Former Gov. Robert Bentley takes issue with his successor Gov. Kay Ivey for her claiming to have righted the so-called “ship of state,” a phrase she had frequently used to describe her action after ascending from lieutenant governor to governor after Bentley’s departure.

According to Bentley, the circumstances Ivey faced upon entering office were not that bad.

During an appearance on this week’s broadcast of APTV’s “Capitol Journal,” he said he preferred to hear “solutions” rather than the “ship of state” metaphor as Ivey and her challengers begin the 2022 gubernatorial campaign.

“[T]here are a lot of problems in this state that need to be solved,” he said. “And I would like to hear from all of them some solutions rather than them talking about righting the ship or whatever they were talking about doing. Honestly, the ship didn’t need to be righted because when we left, it was in the best position it had been in.”

“We cut the size of government by 25%,” Bentley continued. “We paved roads and bridges across this state — $1.4 billion, and we didn’t have to raise taxes. There are so many things. We saved a billion dollars every year — and we paid off all the rainy day funds. And so, the government was in great shape when I left.”

“I think it is disingenuous for anybody, Governor Ivey or Lynda Blanchard, to talk about righting the ship when the ship was not in bad position when [Ivey] took over,” he added.

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.