Governor: Inslee lacks budget leadership

One of the most important qualifications, if not the most important, for being an effective governor is understanding and leadership of the state budget. Gov. Jay Inslee does not have that, and never will.

I have worked for or with seven governors, beginning with Dan Evans and ending with Inslee — from best to worse. Throughout my government career, I focused on trying to make the Washington state budget the best it can be. This has little to do with differing policy beliefs, and everything to do with the prioritization and efficient administration of state agency programs. While as a legislative budget leader I did not always agree with the policy direction of former Democratic governors Gary Locke and Christine Gregoire, both were knowledgeable and effective leaders in helping to negotiate and carry out a responsible budget. I did not find that in Jay Inslee.

Candidate Bill Bryant has talked to me on several occasions about his desire to install a zero-base budget. This would indeed show budget leadership, and would go a long way to direct limited funds to the top priorities and weed out obsolete and ineffective government programs.

(Gary Alexander is a former Republican state representative from the 2nd Legislative District.)

This story was originally published June 28, 2016 at 10:27 AM with the headline "Governor: Inslee lacks budget leadership."