Maine
Golden proposes universal 10% tariff, saying it will protect Maine workers
Rep. Jared Golden, D-2nd District, at his home in Lewiston in October. Brianna Soukup/Portland Press Herald file
President-elect Donald Trump promised to impose sweeping tariffs. Days before Trump is set to take office, Maine’s 2nd District Rep. Jared Golden has introduced similar legislation — a 10% tariff on all imported goods.
It’s intended to protect Maine industries and workers against unfair competition, Golden said.
The Democrat from Lewiston, fresh off a narrow reelection win in November, said in an interview that his proposal would put the U.S. on more equal footing with trading partners that for years have protected their industries and workers. In contrast, Maine has lost jobs in manufacturing, lumber and other industries because the U.S. has failed to shield its workers and markets from unbalanced trade, he says.
“It’s a lie that we allowed ourselves to believe, that our allies around the world don’t pursue protectionist measures,” he said.
Golden pushed back against two arguments against tariffs: that the levies are inflationary because producers will pass added costs to consumers and that governments will retaliate against the U.S. with tariffs of their own.
He said an analysis by the Congressional Budget Office shows that a 10% “universal tariff” could spur a short-term increase in prices of some foreign goods and services, but would likely reduce the cost of other goods and services, drive up the incomes of American workers and have no long-term effect on inflation. Addressing the possibility of protectionist retaliation, Golden said U.S. markets are among the largest in the world widely sought by trading partners and other countries.
“For the time being, dollar for dollar, we’ll out-compete them. They need us,” Golden said.
Although the CBO report acknowledged no long-term inflationary impact, it predicts that cost increases would “put upward pressure on inflation over the first few years in which the tariffs were in place.” The analysis said increases in tariffs on U.S. imports and retaliation from trading partners over the next decade would reduce the size of the economy and increase businesses’ uncertainty about barriers to trade, cutting returns on new investments.
Golden told the Washington Post that no House Republican or Democrat has agreed to co-sponsor his bill.
Representatives of Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st district, and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, did not respond to emails Thursday seeking their opinions of Golden’s legislation. A spokesman for Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said King is withholding comment on the issue of tariffs until more details emerge about policies developed by the Trump administration and Congress.
Kristin Vekasi, an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Maine, argues that tariffs are inflationary and would likely lead to a cascade of policies and responses that could ultimately undermine Golden’s intent to protect jobs.
“There’s broad consensus about some aspects of tariffs,” she said. “The thing that we generally see with tariffs is they increase prices for consumers.”
That could prompt the Federal Reserve to again raise interest rates to fend off inflation, in turn prodding investors to shift money to bonds, increasing the value of the dollar that would make goods less competitive in global markets and hurting production and jeopardizing jobs, Vekasi said.
In addition, if retaliatory tariffs are imposed on hydropower from Canada and oil from other nations, higher energy costs would affect most industries, she said.
Stefano Tijerina, who teaches international business at the University of Maine Business School, said more than 50% of Maine’s trade is with Canada and tariffs “would affect us tremendously.” Lumber and tourists “mostly come from Canada” and lobsters fished off Maine typically end up in Canadian canneries, he said.
Many companies have moved to Canada and other nations to sell goods back to U.S. consumers, he said. “We’d be putting tariffs on our own products,” Tijerina said.
While Golden’s legislation can be interpreted as bolstering President-elect Donald Trump’s push for tariffs after he takes office Monday, Golden introduced similar legislation in September and said tariffs were established by President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden, both Democrats. A softwood lumber tariff dates to the Obama administration, he said, and Biden raised tariffs against China.
The 10% percent tariff would apply to all imported goods and services, and would increase or decrease by 5%, depending on whether the U.S. maintains a trade deficit or surplus.
Golden said job losses accelerated in the 1990s due to the North American Free Trade Agreement, which has become a magnet of anti-free trade animus that crosses political lines from Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on the left to Trump on the right.
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This story will be updated.
The Maine Department of Transportation is moving to slash up to $400 million in projects from its agenda, a shocking and abrupt cutback that is rattling the state’s construction industry at the start of building season.
Roughly $50 million across six pavement projects have already been delayed, according to a memo exclusively obtained by the Bangor Daily News. The agency plans to cut or delay another $150 million in bridge, highway, intersection and multimodal projects later this month. A further $200 million or more in cuts are planned in the next three-year work plan.
Those figures were outlined by Transportation Commissioner Dale Doughty in the May 18 memo to Gov. Janet Mills that has since circulated widely in the transportation sector, which has been getting drip-by-drip details on the wide scope of the cuts over the past three weeks.
It comes at the beginning of the state’s relatively narrow construction season. Companies have hired workers and ordered materials for projects they expected to begin this summer. The severity of the transportation budget problems was not raised to lawmakers during the 2026 legislative session.
Kelly Flagg, executive director of the Associated General Contractors of Maine, called the shortfall “deeply troubling” in a statement.
“We stand ready to work with policymakers, stakeholders, and industry partners to identify both immediate and long-term solutions,” Flagg said. “Maine cannot afford to fall further behind.”
