Ro Khanna defends support of Graham Platner despite 'misogynistic' actions

Rep. Ro Khanna on Sunday defended his continued support for Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner amid new accusations about his mistreatment of women.

"Here you have a case," the California Democrat said on CBS' "Face the Nation, "of someone who had a dark chapter in his life, was in toxic relationships, was ashamed about it, who served this country, and the Maine voters are saying, 'Look, let's give him some grace, and his focus is stopping these wars, and it's getting national health insurance, and it's taking on economic inequality.'"

Khanna campaigned Friday for Platner in Bar Harbor, Maine. Platner is favored to win Maine's primary Tuesday, setting up a battle with incumbent Susan Collins, who is considered the most vulnerable Republican in the Senate seeking reelection this cycle.

On Thursday, the New York Times published an article headlined "Several Women Who Dated Graham Platner Recall 'Unsettling' Behavior," unleashing the latest in a series of controversies surrounding his campaign. Platner has acknowledged not being a "good boyfriend" but denied allegations of physical violence.

"I want to be clear: His actions were misogynistic, they were shameful, they were wrong, but they didn't come as a surprise to a lot of the folks in Maine," Khanna told host Margaret Brennan.

He added: "People in Maine knew that he had had two tours of duty in Iraq. He came back broken in a dark place. That doesn't excuse his behavior, but they knew this. He was in Washington, and then he went back to Maine, and he started an oyster farm. He took accountability. He himself has said it was shameful."

But Khanna, who was the driving force along with Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) in pushing for the release of the Epstein files, said there are limits to how far he would go in support of Platner.

"If there was evidence of violence. I would not support him," Khanna told Brennan. "If there was evidence of sexual assault, I'd have zero support for him. He acknowledges that he was misogynistic. It was shameful. One thing I want to make very clear: we should not be attacking the women who came forward. We should not be attacking the journalists."

The accuser prominently featured in the New York Times piece, Lyndsey Fifield, told the outlet Platner "never hit me, he never punched me," but she recalled an occasion he'd grabbed her by the wrist and another when he'd twisted her arm behind her back. The New York Times said it could not independently confirm Fifield's accounts of those allegations. POLITICO has not independently verified Fifield's account.