Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., has been conspicuously silent amid allegations against Senate hopeful Graham Platner, despite her vocal support for alleged victims of powerful men in the past. Platner, who is expected to become the party’s nominee for U.S. Senate in Maine, allegedly engaged in aggressive physical behavior, according to an ex-girlfriend who spoke with The New York Times.

Background

In 2017, Gillibrand was among the loudest voices who called for the resignation of then Minnesota Democratic Sen. Al Franken, who faced eight allegations of sexual harassment. Franken resigned from Congress in disgrace amid the scandal after immense pressure from inside his own party and from the political right.

Gillibrand stood by her decision to go after a member of her own party when she was running for the Democratic nomination for president, despite media scrutiny. She said, "I know the issue of Sen. Franken is hard for many Democrats. But he had eight credible sexual harassment allegations against him, and I had to choose whether to stay silent, or not."

Gillibrand also spoke out against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018, when he faced an unproven allegation of groping Christine Blasey Ford decades prior. She said, "I think this should affect every senator’s view on Judge Kavanaugh… I’m hopeful the Senate will at least have some measure of review, maybe a hearing, some measure of analysis of this accusation, and have some measure of clarity on whether this is disqualifying. I believe it is disqualifying, given what we know."

Current Allegations

Platner’s ex-girlfriend, Lyndsey Fifield, told The New York Times that Platner was physically rough with her, including grabbing her by the shoulders and twisting her arm behind her back. Platner’s campaign has denied the accusations.

Many Democrats online have accused Fifield, who has worked in the conservative political sphere, of simply being a Republican operative. Gillibrand has not commented since the Times report was published.

Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.