格雷厄姆·普拉特纳、安德鲁·吉利厄姆、亚当·哈马维和科里·布什均获桑德斯高调背书
2026年7月10日 美国东部时间早上6:00 / 福克斯新闻频道
作者：利奥·布里塞尼奥、卡梅伦·考索恩
拜登前助手迈克尔·拉罗萨抨击民主党对参议院候选人格雷厄姆·普拉特纳的支持，称其为“大骗子”。拉罗萨主张，舒默参议员和民主党国会竞选委员会必须为“浪费了赢下参议院席位的机会”道歉。他批评伯尼·桑德斯支持普拉特纳这场缅因州的“弗兰肯斯坦博士式”竞选。
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佛蒙特州独立参议员伯尼·桑德斯在本次选举周期中已背书超过70名候选人，如今却因力挺声名狼藉的前参议院候选人格雷厄姆·普拉特纳，以及其他一系列激进的黑马候选人而陷入舆论漩涡。
这位自称民主社会主义者、将其极左翼运动称为“革命”的参议员，曾是普拉特纳最直言不讳的支持者之一，声称他将“尽我所能确保格雷厄姆·普拉特纳成为缅因州下一任参议员”。桑德斯也说到做到，尽管普拉特纳的过往曝出一系列丑闻，他仍出席竞选活动并在社交媒体上为普拉特纳激烈游说。
但那都是周二之前的事了。
周一，政治新闻网站Politico发布重磅报道，披露普拉特纳据称在2021年强奸时任女友的细节，不到24小时后，桑德斯便和许多民主党同僚一道，呼吁普拉特纳退选。
费特曼痛斥民主党“人渣”派系，称极左翼胜利是“社会主义狂欢”
2026年5月24日，在缅因州奥罗诺市缅因大学柯林斯艺术中心举行的“对抗寡头政治”巡回活动上，佛蒙特州独立参议员伯尼·桑德斯与民主党联邦参议院候选人格雷厄姆·普拉特纳一同亮相。（乔·雷德莱/盖蒂图片社摄）
政治评论员、资深政治记者雷切尔·巴德认为，这一事件正考验着桑德斯在民主党内部的持续影响力。
“格雷厄姆·普拉特纳的闹剧确实糟糕，但如今一些民主党人正在清算桑德斯及其阵营在本届选举周期中其他押注失误的情况，这让人质疑他们提拔未经考验、未 vetted（此处译为“未经过背景审查”）且藏有没人费心去查的丑闻的候选人的判断力，”巴德在X平台的帖子中写道。
除普拉特纳外，桑德斯还背书了其他几位因过往麻烦细节引发政治争议的候选人。
亚当·哈马维曾与一名因1993年世贸中心爆炸案以煽动性阴谋罪定罪的恐怖分子有联系，在桑德斯的背书下赢得民主党初选，桑德斯称他是民主党“大胆的领导人之一”。阿卜杜勒·拉赫曼谢赫于2017年在北卡罗来纳州巴特纳联邦拘留中心的监狱中去世，绰号“盲眼谢赫”。
同样，科罗拉多州的社会主义者、政坛新人梅拉特·基罗斯在桑德斯的支持下，在初选中击败了任职30年的现任议员，尽管她曾声称美国的外交政策让9·11恐怖袭击“不可避免”。桑德斯背书她时预测，她将成为“国会中为进步议程而战的绝佳盟友”。
2026年5月28日，民主党国会候选人梅拉特·基罗斯在科罗拉多州丹佛市蒙维尤 Presbyterian教堂举行的妇女选民联盟国会第一选区候选人论坛上发言。（RJ·桑戈斯蒂/媒体新闻集团/《丹佛邮报》 via 盖蒂图片社摄）
还有加州另一位获桑德斯支持的国会候选人兰迪·维列加斯，也因被曝出身为教师时投票批准与数十年前儿童性虐待案件相关的保密和解协议而面临审查。
“我们必须尽一切努力选举像兰迪这样的新的、大胆的领导人，他们将在国会中成为工薪阶层的捍卫者，”桑德斯说道。
他还在支持科里·布什的复出众议院竞选，后者此前因用竞选资金支付丈夫薪酬，以及曾是国会中最直言不讳的“defund the police（解散警局）”支持者之一而遭抨击。
对一些民主党人来说，这份候选人名单令人沮丧，且在普拉特纳事件的余波中显得风险重重。
“所以我不知道你们为什么还要一直推动这类人，”宾夕法尼亚州民主党参议员约翰·费特曼在接受福克斯新闻采访时谈及桑德斯说道，“或许他应该考虑退居幕后，不要再推动这类共产主义者了。”
桑德斯就普拉特纳事件打破沉默，呼吁这位丑闻缠身的进步派候选人“退选”
缅因州民主党参议院候选人格雷厄姆·普拉特纳周日晚间在缅因州波特兰市的一场市政厅活动中，用脏话辱骂宾夕法尼亚州民主党参议员约翰·费特曼。（格雷姆·斯隆/盖蒂图片社；斯科特·艾森/盖蒂图片社摄）
桑德斯的背书名单不仅限于本届选举周期。
在2018年的背书中，桑德斯曾支持佛罗里达州前州长候选人安德鲁·吉利厄姆，称他将“致力于通过全民医保计划为所有人提供医疗保健、提高最低工资、投资可持续能源”。尽管吉利厄姆以微弱劣势输给了州长罗恩·德桑蒂斯，但其后续曝出多起丑闻，包括最近在阿拉巴马州因毒品相关指控被捕，以及迈阿密海滩酒店房间内涉及医疗紧急情况和违禁物质的广受关注的事件。
同样，《青年土耳其人》创始人、有争议主播哈森·皮克的叔叔森克·于古尔在2019年遭遇 backlash（此处译为“强烈反对”），当时其网上足迹被曝光充斥种族主义内容，促使桑德斯撤回背书，此前桑德斯称于古尔“将为普通民众服务，而非强大的特殊利益集团”，且“他是我们在国会中迫切需要的声音”。
进步派主持人森克·于古尔在亚历山德里亚·奥卡西奥-科特兹拒绝直接背书其前幕僚赛义卡特·查克拉巴蒂后，对其提出批评。（盖蒂图片社摄）
他还背书了多位“国会进步党团”成员，包括明尼苏达州民主党众议员伊尔汗·奥马尔和密歇根州民主党众议员拉希达·特莱布，两人均被指控反犹主义，且均有反以色列和解散警局的记录。特莱布最近因对被指控为反法西斯组织成员的团伙成员被判数十年监禁表示愤怒而遭抨击，联邦检察官称该团伙对德克萨斯州移民设施的暴力袭击是恐怖主义行为。特莱布称该判决是“一场悲剧，完全不合理”。
在包括枪支管控倡导者、政治评论员香农·沃茨等一些旁观者看来，桑德斯显然只追求符合其偏好政策的候选人，导致他忽视了威胁候选人当选可能性的性格缺陷。
