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Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner is holding a Wednesday fundraiser in Washington being hosted by a senator and lobbyists who have represented industries that Platner has harshly criticized.
The event is being headlined by Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-New Mexico, who has joined Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, to endorse Platner’s campaign for the right to face U.S. Sen. Susan Collins next year. Gov. Janet Mills is the preferred candidate of Senate Democratic leaders including Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.
High-dollar fundraisers will be a part of every campaign for one of the nation’s most hotly contested Senate seats. But Platner’s event is notable for illustrating a split among Democrats over the party’s philosophy and for including prominent lobbyists.
Platner, an oyster farmer and Marine veteran from Sullivan, has talked tough on big business during his progressive campaign for the seat, calling for Google to be broken up and criticizing private equity firms — chiefly BlackRock — for playing a role in the housing crisis. But his fundraiser touts the support of lobbyists who have represented those industries.
For example, Todd Webster, the former chief of staff for a Delaware senator, has lobbied for Google parent Alphabet, is listed on the invitation as a host. Another one is former Senate aide Andrew Usyk has lobbied for private equity firms including The Carlyle Group, which raised $9 billion as of earlier this year for its largest American real estate investment fund.
Platner’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment on the fundraiser. His campaign has generally relied on small-dollar donors that made up nearly 70 percent of the $3.2 million he raised through September, according to campaign finance records.
Mills figures to get lots of national support as Schumer’s preferred candidate. Republican outside groups have already poured in $9.2 million of the $15.3 million spent on advertising in the race so far to bolster Collins, according to AdImpact data. The incumbent held a Hollywood fundraiser that was hosted by prominent Democrats in October.
Both Mills and Platner were effectively tied with Collins in a survey that was made public on Wednesday. The two Democrats are locked in a heavily contested primary that has been shaken up by Platner’s rise from nowhere and his October series of controversies over old and offensive Reddit posts and his tattoo of a Nazi symbol.
Mills was a top recruiting target for Schumer. Platner has said he opposes him as leader, adding that he would support two other Democrats for that position. One of them, Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, has met with or plans to meet with insurgent candidates like Platner, Axios reported on Tuesday.
