Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner tried to inject himself into mounting frustration surrounding the Boston Red Sox and was instead shut down by Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, who accused Platner of being a Nazi over a controversial tattoo and rejected efforts to promote the campaign’s anti-private-equity message.
The controversy erupted after Platner released a political advertisement attacking Red Sox ownership and the growing role of private equity in American life. The ad aired during a Red Sox broadcast on NESN before reportedly being pulled during the fourth inning.
“Private equity is taking our homes. It’s taking our hospitals. It’s taking beloved local businesses and stripping them for parts,” Platner <a href="https://x.com/grahamformaine/status/2057928715573572013">wrote on X</a> while promoting the ad. “And now private equity is running the Red Sox into the ground.”
In a <a href="https://x.com/grahamformaine/status/2058187994272596269">follow-up post</a>, Platner claimed the commercial had been removed midgame because the Red Sox owns the network. “Yesterday we started running this ad during the Red Sox game,” he wrote. “Midway through the game the ad was taken down by the station.”
But the story escalated after Portnoy <a href="https://x.com/stoolpresidente/status/2058297033111253288">publicly shared</a> emails from Platner’s political team attempting to secure coverage from Barstool ahead of the ad launch. In the emails, strategist Jeff Coote pitched Platner as a populist candidate willing to confront “big bad John Henry” and private equity interests tied to the Red Sox organization. One message described the campaign as “an example of Graham’s populist streak and talking about s— people are pissed off about.”
The ad itself framed Platner as a candidate battling corporate consolidation in sports and broader American life. “Private equity is destroying our favorite baseball team, stripping them for parts,” the ad states. “Private equity is buying up our homes, our sports, and our lives. I will reverse the private equity curse.”
It closes with a direct appeal to frustrated Red Sox fans: “I approve this message because I miss Mookie Betts.” 
Portnoy, however, immediately redirected the conversation away from baseball and toward Platner’s earlier controversies surrounding a tattoo linked to Nazi imagery.
“Now this is the Nazi guy right?” Portnoy responded in the email chain. “Yeah I’d be happy to talk to him about that tattoo and him being a Nazi. I’m not as interested in his baseball takes.”
After Platner’s team attempted to cool the exchange by saying they would consider it “if we can get to a place where this is a productive convo,” Portnoy <a href="https://x.com/stoolpresidente/status/2058297033111253288">fired back</a> again. “You reached out to a Jew to poo poo a Nazi,” Portnoy wrote. “I’m not Bernie Sanders. If your boy isn’t a Nazi and can handle me 1 on 1 in a convo set it up.” Portnoy later posted portions of the exchange publicly on X, adding: “And I’m still wondering why your team thought I’d want to play footsy with a guy who is a Nazi?”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
And I’m still wondering why your team thought I’d want to play footsy with a guy who is a Nazi? <a href="https://t.co/DxPZp0sZSt">https://t.co/DxPZp0sZSt</a> <a href="https://t.co/LItqRDIDjg">pic.twitter.com/LItqRDIDjg</a>
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) <a href="https://twitter.com/stoolpresidente/status/2058297033111253288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 23, 2026</a></blockquote>
The confrontation added yet another controversy to a campaign that has already drawn attention for issues far removed from traditional Senate politics.
Earlier this year, Platner faced backlash over a tattoo on his chest resembling the Nazi “Totenkopf,” or “Death’s Head,” symbol historically associated with the SS. Platner denied any connection to Nazism during an interview with Pod Save America, saying the tattoo stemmed from a drunken decision while deployed overseas as a Marine.
“I am not a secret Nazi,” Platner said at the time, describing himself as a “lifelong opponent” of antisemitism and racism. The tattoo controversy was compounded by resurfaced Reddit posts in which Platner described himself as a communist, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/platner-refuses-to-apologize-after-mocking-purple-heart-recipient">mocked</a> a Purple Heart recipient, and made inflammatory anti-police remarks. Republicans seized on the posts as evidence of what they argued was a radical political worldview.
Against that backdrop, what began as an attempt to channel populist frustration over billionaire sports ownership instead became another flashpoint in the broader debate surrounding Platner’s candidacy, political identity, and increasingly controversial public image.

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Barstool’s Portnoy Shuts Down Recruitment Bid From Platner Over ‘Nazi’ Tattoo

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Barstool’s Portnoy Shuts Down Recruitment Bid From Platner Over ‘Nazi’ Tattoo