It is a good sign that Republicans here and in Washington are approaching their newfound majorities with humility.

As several pollsters have pointed out, the nation didn't elect Republicans so much as fire Democrats.

Republican pollster Scott Rasmussen drove that point home Wednesday in Portland at the Heritage Foundation's eighth annual Freedom and Opportunity Luncheon.

"This is a fundamental rejection of both political parties," Rasmussen was quoted as saying in the Portland Press Herald.

"For the Republicans who are looking to celebrate, it's really important for them to remember, they didn't win. The other team lost."

He provided some statistics to prove his point:

* 59 percent of voters expect to be disappointed with the GOP before 2012.

* 72 percent of Republicans believe congressional Republicans are out of touch with their base.

In Maine, Gov.-elect Paul LePage and Maine Senate President Kevin Raye have both echoed what national leaders have been saying:

Republicans have nearly as much work to do as Democrats to rebuild their credibility and leadership credentials.

During the six years that Republicans controlled the presidency and Congress, they were as incapable as Democrats of reining in federal spending.

Meanwhile, they launched two wars and a Medicare prescription drug plan without making any effort to pay for them. As they cut tax revenue, the federal deficit exploded.

Thanks largely to a tea party rebellion within their own ranks, Republican leaders are now re-dedicating themselves to the Republican principles of smaller, less costly government.

In Maine, there is clearly much work to be done, and it will start almost immediately with closing a $1 billion biennial budget gap.

But voters also need to be realistic. Campaigns are won on very lofty rhetoric. As Sen. Susan Collins recently told the Kennebec Journal, "It's a lot easier to charge people up than to actually govern."

Barack Obama has clearly proven that.

There is, of course, much to be done within state government to make us more business-friendly and competitive.

Yet, if we think conservative principles, lower taxes and less regulation alone will ensure growth and prosperity, we may be disappointed again.

If they were, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kentucky and Alabama residents would have the highest incomes in the country. Instead, they have lowest.

Median family income in Mississippi is nearly $10,000 less than in Maine, $36,646 versus $45,734.

Meanwhile, it is hard to explain by philosophy alone why Massachusetts residents — with their famously liberal state government and high taxes — are so much wealthier than most of the nation.

Median household income in the Bay State is $64,081, about $18,000 higher than in Maine.

But it is easy to see why. The state, particularly the Boston region, has higher education levels, major research universities, an international airport and a large population base.

It is an economic engine spinning off wealth and business opportunity not only in Massachusetts but into New Hampshire and southern Maine.

Maine's new governor can do a lot; he can cut government red tape, recalibrate our tax system, trim costs and make government more efficient.

But he cannot wave a wand and create the kind of economic infrastructure that makes Maryland, New Jersey and Connecticut the wealthiest states in the country.

Building that structure will be difficult, time-consuming and likely expensive. But without it, our progress will be limited.

editorialboard@sunjournal.com