Bryant goes after Inslee in first gubernatorial debate

The candidates were debating in Spokane against the backdrop of a new Elway Poll showing Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee with a 12 point-lead over Republican Bill Bryant.

So Bryant needed to highlight what he sees as weaknesses in Inslee’s record. He did in answer to a question about making the Department of Social and Health Services do a better job for working families.

“We have no direction from the governor's office on how resources are supposed to be allocated. This is about making government better, it’s about making sure it runs efficiently to meet the needs of people and we haven’t had that, we've had rudderless mismanagement," Bryant said.

Inslee responded, “The first thing we should do is raise the minimum wage so that people can take of their families. And that’s the first fundamental thing we should do, and then we should continue our effort to improve the quality of child care."

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One of the sharpest clashes was over the initiative to raise the minimum wage to $13.50 over the next four years.

Inslee supports the initiative, Bryant does not, saying he doesn't believe in a 'one-size-fits-all' minimum wage for the entire state.

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Cox Media Group