Purple Heart hero who Graham Platner said ‘didn’t deserve to live’ blasts Dems still supporting him

WASHINGTON, DC: Army veteran Ted Daniels, who earned a Purple Heart after taking fire in Afghanistan to protect his squad, is pushing back after old comments surfaced showing Maine Senate hopeful Graham Platner saying he “didn’t deserve to live."

Daniels is not interested in an apology. Instead, he says he wants Democrats who continue backing Platner to explain their support to his children.

Ted Daniels dares Democrats backing Platner

Daniels, whose combat footage became widely known in 2012 after showing him moving into exposed terrain under Taliban fire to create an opening for his fellow soldiers, said he’s not losing sleep over Platner’s remarks. However, he believes others should answer for standing behind him.

“I’m very thick-skinned, and he said it,” Daniels told the New York Post. “I don’t want an apology, and any apology from him [Graham] at this point would definitely not be sincere.”

Then came the challenge.

“What I’d really like is for Elizabeth Warren, Chuck Schumer, Bernie Sanders, Hakeem Jeffries, and everybody else on the far left to tell my children to their face that they are endorsing and supporting a man who said that their father should not have lived. Cheering on the death of their father," he said.

Back in 2012, Daniels was a 37-year-old father of two when helmet footage captured a chaotic firefight on a ridge in Afghanistan. In the video, Daniels moved into open ground while bullets cracked around him as he attempted to draw Taliban fire away from the seven soldiers with him.

He was eventually struck four times, but every member of the squad survived.

Daniels later received the Purple Heart for the injuries he sustained during the battle.

Years later, Daniels learned he had become the target of remarks posted by Platner on Reddit.

Burner account comments spark backlash

About seven years ago, Marine veteran Platner posted under the Reddit account “P-Hustle” and took aim at Daniels after watching the viral combat footage.

“This video never gets old. Dumb mother****er didn’t deserve to live. At least his stupidity and fat a** wheezing are available for all future infantrymen to witness and hold in contempt,” Platner wrote.

The Post verified the remarks using Pull Push after Platner mass-deleted the history from the Reddit account.

Daniels also criticized Platner over previous attacks on other veterans, including the late “American Sniper” Chris Kyle and Vice President JD Vance.

Platner had mocked Vance’s military service by saying he sat “in an air-conditioned office” and had accused Kyle of killing civilians to inflate his tally.

Daniels said that the pattern bothered him more than the comments aimed at him.

“I don’t understand the abhorrent malcontent for veterans who went out there and served honorably. That gets me,” Daniels vented. “It’s extremely odd that he does stuff like that.”

Platner has also faced scrutiny over other Reddit activity, including posts defending soldiers who urinated on dead Taliban fighters and comments expressing enthusiasm for war.

When confronted over the posts, Platner rejected accusations that he disrespects veterans.

“I did four tours in the infantry; any attempt to say that I disrespect veterans is slanderous and offensive,” Platner told Fox News when pressed. “Do you know how many of my friends have Purple Hearts?”

He did not apologize.

Ted Daniels doubts Graham Platner would 'shoot his mouth off' face-to-face

Daniels, who later ran as a Republican for Congress and for Pennsylvania lieutenant governor, said he doubts Platner would speak the same way in person.

“I’m a pretty intimidating person to stand in front of, and it’s easy for them to shoot a mouth off behind a keyboard, but face to face, it’s crickets, and I kind of wonder what Graham Platner’s response would be if he were face to face with me,” the 6-foot-4 veteran said.

Daniels also reflected on the aftermath of war, recalling intense surgeries following his injuries and living with post-traumatic stress disorder after his service.

But despite everything, he stopped short of attacking Platner’s own military record.

“I’m not going to come after Graham Platner and his service,” Daniels said. “He’s still a brother. Okay, were his comments way out of line? Sure. Do I lose sleep over it? No, absolutely not.”

He closed with a note that sounded less angry than resigned.

“There’s a lot of folks out there who feel jaded that other veterans they feel got unfair or undue attention due to their service, and they didn’t get any," he added.