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The cuts stem from a structural funding gap of at least $130 million in the state’s current work plan, according to Doughty’s memo. Losses are magnified because state money from the gas tax and other revenue sources is matched by federal funds. Lawmakers have long grappled with politically difficult long-term problems with the state’s transportation budget.
A Mills spokesperson said Wednesday morning that the administration was working on a response to questions from the BDN. The department says it needs roughly $240 million more in state capital funding annually to maintain the existing system, and that anything less than $200 million will erode it over time.
Doughty’s memo the only near-term solution is a series of bonds beginning as soon as possible. Lawmakers would have to return to Augusta to authorize that if one is going to appear on the November ballot.
The BDN Opinion section operates independently and does not set news policies or contribute to reporting or editing articles elsewhere in the newspaper or on bangordailynews.com
Michael Capeci is the former chairman of the Bangor GOP.
Let’s be honest about Maine’s current state.
For many families, the cost of living has become unsustainable. Housing is out of reach for many young people. Energy bills keep rising. Many small businesses are struggling under taxes and regulations that make it harder to grow. Rural hospitals are under strain and despite years of increased state spending, the results are not showing up in people’s daily lives.
Concurrently, Maine continues to lose young workers to other states. That is not a statistic, it is a warning sign.
To me, the question in this Republican primary for governor is not about slogans. It is whether we continue with a political approach that has failed to reverse these trends, or whether we nominate someone with new ideas. I think that someone is Owen McCarthy.
Owen is not a political insider. He is an entrepreneur from Patten, a small town where opportunity is not assumed, it is built. He grew up in a working-class family, became the first in his family to graduate from college graduating from the University of Maine, and founded MedRhythms, a healthcare technology company focused on neurological treatment.
He didn’t just talk about opportunity. He built it. That distinction matters, because Maine’s problem is not a lack of debate it is a lack of results. We have seen the trajectory: higher costs, slower growth, and a steady outmigration of young workers. I believe Owen McCarthy represents a break from that pattern.
His Maine 2040 plan focuses on creating 50,000 new jobs in sectors where Maine has real advantages — maritime and defense, advanced forest products, and life sciences. These are export-driven industries tied directly to Maine’s workforce, geography, and institutions. What sets Owen apart is not only what he proposes, but how he approaches governing.
He prioritizes modernizing permitting so projects do not stall. He supports using technology to reduce costs and increase efficiency. He focuses on making it easier to build, hire, and expand in Maine.
That same practical mindset extends to healthcare. Expanding telehealth, strengthening EMS systems, improving provider flexibility, and shifting toward earlier intervention are not abstract reforms. They are system upgrades designed to improve access while controlling costs.
Maine voters consistently respond to competence. They reward candidates who understand problems and present plans to solve them. I believe they are tired of rhetoric that does not translate into results, and skeptical of politics that prioritizes messaging over execution.
Owen’s approach is grounded in solving the issues that shape daily life — affordability, healthcare access, job creation, and government efficiency. That is not just policy positioning. It is a governing model that speaks directly to voters.
Some will point to his lack of political experience. But I believe Maine’s core problems are not the result of insufficient political experience; they are the result of policies that have failed to deliver measurable improvement. Experience inside a broken system, by itself, is not a solution.
If Republicans want to win, this primary must be taken seriously. From my perspective, it is not about choosing a nominee for governor who can energize the base. It is about selecting someone who can compete in a broader electorate that is frustrated and looking for change.
That requires a candidate who can speak beyond the base, not by abandoning principles, but by demonstrating competence and a credible plan to address Maine’s challenges. I believe Owen McCarthy offers that combination. He represents a shift away from managed decline and toward economic execution.
This is not just another primary. It is a decision about whether Republicans position themselves to win Maine or whether they remain trapped in a cycle of repeating the same strategies and expecting different outcomes.
If Republicans want to compete for Maine’s future, they cannot afford to nominate a candidate who only motivates part of the electorate. They need someone who expands it.
I believe Owen McCarthy is that candidate.
And if the goal is to win Maine, then the choice should be unmistakable
The only notable change in the top-seven of the Varsity Maine baseball poll is that Gorham now has eight first-place votes, two more than last week. The order of the seven teams is identical. In fact, the only change in the top-seven over the past three polls is the swap at the top after Gorham’s win over South Portland on May 19.
Furthermore, Gorham, South Portland, Oxford Hills, Cheverus, Bangor, Mt. Ararat and Fryeburg have been ranked in the top seven for four straight weeks, and six of those squads have been among the top seven in every poll this spring.
Meanwhile, Scarborough is ranked for the first time since May 5, and Ellsworth and Thornton swapped spots.
The Varsity Maine baseball poll is based on games played before June 2, 2026. The top 10 teams are voted on by the Varsity Maine staff, with first-place votes in parentheses, followed by total points.
1. Gorham (8) 89
2. South Portland 79
3. Oxford Hills (1) 75
4. Cheverus 55
5. Bangor 42
6. Mt. Ararat 41
7. Fryeburg Academy 30
8. Ellsworth 27
9. Thornton Academy 25
10. Scarborough 12
Also receiving votes: Washington Academy 8, Monmouth Academy 4, Cony 4, Leavitt 2, Falmouth 2.
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