Lewiston survivors eye looming election as gun control returns to forefront after mass shooting

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — Ben Dyer hasn't decided how he will vote this year in one of the most closely watched congressional elections in the country, but he knows guns will be on his mind when he casts his vote. And he's pretty sure he won't be the only one.

Dyer, 47, a father of two, was shot five times at Schemengees Bar & Grille in Lewiston last October in the deadliest mass shooting in Maine history. It was rushed to hospital in a game warden's van. He still can't use his right arm.

Following a bloody tragedy in which 18 people were killed and many others injured at two separate crime scenes, Dyer saw his state pass a law battery of new gun control laws. It is against this backdrop that he and other voters in Maine's 2nd Congressional District will consider the political future of three-term Congressman Jared Golden.

Golden, a Democrat who has long supported gun rights in ways that run counter to his party's orthodoxy, has changed his position since the Lewiston shooting. A former Marine who served in two overseas wars, he now supports a ban on assault weapons. He is unopposed in Tuesday's Democratic primary in Maine, but the two Republicans vying to run against him in November have both pledged to defend 2nd Amendment rights more vigorously than he has.

The congressman's change in position worries Dyer, who previously voted for him. A gun owner who describes himself as politically independent, Dyer says stricter gun controls hurt law-abiding gun owners.

“The question is who are you actually helping if you make these changes, because it’s not the voters,” he said. “This platform, AR, every single one of my friends has a gun on this platform. They were not used to harm anyone.

That may be true of guns owned by Dyers' friends, but the same cannot be said of the assault weapon used by Lewiston shooter Robert Card.

Golden's willingness to rethink her position encouraged Tammy Asselin, who survived bowling alley shooting in Lewiston with her daughter Toni. She knows it was difficult, but said she was “impressed by (Golden's) strength and willingness to change positions so quickly in the face of a lot of resistance.”

Asselin unequivocally supports banning assault weapons.

“There is no need for such powerful weapons to be in the hands of anyone except our military and first responders,” she said. “People claim it's their right to carry, and I'm not opposed to that right, but there is absolutely no reason on this Earth that they can give that gives a reasonable reason to own these firearms. major power.”

In Golden's 2nd Congressional District, gun ownership for hunting and sport is commonplace. It is a large, mostly forested swath of Maine that is both culturally and politically distinct from the liberal, beachside 1st District based around Portland. Forestry, papermaking, and lobster fishing are flagship industries in the 2nd, and moose hunting in the state is a highlight there each fall.

Golden said he believes an assault weapons ban would have saved lives in Lewiston, but he also knows his home district is a place where the Constitution's 2nd Amendment matters to people.

“We cannot ignore the fact that gun laws, whether in Maine or elsewhere, must give way to the Constitution,” Golden said. “The Second Amendment is rooted in self-defense and the protection of family and home. »

Golden's campaign for another term has larger implications, with Republicans holding on to just a five-seat margin in the House. He was initially elected in 2018 on a ranked-choice basis – a historic first for a member of Congress – and has since won by about 6 percentage points in both campaigns.

This campaign promises to be a tougher fight, partly because of the volatility of the gun issue and partly because of former President Donald Trump's popularity in the district, said Mark Brewer, a political scientist at the University of Maine. Trump, who is on the presidential ticket again this year, has won an electoral vote in the 2nd Congressional District by comfortable margins twice.

“One might consider it a positive that (Golden) is able to change his mind in response to a traumatic public event that everyone in his district has experienced, everyone in the country has experienced,” Brewer said. “On the other hand, the 2nd Congressional District is very rural and has many gun owners.”

Republican state Reps. Austin Theriault and Michael Soboleski are expected to face off in Tuesday's GOP primary. Both men vowed to be stronger defenders of the 2nd Amendment than Golden. Thériault sent campaign emails to supporters calling Golden inconsistent with gun rights, and Soboleski said Maine lawmakers' proposals for a “red flag” law to identify people who might pose a threat before something tragic happens belongs “in a paper shredder.”

But some in the district think Golden's move on gun laws is appropriate. Golden spoke publicly in favor of a ban on assault weapons shortly after the Lewiston rampage. He has since said he “would not have voted for” the state-level gun law changes that Maine Democrats passed, such as expand background checks and create penalties for illegal arms sales.

Gun control groups welcomed Golden's new stance on assault weapons. The Maine Gun Safety Coalition, which advocates for stricter gun laws, has not yet thrown its support behind Golden's reelection race, but the group's executive director, Nacole Palmer, said that Golden “represents the courage, thoughtfulness and leadership we hope to see in others.” candidates.”

In his hometown of Auburn, just a few miles from where he was shot Oct. 25, Dyer isn't so sure. He said the election would be a difficult decision for him.

In the meantime, he is learning to shoot with his left hand again.

“A sick person did something sick that day,” Dyer said. “I think most of the gun laws they're trying to pass are a reaction and not a proactive response to an appropriate situation.”