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LEWISTON Jared Golden, a Democratic state lawmaker and Marine combat veteran, announced Thursday that he is entering the 2018 race for the U.S. House, challenging incumbent 2nd District Rep. Bruce Poliquin, a Republican.

Golden, 35, served tours with the U.S. Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan before returning home to Maine, where he earned a bachelors degree at Bates College in Lewiston. He is the Democratic assistant majority leader in the Maine House of Representatives.

Golden is the fifth and, so far, most prominent Democrat to enter the race against Poliquin, who is serving his second term in Congress. Poliquin easily defeated his last challenger, Emily Cain, a former Democratic state lawmaker from Orono, in 2016.

Other Democrats who have announced a bid for the seat include Jonathan Fulford, owner of a construction business in Monroe; Tim Rich, a restaurant owner in Bar Harbor; Phil Cleaves, a Dexter mail carrier; and Craig Olson, an antique book dealer on Islesboro. Voters will select the partys candidate during a primary next June.

After studying at Bates, Golden said he returned to the war-torn countries where he fought, first volunteering as a teacher in Afghanistan and later working for a logistics company in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He then worked in Congress for U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, as part of the staff of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

Golden, now serving his second term as the state representative for Maine House District 60, grew up in Leeds and lives in Lewiston with his wife, Isobel, who serves on the Lewiston City Council.

On Thursday, Golden questioned Poliquins record of protecting Maine jobs and took aim at him for supporting a recently failed effort by Republicans in Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

Everyone knows Congress must fix Obamacare to increase coverage and lower costs, but instead Bruce Poliquin voted to take coverage away from millions of Americans, Golden said.

Poliquins political adviser, the Maine Republican Party and the National Rifle Association all quickly issued statements criticizing Golden, a sure sign that he is seen as a credible challenger to the incumbents bid for a third term.

Young Jared Golden looks good on the surface, but diving deeper you find an extreme Augusta liberal politician, said Brent Littlefield, Poliquins political adviser.

Maine Republican Party Executive Director Jason Savage said Goldens assertions that Poliquin hasnt done much to secure jobs for Mainers are simply out of touch and not true, and that Poliquin had opposed Republican leaders in Congress to vote against trade policy changes that would hurt Maine.

The NRAs national spokesman, Lars Dalseid, said Golden opposed legislation that removed concealed-handgun permit requirements in Maine and supported legislation requiring a federal background check for private firearms sales in Maine.

His votes to deny Maine residents their constitutional right to self-protection and punish law-abiding gun owners for the criminal actions of others are just two of the many reasons why voters should reject his run for the U.S. Congress, Dalseid said.

Golden said none of the votes in question reduced the rights of law-abiding citizens to own guns. I dont want to take anyones guns away unless they are not legally allowed to possess them, he said. I would like to go shooting with Bruce Poliquin sometime and see who knows their way around an AR-15 assault rifle better.

Golden said the early attacks out of Washington are what he expected.

This is classic Bruce Poliquin, he said. All of his D.C. buddies in Washington, D.C., have been preparing for weeks now, figuring out how they were going to take a swing at a Marine because Bruce Poliquin is unwilling to do it himself.

As a state legislator, Golden has served on both the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee and the Transportation Committee, developing a reputation as an advocate for veterans, immigrants and infrastructure improvement. He helped pass bills that expanded the capacity of the states Bureau of Veterans Services and provided free tuition for members of the National Guard at the University of Maine System campuses and the states community college system.

Golden joined the Marine Corps in 2002 while attending college at the University of Maine-Farmington, serving four years on active duty. He said his experiences while growing up and working on his familys Springbrook Golf Course, where he still works as greenskeeper in the summer, guided him during his military service.

Each Marine is expected to carry their own weight, to watch each others backs and to work as part of a team to get the job done, he said.

Scott Thistle can be contacted at 791-6330 or at:

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Jared Golden, a leading Democrat in Maine House, announces run ... - Press Herald

Democratic Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam, who won his party's gubernatorial primary, has called for monuments lionizing the Confederacy to come down, and in response, the Virginia GOP fired off a pair of tweets Wednesday that generated ire online.

The party wrote: ".@RalphNortham has turned his back on his own family's heritage in demanding monument removal (1/2)" and "Shows @RalphNortham will do anything or say anything to try and be #VAGov - #Pathetic 2/2"

Northam responded to Wednesday's tweets and turned the conversation to his Republican opponent Ed Gillespie.

"I feel fine about turning my back on white supremacy. How does @EdWGillespie feel about the president's position?"

The state party deleted its tweets and issued a new one apologizing and saying the messages had been interpreted incorrectly.

David Abrams, a spokesperson for the Gillespie campaign, said in a statement the party was right to apologize for the tweets and take them down.