“提醒一下，伯尼·桑德斯还背书过另一位嘲笑性侵犯的候选人，犹他州众议院民主党候选人内特·布卢安，”沃茨本周在X平台的帖子中说道，她指的是桑德斯2026年背书的又一位候选人，该人今年早些时候在初选中落败。
“这几乎就像存在一种模式，”她补充道。
共和党全国委员会全国新闻秘书娜塔莉·巴尔达萨雷呼应了沃茨的观点。
“无论是被指控强奸的格雷厄姆·普拉特纳、反警察的阿卜杜勒·埃尔-赛义德，还是‘跨性别儿童爱好者’詹姆斯·塔拉里科，伯尼·桑德斯那辆由未经审查和考验的候选人组成的小丑车，正在向美国人民展示他们根本不适合担任公职，”巴尔达萨雷说道。
在2026年中期选举周期中，桑德斯已在联邦层面背书19名候选人。其中9人没有从政经历。
他还在州和地方选举中背书了另外54名候选人——远多于同为进步派的马萨诸塞州民主党参议员伊丽莎白·沃伦和加利福尼亚州民主党众议员罗·卡纳。
佛蒙特州自称民主社会主义者、参议院卫生、教育、劳工与养老金委员会 ranking member（此处译为“资深成员”）的伯尼·桑德斯参议员于2025年7月16日周三抵达华盛顿参加一场确认听证会。（瓦莱丽·普莱施/彭博社 via 盖蒂图片社摄）
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巴尔达萨雷认为，桑德斯背书的更多候选人都需要接受审查。
“我们将继续揭露这些候选人的真面目——他们是激进的社会主义者，将推行其极端意识形态，剥夺每个美国人的安全、理智和自由，”巴尔达萨雷说道。
对巴德来说，桑德斯影响力的下一场考验将在8月初到来，届时进步派医生阿卜杜勒·埃尔-赛义德将在密歇根州联邦参议院初选中挑战众议员黑利·史蒂文斯，争夺民主党提名。埃尔-赛义德过去曾呼吁解散警局、废除移民海关执法局，并推行全民医保——这些立场与桑德斯的理念一致。
“现在所有人的目光都转向8月4日的密歇根州参议院初选，桑德斯已背书进步派候选人阿卜杜勒·埃尔-赛义德，而中间派众议员黑利·史蒂文斯则得到查克·舒默的支持，”巴德在最近的Substack文章中说道。
桑德斯未回应就其背书记录置评的请求。
利奥·布里塞尼奥是福克斯新闻数字频道国会团队的政治记者，此前曾在《世界杂志》担任记者。
Sanders under fire for propping up Platner as Dems torch his toxic endorsement ‘pattern’
Graham Platner, Andrew Gillum, Adam Hamawy and Cori Bush have all received glowing endorsements from Sanders
July 10, 2026 6:00am EDT / Fox News
By Leo Briceno, Cameron Cawthorne
Former Biden aide Michael LaRosa blasts the Democratic Party’s support for Senate candidate Graham Platner, whom he labels a ‘big phony.’ LaRosa asserts Democrats, Senator Schumer, and the DCCC must apologize for ‘flushing an opportunity to win a Senate seat down the toilet.’ He criticizes Bernie Sanders for backing Platner’s ‘Dr. Frankenstein’ candidacy in Maine.
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Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who has endorsed over 70 candidates this election cycle, is facing heat for propping up disgraced ex-Senate candidate Graham Platner — among a string of other radical, dark-horse candidates.
The self-proclaimed Democratic socialist, who has called his far-left movement a “revolution,” had been one of Platner’s most vocal supporters, asserting that he would “do everything I can to make sure that Graham Platner is the next senator from the state of Maine.” Sanders, true to his word, attended campaign events and advocated fiercely for Platner on social media despite a series of scandals about Platner’s past.
But that was before Tuesday.
