via his use of the Kik app — a chat application that has been dubbed the “predators paradise.”
In his Kik app profile, Platner used a highly sexually suggestive image of himself in a towel. He’s said that he only engaged in sexual text messages with half a dozens girls, but they were all over the age of 18.
However, Kik offers no way of verifying ages and Platner hasn’t explained how he ensured that his sexually charged chats weren’t landing on minors’ cell phones.
Republicans who use overheated language are routinely denounced by Maine Democrats, union activists — with O’Brien among the most vocal cancel culture advocates.
But when a senior spokesman for organized labor talks about lining up Democratic dissenters against a wall, the outrage machine suddenly develops laryngitis.
The AFL-CIO has long had communist leanings so it is not surprising that it is now supporting Mein Oyster Fuhrer Platner who wore a Nazi Totenkopf, Death's Head tattoo.
Where did he put this up? A link would help.