"Though Ed disagrees with the Lieutenant Governor on the issue of statues, he knows we can disagree on issues like this without devolving into divisive rhetoric," the statement said.

"We said that Ralph Northam is turning his back on his heritage and family," Findlay told the Post. "It is because his great-grandfather fought for the side of the Confederacy and was wounded during the Civil War."

The debate over what to do with Confederate monuments has gripped much of the nation, with President Donald Trump responding to racially charged violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, in part by defending the monuments.

Northam has said the statues should come down and tried to tie Gillespie to Trump, while Gillespie has said the statues should stay.

CNN's Donald Judd contributed to this report.

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Virginia GOP deletes Confederate 'heritage' tweet criticizing Democrat - CNN International

In WatchCut Videos latest YouTube post, a republican, democrat, and independent smoke weed together. You may have some preconceived notions about these three representatives from three very different groups. But the conversations that they have before and during their smoke sesh prove one thing: were all human, and we all want the best for our country. And we all love smoking weed.

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WatchCut has been posting a lot of videos featuring people smoking weed. These people come from all walks of life and are typically smoking together for the first time.

Theyve posted former cops smoking weed, people getting high with their grandparents, and others lighting up with their parents. They even filmed Aubrey Plaza toking up with the infamous weed nuns.

The newest video that theyve posted seems like it would be rife with controversy. The content creators at WatchCut put a Republican, a Democrat, and an Independent in a room together and provided them with weed.

All three admitted to being well-acquaintedwith the plant. Before toking up, the Democrat and the Republican, both young women, predictably argued about people taking offense at Donald Trumps callous and inflammatory statements.

Their smoke sesh started with joint, lit by the independent. During the first ten minutes, the Democrat and the Republican continued to argue back and forth.

Neither of them seemed to be able to see eye to eye due to the fundamental differences between the ideologies.

However, further into the session, when all three were getting progressively more stoned, they found that they could all agree on one thing: no one liked Trump.

And another interesting tidbit that came out during the video: neither the Republicannor the Democrat voted this election. The Independent wrote in Bernie Sanders on his ballot.

By the end of the smoke session, all three individuals maintained their original political views. But they were all able to see each other as complete human beings with complex lives and experiences that have shaped them.

The video ends with the Republican singing the national anthem with the other two hitting a bong and coughing in the background.

Maybe its a stretch to say that weed can bring everyoneDemocrats, Republicans, and Independentstogether. But it can certainly help.

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A Republican, Democrat, and Independent Smoke Weed Together - Green Rush Daily

1 Democrat out, 1 in for 2018 eastern Arkansas House race News & Observer An Arkansas County farmer who had planned to run for a congressional seat says he has a "pending legal matter" that will prevent him from running for the post in eastern Arkansas. Mike Nelson had planned to run as a Democrat. The Arkansas ... and more »

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1 Democrat out, 1 in for 2018 eastern Arkansas House race - News & Observer

Massachusetts Democrats have been notably underwhelmed by the field jockeying to challenge Republican Governor Charlie Baker, and so far the 2018 race has drawn little attention.

Even further below the radar is the contest for who might join the eventual Democratic nominee on the ticket.

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Democratic activists, strategists, and officials say there is an unusual paucity of candidates for the number-two spot of lieutenant governor. Historically, that job has drawn multiple candidates from lower offices, who are seeking to raise their profiles and, if all goes well, secure one of the states six constitutional offices.

This time, party insiders say, theres just one so far. Quentin Palfrey, a former science and technology policy official in the Obama administration, has been courting activists and says hes exploring a run.

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Im looking at it seriously, and Ive been sort of thinking how that would fit and Ive been listening to people across the state, Palfrey told the Globe.

I feel like this is a really scary time, with [President] Trump and an assault on our values, Palfrey said, adding, I want to be in the fray.

In the last election cycle, with no incumbent, three Democrats were on the ballot. The 2006 campaign, when the seat was also open, saw a flurry of activity pre-primary, but also included three candidates on the ballot.

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The winner of the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor would join the partys gubernatorial nominee on the ticket, and they would face Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito.

As summer nears its end and down-ballot political activity usually picks up, other Democratic candidates could emerge. Boston city councilors Ayanna Pressley and Matt OMalley, Norfolk register of probate Patrick McDermott, and New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell are among the names in circulation, according to Democrats keeping tabs on the race.

But, at least thus far, Palfrey has accounted for the most aggressive pre-campaigning, according to party insiders.

Currently the North American executive director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, Palfrey was state counsel for Hillary Clintons presidential campaign after working as a White House senior adviser on science and technology.

He also worked in the US Department of Commerce and, prior to that,was health care division chief in the Massachusetts attorney generals office.

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So far, only one Democrat is openly eyeing this statewide race. - The Boston Globe