Bernie Sanders Isn’t Accidentally Backing Toxic Candidates — Here’s What He’s Building

Graham Platner had a Nazi tattoo, a domestic abuse history, and a sexual assault allegation. Bernie Sanders attended his campaign events anyway, vowed to do “everything I can” to get him elected, and kept advocating for him on social media after every new scandal broke.

That’s not poor judgment. That’s a pattern. And it’s time to call it what it is.

Platner is the most spectacular example — so far — of what happens when the Sanders political machine decides a candidate serves the revolution. But he’s far from the only one. The roster of Bernie-endorsed catastrophes in the 2026 cycle reads like a greatest hits of progressive dysfunction.