U.S. Rep. Jared Golden. (via Congressman Jared Golden/Facebook)
Some Democratic lawmakers and community leaders in Maine’s Second District are disappointed in Congressman Jared Golden’s stance on President Donald Trump’s potential re-election, which they say dismisses threats to their rights and communities and does not reflect the values of the Democratic Party.
In an op-ed in the Bangor Daily News last week, the Second District Democrat predicted a Trump victory in November and argued Congress would provide a sufficient bulwark against his administration.
“While I don’t plan to vote for him, Donald Trump is going to win. And I’m OK with that,” he wrote.
Gia Drew, executive director of the statewide LGBTQ+ rights organization Equality Maine, said it’s irresponsible for Golden “to talk about Trump in this way, or even to diminish how negatively impactful another Trump administration would be on so many different communities, which include folks here in Maine.”
Drew, who is among the delegates elected to represent Maine at the Democratic National Convention next month, said she doesn’t think the editorial reflects “the true values of most Mainers and definitely not the true values of most Democrats.”
Drew and other leaders said they believed Golden minimized how much a second Trump presidency could threaten reproductive, immigrant and LGBTQ+ rights, as well as public education and health care.
Since President Joe Biden’s much-criticized debate performance last month, he has faced questions about his capacity to govern as well as his ability to successfully campaign against Trump. While most Democratic lawmakers on the federal and state level have coalesced behind the president in recent days, many voters remain concerned about the prospects of a second Trump presidency.
Alternately, Golden said he rejects the premise that a second Trump term would present “a unique threat to our democracy.” Pointing to previous examples of congressional action that happened “in spite of the president, not because of him,” he argues that the members of Congress, citizens and other institutions can hold the president accountable and defend democracy.
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“Pearl-clutching about a Trump victory ignores the strength of our democracy,” Golden wrote.
In an emailed statement, a spokesperson for the Golden campaign said that while the presidential election is important, it is Congress that holds lawmaking power.
“Republican leaders in Congress want to cut Medicare and Social Security, roll back health care, and pass nationwide bans on abortion and IVF,” the spokesperson said. “The presidential election matters, but it’s Congress that writes laws and Congress that can provide a strong check on an executive who moves against the national interest.”
Amy Roeder, a state representative from Bangor, said Golden overstates the power of checks and balances that he argued would temper Trump’s impact, particularly given how recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions have weakened the power of the executive branch.
“What I found a little bit naive in the op-ed is that he believed checks and balances would keep former President Trump in line should he win another election,” she said.
“Well, they never did before, and he has told us that on day one of his presidency, he’d established himself as a dictator,” Roeder added.
Drew also said that under the Trump administration, several anti-LGBTQ+ policies were passed — for example, restrictions on transgender people in the military accessing gender affirming care — and Golden’s argument disregards the safety and well-being of LGBTQ+ people.
“If a former president is not good for human rights, which includes LGBTQ rights, and if you start to align yourself with that person, you’re no longer for human rights or LGBTQ rights,” she said.
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Pamela Proulx-Curry, executive director of the Maine MultiCultural Center in Bangor, told Maine Morning Star that Golden’s perspective neglects to consider the state’s immigrant communities.
“With all due respect to Congressman Golden, I believe that he is seriously mistaken on this issue,” Proulx-Curry said, citing Trump’s record on immigration issues during his presidency and his connection to authors of Project 2025, a transition plan spearheaded by the conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation that includes policies such as mass deportation and the construction of a border wall.
“Trump’s own words during his current campaign make it very clear that immigrant rights would indeed be endangered by another Trump administration,” Proulx-Curry said.
Roeder said her Democratic constituents have expressed disappointment when Golden votes against policies that they care about and she worries the op-ed may further alienate those voters.
“Democrats in CD2 don’t want to feel abandoned just because it’s a red area with pockets of blue,” she said. “If I could, I’d implore Golden to talk to CD2 Dems and really listen to who they are and what they want.”
Golden — who is running for re-election in one of the most competitive U.S. House races in the country against Republican state Rep. Austin Theriault — has often bucked the Democratic establishment and embraced his reputation as a party outsider.
When asked about a closed door discussion Tuesday on Biden’s candidacy, Golden spokesperson Mario Moretto told the Portland Press Herald that he hadn’t attended a Democratic caucus meeting since October 2021.
“As the most independent member of his party in the House, Congressman Golden has little need to attend Democratic caucus meetings,” Moretto said.
To Laurie Osher, a Democratic state representative from Orono, Golden’s statement is not entirely surprising because of his record of not voting along party lines.
“He’s been walking a tightrope trying to keep his seat in a tough district and I hope he continues to keep his seat,” Osher said. “He’s still going to vote with the Democrats more than any Republican would, and therefore he is my candidate.”
Osher said she thinks the commentary was intended to sway Republican voters. Decision Desk HQ estimates that Trump has a 94% chance of winning Maine’s Second District, which means that Golden needs to secure the votes of at least some Trump supporters to retain his seat.
“I think it was just Jared Golden trying to calculate his way to get more Republican votes,” she said of the op-ed.
“I don’t know if he actually believes he’ll be fine if Trump wins.”
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