PORTLAND, Maine — The candidates in the race for Maine’s 2nd Congressional District engaged in an at-times spirited debate at NEWS CENTER Maine’s Voice of the Voter Forum on Monday.
Incumbent Democrat Jared Golden spent much of the hour-long clash touting his record as a moderate lawmaker, while also defending more progressive ideas form his party. His Republican challenger, Austin Theriault, presented a solidly conservative view on fiscal issues and guns, but departed from GOP hardliners in his views on abortion.
NEWS CENTER Maine’s moderator, Rob Caldwell, first asked the candidates for specifics on how to lower the federal deficit, which sits at $1.9 trillion, while sustaining federal programs like Social Security.
Golden, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, called for a tax hike on the wealthy, in line with the Democratic platform.
“We've got to raise [taxes]… on the wealthiest of individuals, millionaires and billionaires, corporations, U.S multinational corporations,” Golden said.
Theriault, a former NASCAR driver and current state lawmaker, instead argued for more fiscal restraint at the federal level. “This is a spending issue; this is not a taxation issue. And I think you’ll ask people back home [and] they know the government spends wildly,” Theriault said.
This disagreement over budgetary policy spilled into a later discussion of the Inflation Reduction Act — the Biden administration’s landmark law to invest in green energy and reduce health care costs. In 2023, Goldman Sachs estimated the subsidies in the law will cost $1.2 trillion over this decade. The left-leaning group Center for American Progress does forecast the investments will reduce the deficit by $175 billion overall in that time.
Golden, who supported the legislation, says it has already brought costs down for consumers. “Gas was almost five dollars a gallon. It’s now down to about three dollars a gallon. The law is working,” Golden said.
Theriault, for his part, argued that the law’s incentives for solar energy projects have put a burden on ratepayers in Maine because they lack efficiency. “This bill has led to higher costs for consumers right here in Maine,” Theriault said.
Theriault and Golden split, once again, on abortion. Theriault affirmed his personal stance against abortion while pushing for the states to continue to legislate on the issue , an arrangement that has been in place since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. He also committed to opposing abortion restrictions or protections at the federal level.
“I am pro-life,” Theriault said. “But I am not in favor of federal legislation or a federal ban. I would not support that.”
Golden called for greater protections for abortion care nationwide. “...Codify Roe v. Wade, put it into federal law. That’s the best way to overturn what the Supreme Court did when they overturned those protections," he said.
Caldwell moved from abortion to guns, asking the candidates why the United States has a substantially higher death rate from guns than other developed countries. Golden called the question not fair “to ask either one of us.”
After moving on to ask what restrictions each candidate supported, Golden and Theriault clashed on the topic.
Golden, who called for a ban on assault-style rifles in the wake of the Lewiston mass shootings, doubled down on his proposal for greater restrictions on firearms sales.
“Perhaps for those of us that want to own these firearms in recognition for how lethal they are, some kind of permitting system, some higher threshold, so that we know that the people that have them…are in a good solid state,” Golden suggested.
Caldwell asked Theriault, “What changes, if any, would you like to see happen to gun regulations on the federal level?"
“I wouldn’t support any right now. I think this is an issue that is being addressed at the state level,” Theriault responded, emphasizing the need to improve mental health care as critical to tackling to issue of gun violence. “You’re gonna have a hard time finding somebody that says we don’t have a real issue with access to mental health, and our society is experiencing loneliness, experiencing depression and anxiety, at high levels.”
In closing statements, which were cut short by a technical glitch at NEWS CENTER Maine, Golden highlighted his bipartisan brand. “I do it that way because I understand you and the way that Maine is. We are an independent, fair-minded people,” Golden said.
Theriault touted his upbringing in the St. John Valley of Aroostook County while trying to appeal to those “lost, left behind and forgotten.”
“We need more representation, more aggressive representation. We have so many issues that we have to fix and address," he said.