But now, precedents that Trump has set and his examples of how to weather numerous scandals at once will come in handy for Platner in next week’s Democratic primary and possibly all the way to November.

The sexually explicit texts from Platner that dominated headlines over the weekend are just the latest scandal for the Democratic candidate, who has faced scrutiny over past controversial statements and Nazi imagery that was once tattooed on his body. 

It has been widely rumored among political operatives in both parties that there is more damaging information coming in the form of opposition research dumps.

Platner was never the Democratic establishment’s first choice to take on Collins, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) primary pick, Gov. Janet Mills (D-ME), took to reminding Maine voters on Monday that while she suspended her campaign for the seat, they could still cast ballots for her next Tuesday.

“People have the impression that I ‘withdrew’ or ‘dropped out,’” Mills told a local journalist in comments reported on Monday, “but I simply suspended active campaigning. I am still on the ballot.”

But Platner may be able to counter such machinations by capitalizing on progressive anger with the party’s leaders and elders, whom they regard as gerontocratic — Mills herself is 78 — and ineffective. Many Democrats are in an anti-establishment mood, which is how Platner outpaced Mills back when she was actively campaigning. 

Trump similarly was able to brush aside criticisms from the Republican Party’s governing class, tapping into conservative anger that had been building since the Tea Party era before he first ran for office.

Platner is set to meet with Democratic senators on Tuesday. Democrats have thus far been more forgiving of Platner than establishment Republicans were of Trump in 2016, as late as when the Access Hollywood tape broke just weeks before the general election.

Another Trump innovation that could help Platner: Having multiple scandals break at once can make it easier to survive any individual bad news cycle, provided the candidate is stubborn and audacious enough. Platner may be. This tactic may also have worked for Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his GOP primary defeat of Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) last week.

Public attention spans are limited, and the news cycle always moves on eventually.

On sexting, Platner defenders are also borrowing a page from former President Bill Clinton’s playbook: It’s a private matter.

“I think it’s important for us to focus on the issues facing working families a little bit more than Graham Platner’s marriage,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) told reporters, “and my understanding is that his wife, Amy, who I’ve had the opportunity to meet, who seems to me to be a very, very lovely woman, is standing by her husband, and I wish their marriage the very best.”

Many Democrats may conclude that because they have a low opinion of Trump’s personal character, Platner’s behavior and judgment are irrelevant. Trump, in turn, cited Clinton’s conduct when he was criticized during his first presidential campaign, bringing Clinton accusers Juanita Broaddrick, Paula Jones, Kathleen Willey, and Kathy Shelton as his guests to the 2016 post-Access Hollywood debate with Hillary Clinton.

“Susan Collins has a history of supporting Donald Trump,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) told reporters. “Susan Collins has a history of supporting war halfway around the world that is costing the American people billions of dollars and driving up prices for every single family in Maine.”

That’s not to say Democrats might not turn on Platner if strong evidence emerges that he is becoming a liability in November. Maine is critical to Democrats’ chances of taking back control of the Senate. Democrats quickly abandoned then-President Joe Biden following a disastrous debate performance, even though the primaries had already concluded.

One local reporter encountered voters who were concerned the latest revelations might mean Platner hadn’t learned from his Reddit and tattoo mistakes.

SEN. CHRIS MURPHY SAYS PLATNER ‘MADE MISTAKES’ AFTER EXPLICIT TEXTS REVEALED 

In addition to Mills’s machinations, there may be other loopholes Maine Democrats could exploit to replace Platner after the primary, though many in the party have faulted their national leaders for engaging in undemocratic maneuvers in 2024 that ultimately did not produce a general election victory. 

Platner leads Collins by 7.8 percentage points, according to the RealClearPolitics polling average, though the centrist Republican defied the polls six years ago and won by 8.6 percentage points.