Less than 24 hours after Politico published a bombshell report on Monday detailing how Platner allegedly raped his then-girlfriend in 2021, Sanders joined many of his Democratic colleagues and called for Platner to step aside.
FETTERMAN UNLEASHES ON ‘DIRTBAG’ WING OF DEMS AFTER FAR-LEFT VICTORIES: ‘ORGY OF SOCIALISM’
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner stood together during a “Fighting Oligarchy” tour stop at the Collins Center for the Arts on the University of Maine campus on May 24, 2026, in Orono, Maine.(Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
To Rachel Bade, a political commentator and longtime political reporter, it’s a moment that is stress-testing Sanders’ continued influence in the party.
“The Graham Platner fiasco was bad, yes. But now, some Dems are tallying up everywhere else Sanders and his orbit bet wrong this cycle, raising questions about their judgment in elevating untested, unvetted candidates with skeletons nobody bothered to check for,” Bade wrote in a post to X.
In addition to Platner, Sanders has also endorsed several other candidates who have sparked political controversy over troubling details in their past.
Adam Hamawy, who has past ties to a convicted terrorist who was convicted of seditious conspiracy linked to the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, won a Democratic primary with Sanders’ endorsement, calling him one of the party’s “bold leaders.” Sheikh Abdel-Rahman, who died in prison at the federal detention center in Butner, North Carolina, in 2017, was nicknamed the “Blind Sheikh.”
Similarly, Melat Kiros, a socialist and political newcomer in Colorado, defeated a 30-year incumbent in a primary challenge with Sanders’ backing despite her assertions that American foreign policy had made the 9/11 terror attacks “inevitable.” Sanders endorsed her with a prediction that she would be a “great ally in Congress fighting for a progressive agenda.”
Democratic congressional candidate Melat Kiros participated in a League of Women Voters Congressional District 1 candidate forum at Montview Presbyterian Church on May 28, 2026, in Denver, Colorado.(Photo by RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
And Randy Villegas, another congressional candidate supported by Sanders in California, is also facing scrutiny as news broke that he had voted to approve confidential settlements related to decades-old child sex-abuse cases as a teacher.
