The guest column in the Sept. 21-22 Bangor Daily News from my old friend Sen. Ed Youngblood takes a pretty good whack at Gov. Angus King and the Maine Legislature for increasing state spending and putting the state in the position of facing a large deficit. Sen. Youngblood is quick to point out the spending increases while attempting to make his case that “Peter Cianchette will stand up to big spenders.” What he fails to mention is that Cianchette was in the Legislature while much of the increase spending took place.

Sen. Youngblood points to a $1.2 billion-a-year increase in state spending since 1992. More than half of that increase took place while Cianchette held a seat in the Maine House of Representatives. During his four years in office, state spending increase by just under 40 percent. A review of the legislative record shows that while this phenomenal rise in spending took place, Cianchette never once spoke against a budget or offered an amendment to curb spending. This is leadership? This is standing up to big spenders?

Moreover, the biennial budget passed by the 119th Maine Legislature contained the largest dollar increase in the state’s history, a whopping $871 million increase in the biennial budget. Just under $600 million of the increased spending was included in the Part I and Part II budgets and in a supplemental spending bill LD 2692.

Not only did Cianchette offer no objections to these spending increases, he voted for them. He voted for enactment of both the Part I (Roll Call No. 24) and Part II (Roll Call No. 348) budgets and for LD 2692 (Roll Call No., 672) thereby giving his seal of approval to the state spending increases he now blames on Gov. King and his fellow legislators. It’s easy to talk the talk during a political campaign, but when given the opportunity to walk the walk the results from Cianchette have not been good.

Sen. Youngblood is right on one score – state spending needs to be controlled. When it comes to bringing efficiency to state government, I have absolute faith in Rep. John Baldacci. He ran his congressional office so efficiently that he returned hundreds of thousands of taxpayers’ dollars to the federal treasury. He will run state government in the same efficient manner and address the budget gap as he has said repeatedly “without raising taxes.”

Jack Cashman of Old Town is a former legislator and John. E. Baldacci volunteer.