Republican political analyst Scott Jennings confronted CNN panelists over the Democratic Party’s support for Maine Senate candidate Jared Platner, who is facing mounting scrutiny for a tattoo resembling a Nazi SS emblem.

The exchange took place during a Sunday segment on “CNN NewsNight,” where Jennings accused Democrats of hypocrisy after years of branding Republicans and conservatives as extremists.

The controversy centers on Platner, a 41-year-old Marine veteran and progressive candidate endorsed by Senator Bernie Sanders.

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Platner has been under fire since CNN’s KFile reported that he bears a chest tattoo similar to the Totenkopf, the skull-and-crossbones insignia used by Nazi SS units.

In a series of resurfaced Reddit posts from 2019 and 2020, Platner allegedly discussed Nazi-associated symbols and defended their use within military circles.

Using the screen name “P-Hustle,” Platner wrote that symbols like the Totenkopf and SS lightning bolts had been adopted by certain Marine Scout Sniper units as cultural identifiers rather than ideological statements.

When challenged about their Nazi origins, Platner dismissed the criticism, writing that outsiders “have no idea what they’re talking about” and sarcastically adding, “I will be sure to inform the Black guys I know with bolts that they’re Nazis now.”

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Platner has since claimed that he got the tattoo during a “drunken liberty stint” in Croatia years ago and denied knowing its historical connection to Nazi imagery.

However, CNN’s KFile report found evidence that Platner was aware of the symbolism and had defended its use before entering politics.

Despite the controversy, Platner continues to lead in polling for Maine’s Democratic Senate primary.

According to internal campaign surveys, he is ahead by as much as 30 points and has received endorsements from progressive senators including Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Chris Murphy, and Sheldon Whitehouse.

Jennings addressed the issue directly during a heated CNN panel discussion moderated by Abby Phillip.

He argued that Democrats who had spent years calling conservatives “Nazis” were now rallying behind a candidate tied to Nazi-associated imagery.

“I hate to break the news to you, but he’s winning the primary by 30 points,” Jennings said.

“Getting a Nazi tattoo made him more popular — more popular among Democrats. You’ve got a guy running for attorney general in Virginia who wants to murder Republicans, and he raised $500,000 off of it. You got Nazi tattoo guy in Maine. I sat out here for a year, two years listening to every Democrat at this table say, Donald Trump’s a Nazi, Elon Musk’s a Nazi, and your party is now in love with a guy with a Nazi tattoo who trained a left-wing paramilitary group and called himself an Antifa super soldier on the internet, and he’s going up every day. Good luck getting him out.”

Democratic commentator María Hinojosa countered that Platner should resign, saying, “I said that he should resign, and I think that Democrats should also speak out.”

Jennings replied, “Good luck,” noting that Platner’s polling numbers have not declined despite the backlash.

Phillip pressed Jennings on whether he was implying that Platner represented the entire Democratic Party.

Jennings responded, “Look at the polling. Look at the energy. Bernie Sanders wants him. The beating heart of the Democratic Party, where their energy is, wants the Nazi tattoo guy. That’s what they want.”

As the conversation grew tense, Phillip referenced past controversies involving Republican candidates to suggest that both parties had faced similar dilemmas.

Jennings pushed back, saying, “He doesn’t answer to you. He answers to the energy base in your party. And right now, the energy is behind these left-wing progressive kinds of candidates. This is who they want.”

Platner’s campaign has not publicly commented on the growing calls for him to withdraw.

The Democratic National Committee has also not issued a formal statement, while Sanders’ office reaffirmed its endorsement earlier this month.

According to CNN’s reporting, federal investigators have not opened any inquiry into Platner, and the tattoo itself does not violate any election or ethics laws.

However, the episode has reignited political debate over ideological extremism and the double standards often applied to partisan controversies.

As Jennings noted during the segment, “When all this story broke and he started talking about it, he literally got more popular. He’s beating the incumbent governor by 30 points.”

Dem after Dem called Trump, Elon, etc. Nazis. They accused Hegseth of Nazi tattoos (FALSE). And now? The most popular Dem Senate candidate in AMERICA has actual Nazi tattoos & the full backing of the radical Sanders wing of the Democratic Party. OWN IT. pic.twitter.com/WzgknJR5UW

— Scott Jennings (@ScottJenningsKY) October 25, 2025

The Maine Democratic Senate primary is scheduled for June 2026.

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