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Why Graham Platner’s resignation is relevant to us all · The Daily Article

• 0:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: Good morning and welcome to the daily article podcast from Denison Forum.
• 0:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's Thursday, July 9th, 2026.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: This is an automated reading of today's daily article, authored by Dr. Jim Denison.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Today's article is titled, Why Grand Platner's Resignation is Relevant to Assault.
• 0:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't often write on political campaigns,
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  [SPEAKER_00]: However, Graham Platner's suspension of his Senate campaign in Maine last night illustrates principles that transcend his party in this political moment.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: History and brief.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Graham cutting him Platner was born and raised in coastal Maine.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He enlisted in the Marine Corps following high school and served eight years, including three combat tours in Iraq as a Marine and one in Afghanistan with the Maryland Army National Guard.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He then worked as a security contractor in Afghanistan before returning to Maine, where he entered the Oyster Farming Business.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He became active in local government, then announced his candidacy for the US Senate in August 2025.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He has campaigned on housing affordability, universal health care, strengthening labor unions, and ending government involvement in what he calls pointless wars.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He won the June Democratic primary with 72% of the vote.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: His victory in the fall election would have been vital for Democrats as they seek to retake the Senate since the incumbent, Susan Collins, is the only Republican running in a state one by Kamala Harris.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Platner's campaign has been extremely controversial, however.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Among his many issues have been a Nazi era tattoo on his chest, a history of sexting women during his marriage, an anti-Semitic statements and actions.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: In June, 2026, the New York Times reported allegations that Plattener engaged in physically threatening behavior toward women he had dated.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: A former girlfriend, described by the Times as a Virginia conservative, alleged that he had abused her physically.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He denied her allegations, calling them politically motivated.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Then, on July 6th, came an allegation by a woman he had dated that he raped her while he was drunk nearly five years prior.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: The accuser agrees with Platner's political beliefs, but said she felt compelled to come forward, due to the charges made against him the month before.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Platner denies her allegation, but high-profile Democrats and the main Democratic Party withdrew their support.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: A variety of national leaders called on him to exit the campaign as well.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He complied with their request Wednesday night.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: My response has nothing to do with Platner's party affiliation.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: I would offer the same observations if he were a Republican or an independent, and even if he were not a politician at all.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: When I saw the story of his resignation, I thought immediately of the biblical warning.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Be sure your sin will find you out.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: It would be easy to use Graham Platner as exhibit A.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Whether he is innocent or guilty of the latest charges against him, he admittedly committed sins in his past that now directly
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  [SPEAKER_00]: At the time, he had no apparent idea he would be a candidate for political office or that his personal behavior would be subjected to national scrutiny.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: History reminds us that what we do today echoes tomorrow.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Often in ways we cannot imagine and cannot change.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: You cannot un-ring a bell.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Word spoken and actions taken cannot be unspoken or un-taken.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: God will forgive all we confess to him and forget all he forgives.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: but the consequences of our actions often remain.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: David is known to history as a man after God's own heart, but he is also remembered for his sin with Bathsheba and all the sins he committed to cover it up.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Here's the part of the story that doesn't often get attention.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: For every Graham Platner whose personal failings are eventually exposed to public scrutiny, there must be many who don't get found out.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: If Platner had not run for office, I wonder how much of his past would be in the news today.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: How many other people have done what he did without the consequences he is facing.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: In this sense, it doesn't always seem that your sin will find you out in ways we expect it to.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: You and I have sins in our past that no one knows about, mistakes and failures that we are grateful not to see the light of day.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: If everybody knew everything about everyone, no one would be unscathed or unashamed.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Consequently, we might think this warning doesn't really apply to us, that our sins are somehow exempt from such repercussions.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: So long as we confess them to God, we are forgiven and our sins are made white as snow.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: If we don't run for office or otherwise expose ourselves to public scrutiny, we can evade the consequences of our actions.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Or so we think.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Here are two reasons we're wrong.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: One, we have no way to guarantee that our past, no matter how secret, will never be discovered.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: For example, in one of the churches I passed, I asked our tech support to implement a pornography filter on all our computers.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: That same day, they caught one of our ministers watching pornography in his office.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He resigned, and we were able to provide counseling that saved their marriage.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: He thought for years that his porn addiction was secret until it wasn't.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: 2.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: The consequences of private sin go far deeper than public knowledge.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: They hinder our prayers and grieve and quench the spirit, keeping him from empowering and using us fully.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Scripture therefore warns, whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Here's the good news, the verse continues, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Do you need
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  [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for listening to the Daily Article Podcast.
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  [SPEAKER_00]: For links, scripture references, or to find out more about Denison Forum, visit us at DenisonForm.org or click the link in today's show notes.