Warren downplays Nazi-linked symbol after scrutinizing Hegseth’s Christian tattoos

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., shunned Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner’s Nazi-linked tattoo in her glowing endorsement Thursday, although she previously expressed concern over War Department Secretary Pete Hegseth’s Christian tattoos.

Warren, one of the Senate’s most liberal members looking to field progressive candidates, endorsed Platner’s campaign in a video posted to social media Wednesday, calling him “the real deal.”

“Graham Platner has the courage to go against the grain and fight for what is right,” Warren said. “And Maine people are motivated and excited about change.”

The 41-year-old oyster farmer has been widely criticized for having a skull and crossbones chest tattoo resembling a Nazi-related symbol associated with the SS. Platner has since had the tattoo removed and pleaded ignorance, saying he was unaware of the symbol’s meaning.

Graham Platner, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Maine, points out a covered tattoo that was previously an image recognized as a Nazi symbol, during an interview Wednesday in Portland, Maine. (WGME via AP)

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When asked about Platner’s many controversies, Warren largely ignored them.

“Look, he apologized for that and he talks to the people of Maine every day,” Warren told Huffpost on Thursday.

Warren’s remarks stood in stark contrast to his scrutiny of Hegseth for his Christian tattoos. Before Hegseth’s confirmation hearing in early 2025, Warren suggested that Hegseth might be a traitor for wearing certain Christian symbols on his body.

The Massachusetts Democrat specifically referenced a Reuters report detailing Hegseth having been discharged from the National Guard during former President Joe Biden’s inauguration by a supervisor, who appeared to have made the dubious assumption that he might be an “insider threat” because of his Christian tattoos.

Hegseth had volunteered for inauguration security as a member of the Washington, D.C. National Guard and was then employed by Fox News. A senior National Guard official expressed concern about his tattoos depicting the Jerusalem Cross and the Latin phrase “Deus Vult,” which translates to “God wills it.”

Four years later, Warren used the incident to question Hegseth’s loyalty to the United States, despite his multiple overseas deployments and earning two Bronze Stars.

“We cannot have a Secretary of Defense whose military colleagues feel sufficiently concerned to flag him as a potential insider threat,” Warren wrote in a 33-page letter to Hegseth.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Warren’s office for comment.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Mass., scrutinized Pentagon Secretary Pete Hegseth for his Christian tattoos in early 2025. (Aaron Schwartz/Getty Images; Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

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Hegseth defended his tattoos during an exchange with Sen. Kristen Gillibrand during her confirmation hearing. Gillibrand, who chairs the Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, notably supports Governor Janet Mills, Platner’s opponent in the Senate primary.

Mills and Platner are vying for the Democratic nomination to unseat longtime Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine.

The tattoo is highlighted in a blistering new attack ad against Platner launched by Mills’ campaign.

The ad, which the Mills campaign says cost six figures to run statewide, ends with a video of Platner shirtless as the spot’s narrator says, “The closer you look, the worse it gets.”

Controversial comments Platner made more than a decade ago on Reddit about rape are also included in the ad.

THE Mills campaign spot highlights Platner’s comments while an actor – in a voice that resembles the candidate’s – reads the comment aloud. Among the comments was one from 2013, which Platner later deleted, saying people concerned about rape shouldn’t “feel so screwed that they end up having sex with someone they don’t want to.”

Four women in Mills’ ad responded to the comments, calling them a “horrible thing to say,” “disgusting” and “disqualifying.”

Platner apologized for his controversial posts on Reddit after they made headlines last fall, shortly after launching his Senate campaign.

“For those of you who read these things and were offended, who read these things and saw someone you don’t recognize, I am deeply sorry,” he said in a video that went viral.

Senate candidate Graham Platner of Maine, left, and two-term Gov. Jane Mills face off in the state’s Democratic Senate primary. (Sophie Park/Getty Images; Scott Eisen/Getty Images)

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The Mills ad was launched as Platner appeared to be gaining momentum while drawing large crowds at campaign events across the state. According to recent polls, Platner holds a wide lead over Mills with less than three months until the Maine primary.

Democrats view Collins as vulnerable as she seeks a sixth Senate term in the left-leaning New England state. The race is considered a must-win contest for Democrats as they try to reclaim the House majority from the Republican Party in this year’s midterms.