“We must do everything we can to elect new, bold leaders like Randy who will be a champion for working Americans in Congress,” Sanders said.
He is also backing Cori Bush, who came under fire for previously paying her husband with campaign cash and previously being one of the most vocal defund the police supporters in Congress, as she pursues a comeback House bid.
To some Democrats, the list is frustrating and, amid Platner’s fallout, seems risky.
“So, I don’t know why you want to keep pushing these kinds of people,” Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said of Sanders in an interview with Fox News. “Maybe he should consider sitting a few out and stop pushing these kinds of communists.”
SANDERS BREAKS SILENCE ON PLATNER, CALLS ON SCANDAL-PLAGUED PROGRESSIVE TO ‘STEP ASIDE’
Democratic Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner called Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., a profanity during a town hall event in Portland, Maine, on Sunday night.(Graeme Sloan/Getty Images ; Scott Eisen/Getty Images)
Sanders’ list doesn’t just extend to this cycle.
In a 2018 endorsement, Sanders endorsed Andrew Gillum, a former candidate for Florida governor, saying he would “work to provide healthcare for all through a Medicaid-for-All program, raise the minimum wage, invest in sustainable energy.” While he narrowly lost to Gov. Ron DeSantis, he went on to have at least a couple scandals, including a recent arrest on drug-related charges in Alabama and a highly publicized incident in a Miami Beach hotel room involving a medical emergency and illicit substances.
Similarly, Cenk Uygur, the founder of the Young Turks and the uncle of controversial streamer Hasan Piker, faced backlash in 2019 when an online footprint laced with racist material surfaced, prompting Sanders to rescind his endorsement that he would “serve ordinary people, not powerful special interests” and that “he is a voice that we desperately need in Congress.”
Progressive host Cenk Uygur criticized Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez after she declined to directly endorse her former chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti.(Getty Images)
He has also backed multiple “Squad” members, including Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., who have both been accused of antisemitism and have an anti-Israel and defund the police track record. Tlaib recently came under fire for being outraged over the prison sentences of accused Antifa cell members sentenced to decades in prison for a violent attack on a Texas immigration facility that federal prosecutors called an act of terrorism. Tlaib called the sentences a “travesty and totally unjustified.”
To some onlookers like Shannon Watts, a gun-control advocate and political commentator, Sanders’ apparent willingness to pursue candidates who champion his preferred policies has led him to overlook character flaws that threaten their viability.
“A reminder that Bernie Sanders also endorsed another candidate who mocked sexual assault, failed Utah House Dem candidate Nate Blouin,” Watts said in a post to X this week, referring to yet another one of Sanders’ endorsements in 2026, who lost his primary earlier this year.
“It’s almost like there’s a pattern,” she added.
Natalie Baldassarre, national press secretary at the Republican National Committee, echoed Watts’ thinking.
“Whether it’s alleged rapist Graham Platner, anti-cop Abdul El-Sayed, or ‘trans kid lover’ James Talarico, Bernie Sanders’ clown car of unvetted and untested candidates is showing the American people just how unfit they are for public office,” Baldassarre said.
In the 2026 midterm cycle, Sanders has endorsed 19 candidates at the federal level. Of those, nine have not held office.
He has also endorsed another 54 candidates in state and local races — far more endorsements than fellow progressives Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif.
Senator Bernie Sanders, a self-proclaimed Democratic socialist from Vermont and ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, arrives for a confirmation hearing in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, July 16, 2025.(Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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Baldassarre believes more of Sanders’ candidates require scrutiny.
“We will continue to expose these candidates for who they are — radical socialists who will push their extreme ideology and strip every American of their safety, sanity and freedom,” Baldassarre said.
To Bade, the next test of Sanders’ influence will come in early August as Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive doctor, takes on Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., in a primary to become the Democratic nominee to the U.S. Senate. In the past, El-Sayed has called for defunding the police, abolishing ICE and called for universal healthcare — positions in line with Sanders’ thinking.
“All eyes now turn to the August 4 Michigan Senate primary, where Sanders has endorsed progressive Abdul El-Sayed over centrist Rep. Haley Stevens who has Chuck Schumer behind her,” Bade said in a recent Substack article.
Sanders did not respond to requests for comment on his endorsement track record.
Leo Briceno is a politics reporter for the congressional team at Fox News Digital. He was previously a reporter with World Magazine.