Campaigns clash over gun rights in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District race

Sept. 11—A clash over who is the biggest advocate for gun rights erupted this week in the high-stakes race for Maine’s 2nd Congressional District.

Opponents of NRA-backed Republican candidate Austin Theriault have circulated a 2023 incident report claiming he called police on a man exercising his Second Amendment right to bear arms.

Incumbent Rep. Jared Golden is among the Democrats who have used the report to question Theriault’s commitment to gun rights, which is likely to be a key issue in a tight race that could determine which party controls the House of Representatives. The sprawling 2nd District — the largest congressional district east of the Mississippi River — is largely rural and more conservative than other parts of the state and has a strong culture and tradition of hunting and gun ownership.

Theriault, a former NASCAR driver and first-term state legislator, called the Aroostook County Sheriff’s Office in January 2023 to report a man carrying an AR-15 on his own property, the police report said.

Theriault did not provide police with the address of the person, who is described in the report as “walking on his porch holding an AR-15,” and did not report any possible crimes, according to a copy of the report obtained by the Press Herald.

“Austin did not disclose any information that would lead me to believe that criminal conduct was committed,” the police report said. “Nothing else was clarified.”

Maine is a constitutionally authorized gun state, meaning that no permit is required to own or carry firearms in public, whether concealed or not.

The report was made public this week and was the subject of a story published Monday by HuffPost, a liberal news site. The Aroostook County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the authenticity of the police report and said the officer who responded to the call was not available to speak to a reporter.

The police report prompted one of the state’s three gun rights groups to look into the matter. The group later said it was satisfied with the explanation provided by Theriault’s campaign.

A spokesperson for Theriault’s campaign did not respond to a request to speak to Theriault and said it was “totally pathetic” that the Press Herald asked about the incident.

A campaign spokesperson told the Press Herald that Theriault told police he witnessed an apparent altercation, though no mention of a fight or confrontation was included in the police report.

“Austin witnessed an altercation between an armed individual and a group,” campaign manager Shawn Roderick said in a written statement released through a spokesperson. “As any concerned citizen would, Austin notified the Aroostook County Sheriff’s Office and is grateful that nothing was done.”

Theriault is seeking to unseat Golden, who is finishing his third term in Congress. The Republican has criticized Golden for his statements in favor of restricting assault weapons following the mass shooting in Golden’s hometown of Lewiston.

Golden, a former Marine, teased Theriault on X, formerly Twitter, after the HuffPost article was published.

“I didn’t know that calling the police for possession of a gun on a Maine resident’s property could get you an NRA endorsement,” Golden said. “That’s weird.”

Golden suggested in a written statement Tuesday that Theriault’s explanation for why he called police doesn’t hold water.

“This is all a little strange,” Golden said. “A lot of us carry guns and most of us wouldn’t call the police unless we knew something was going on. I can’t speak to what Austin thought he saw or what law enforcement has said about it. The balance between individual rights and public safety is often nuanced and not to be taken lightly, and that’s what I’ve always believed the Second Amendment is about.”

Thériault’s campaign manager accused Golden of circulating the information. A spokesperson for Golden denied the accusation, and it was unclear Tuesday who leaked the information to the media.

“Jared Golden is the one pushing this non-story, and we understand that he is upset that the NRA and gun rights groups across Maine have supported Austin, not him,” Roderick said.

“So we’re happy to educate him a little bit: Gun owners can both support the Second Amendment and alert law enforcement when someone appears to be about to use a firearm illegally. Jared Golden clearly has a very low opinion of gun owners — the very group he’s pathetically trying to win back today.”

Golden has been at odds with gun rights groups since he publicly abandoned his opposition to an assault weapons ban a day after the Lewiston mass shooting. A gunman used a semi-automatic assault weapon to kill 18 people and wound 13 others in a shooting spree at two locations: a bowling alley and a bar.

“I have opposed efforts to ban deadly weapons of war, like the assault rifle used to commit this crime,” Golden said at a news conference last year. “It is time for me to take responsibility for that failure, which is why I am now calling on the United States Congress to ban assault rifles like the one used by the madman who carried out this massacre in my hometown of Lewiston, Maine.”

“For the sake of my community,” he said, “I will work with any colleague to get this done in my remaining time in Congress.”

Theriault received an “A” grade and endorsement from the National Rifle Association and an “A” grade from Gun Owners of Maine, which does not endorse candidates. Golden, who received a B from the NRA in 2022, received an “F” from each group following his commitment to using an assault weapon.

THE GROUPS THAT OWN THE ARMS ARE NOT INFLUENTIAL

Gun Owners of Maine President Laura Whitcomb said in a phone interview Tuesday that she was reevaluating Theriault’s rating, which is assigned after a review of voting records, questionnaires and public statements, and that she was contacting Theriault’s campaign about the police report.

“We’ll certainly evaluate what actually happened and what prompted the filing of the police report,” Whitcomb said. “If I feel that his note needs to be amended to accurately reflect the facts, then we certainly will.”

Shortly afterward, Whitcomb texted a reporter to say she had spoken with the campaign and would not change Theriault’s note. She said the campaign told her the police report was incomplete.

Justin Davis, who represents the NRA in Maine, did not respond to questions about whether the group was reconsidering its endorsement in response to the report.

The third and perhaps most influential gun rights group, the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, has not released its candidate scorecard.

But the group responded this week to a Golden campaign event touting support from Maine sportsmen.

“We’re setting the record straight!” the group posted Monday. “We have not released our ratings or endorsements. Today’s announcement by athletes for Golden has nothing to do with SAM. We have not endorsed Jared Golden and have no intention of endorsing him. Please share.”

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