Editorial Page staff
The Seattle Times
Democrat Gary Locke has the preparation and experience to lead Washington confidently into the 21st century as the state's next governor.
Locke has served a solid apprenticeship for the complex job he seeks. By contrast, his Republican opponent Ellen Craswell is unprepared to be the state's chief executive, even with her 16 years in the Legislature.
As a legislator, Locke became intimately familiar with the workings of state government when he wrote five budgets as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.
He bears the scars and voting record of a key player in major policy issues. Locke raised taxes when the state was short of revenue, and he rolled them back when the economy turned around.
The switch from the legislative arena to the executive branch requires new thinking, and Locke has weathered the transition as King County Executive. Moving to the governor's office requires another leap of personal growth and more introspection about the changing role of government. So far, Locke's idea of reform is to add money here, trim a little there.
That's not enough.
Locke's challenge is to rethink government's relationship to the economic, environmental, educational and social issues that shape Washington's future.
His lengthy government career raises cautionary flags. Locke needs to assemble a staff and cabinet that make up for his lack of experience in the private sector. He should talk more about privatization and reinventing government; these are not fads or theories any more, they are taxpayer expectations.
LOCKE'S VISION of the future is very close to the present, refining government rather than taking a hard, objective look at what government can do and what it simply should not do.
Locke's reputation as a technocrat has enough truth to stick, but the jab from detractors acknowledges his mastery of difficult subjects. That reputation also masks a compelling personal story.
He is the son of Chinese immigrants who worked hard to lift themselves into the broad swatch of the American dream defined as the middle class. Beneath Locke's smartest-kid-in-the-class demeanor and political success is a genuine sense of real-life struggles, and an honest connection with the aspirations of people who want more for their children.
That may account for Locke's passion for education. He pledges to make public schools better, and ensure there will be room in community colleges and four-year institutions for the extraordinary bulge of students now in middle schools. Higher education has an able, committed advocate in Gary Locke.
In essence, voters are making a hiring decision for the job of the state's chief executive officer. Who will set policy, spend the money and account for its use in a $16-billion tax-supported enterprise?
The choice of Locke over Republican Ellen Craswell is stark.
CRASWELL IS CAMPAIGNING to lead a Christian theocracy; to be God's vicar in charge of state government. Craswell carefully says she supports everyone's right to worship as they please, and she is sincere. And yet, she is eager to interpret God's plan for the rest of us but is unprepared to be governor.
This country respects and cherishes a host of religious creeds, values and doctrines, and there is an instinctive reticence to examine another's beliefs. Craswell has benefited from that reluctance, even though she is quite plain-spoken about her intent to overhaul state government according to the scriptures.
Some of Craswell's supporters ridicule the notion of a separation of church and state, and link the Christian heritage of the nation's founders with divine intervention in drafting the U.S. Constitution. A closer reading of history would find a desire for moral responsibility and civic virtue in our leaders, not imperatives for sectarian behavior.
Craswell's narrow, passionate band of followers are waging a hard-nosed campaign for control of the institutions of government they believe threaten their values and impede their Godly mission. Pay attention, because she does not hedge her intentions, even if the details are vague.
Craswell attributes a vast lack of knowledge about state government and a dearth of ideas and positions on topical issues to her 22 months of campaigning. She is articulate on religious matters, but relies on fractured anecdotes, hazy memories and garbled facts to address policy questions.
The governor of a trade-dependent state, with high-paying jobs from manufacturing, biotechnology and computers, must be able to look beyond parochial borders to represent Washington interests on Capitol Hill and abroad. Gary Locke has earned the assignment.
