Democrat AG Targeted a Content Creator for Bashing Leftist Candidate – Until a Judge Intervened

A federal judge in Vermont has blocked a state effort to investigate an individual for creating a satirical AI-generated video mocking a member of Congress.

Senior U.S. District Judge William K. Sessions III granted a preliminary injunction in Poitras v. Clark barring state Attorney General Charity Clark from investigating content creator Henry L. Poitras, also known as “Planet Hank” over the video.

The situation began when Poitras posted a 49-second clip on social media using the likenesses of Democrat Rep. Becca Balint (VT-AL) and her Republican challenger Mark Coester. The video shows Coester operating an excavator to scoop Balint up and toss her into a dumpster.

The narrator called on viewers to “help Vermont take out the trash.”

🍁Mark Helps Vermont Take Out The Trash🍁

Vote for Mark Coester for US House on Aug. 11th, let's get Becca Balint out of here for good. #Vermont #BeccaBalint #markcoester #planethank pic.twitter.com/QNuDUTl0oW

— PlanetHank (@planethank1) June 7, 2026

It only took five days for Clark, a Democrat, to serve Poitras with a civil investigative demand under state law requiring people posting fabricated content to disclose the use of AI. However, the law includes an exception for satire or comedy, which Poitras’ video clearly was. 

Poitras sued Clark’s office, arguing that the investigation chilled his speech.

Judge Sessions, after reviewing the video, noted that, “at this early stage, the Court is confronted with the ridiculous nature of the video” and that “[T]he video in its entirety—including the voiceover, the unnatural appearances of those depicted, and the eventual dumping of Balint all contribute to its ridiculous nature.”

It was either bow down and comply or Counter sue in a higher court . Forthcoming discovery going forward should be interesting. I suspect collaboration between the Balint team and Charity Clark as direct election interference.
Expect a VT Digger article tomorrow.…

— Mark Coester (@CMarkCoester) September 9, 2026

The judge further argued that Clark’s office’s concerns about election integrity did not hold water given that “the threat faced is an unrealistic, satirical video” and that Poitras’ lawsuit was likely to succeed.

This was obviously the correct ruling. The attorney general’s office was clearly trying to weaponize the government against a political opponent. It only takes a quick glance at the video to see that it is clearly satire — and pretty funny. Perhaps the Democrats in government were trying to send a message to other content creators who might find creative ways of criticizing their candidates.

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