Washington's most active initiative sponsor dismissed a suggestion that he run for office rather than run initiative campaigns.

Tim Eyman also rejected Gov. Chris Gregoire's suggestion that Washington could go the way of California and be "initiatived to death."

"One or two initiatives a year, tops, ever qualify for the ballot," Eyman said as he and others filed an initiative to return a requirement that the state needs a two-thirds majority to raise taxes.

The state has such a law now, enacted by voters in 2007 with another Eyman initiative, I-960. But Democrats say they will try to modify or repeal that law before any discussion of raising taxes. Anticipating such a move, Eyman and company filed to give voters a change to reinstate it in November if they can gather enough signatures.

Earlier this morning, Gregoire responded to a question about Eyman's scheduled initiative filing (most things in Olympia are correographed and media alerts sent out) by saying the initiative maven should run for office and work on the state's problems in the Legislature.

"Come on down and run for office. Otherwise, leave it to us," she said.

Republican Sen. Pam Roach, one of the co-sponsors of the latest initiative called that "ludicrous and insulting" to the initiative process.

Under I-960, the state can grant a tax break with a simple majority, but can't raise taxes without a two-thirds majority. Spokane Sen. Lisa Brown, the majority leader, said recently it doesn't make sense to allow cuts with lower majorities than increases.

Eyman disagreed Monday. There's no need to have a super majority for tax cuts or exemptions, he said, because "cutting taxes is like a good thing. Those are actually good in these economic times."

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