Leadership Quote by Mike Thompson

The jab lands because it sounds like a budget note and hits like an indictment of the whole apprenticeship model in government. Mike Thompson’s phrasing, “a bit ridiculous,” is doing political work: it’s mild on the surface, almost conversational, but it invites the listener to supply the outrage. He doesn’t accuse anyone of corruption or incompetence outright. He frames it as common sense that’s been violated, which is often more damning in Washington than moralizing.

The numbers sharpen the punch. “Two years of experience” isn’t just a resume detail; it’s a stand-in for institutional memory, procedural fluency, and the ability to detect bullshit when it arrives in a spreadsheet. Against “an $83 billion budget,” the imbalance becomes the argument. Thompson turns budget governance into a scale problem: the larger the machinery, the more absurd it is to let novices steer it.

Subtextually, it’s a critique of term limits, rapid turnover, and the way political incentives reward messaging over mastery. Legislatures are increasingly staffed by beginners while lobbyists, agency veterans, and consultants remain the permanent class. The line implies that when elected officials lack depth, power doesn’t disappear; it relocates to the people who do have experience, just not accountability.

Context matters: this sort of remark usually surfaces during fights over fiscal oversight, committee leadership, or state budgets, when “fresh faces” is being sold as reform. Thompson flips that branding. He’s not defending the status quo; he’s warning that in complex systems, inexperience isn’t purity - it’s a vulnerability.