Governor's finally showing some guts

When I heard the 2012 debates between Jay Inslee and Rob McKenna, I found myself wondering how in the world the former had become the Democratic candidate. He didn’t really articulate his positions that well.

When Inslee was inevitably elected to governor, he turned out to be what I feared. Trying to find some glimmers of hope within our state Legislature, he was not a savior. Instead, I found him completely lacking in charisma and a bit of a pushover.

When he gave his 2016 State of the State speech, which included a bit on education that made schools chief Dorn leave the chamber, I was convinced that Republican Bill Bryant would win big. And then, a miracle happened.

Possibly because it’s an election year, or because he’s completely fed up with our inept Legislature, or both, Inslee issued an ultimatum: Come up with a supplemental budget, or your bills won’t see the light of day.

True to his word, he vetoed 27 bills and probably will veto more.

Why does this make me so happy? He’s shown to me, through his rhetoric and actions, that he’s not afraid to give the Legislature a defibrillator jump. I know that my legislators have been frustrated to no end over refusals to compromise on important issues, like our court-ordered education funding.

The governor I used to think had no teeth has shown his fangs. If he keeps this up, I’ll be proud to vote for him this year.

This story was originally published March 11, 2016 at 3:43 PM with the headline "Governor's finally showing some guts."