Gov. Baldacci sent a clear message with his State of the State address: He’s not backing down on Dirigo.

While much of his script held to a familiar pattern, there was one big difference from last year’s speech: There was no offer of conciliation, no plea for bipartisanship. In fact, Baldacci drew a line in the sand.

Republicans reciprocated. Except when Baldacci delivered the most broadly appealing lines of his speech, Republicans members of the House and Senate looked like they were sitting in a dentist’s waiting room on their way to a root canal.

The speech can be compartmentalized. First, the governor outlined what he sees as the accomplishments of his administration, and there were many.

From keeping Portsmouth Naval Shipyard open to the expansion of the Defense Department facility in Limestone to his Pine Tree Zones and rave reviews from several recent national studies concerning state spending growth and health, Baldacci took credit, much of it deserved, for the good news during the last three years.

Secondly, the governor presented the state with a package of goodies, setting forth proposals touching every part of the state.

He promised $500,000 to redevelop the closed mill in Brewer; $500,000 to expand the child care tax credit; $1.5 million for childhood education scholarships; $3 million to support “high-performing small schools”; $500,000 to expand access to college-level classes in high schools; $4.6 million in new money for the Fund for a Healthy Maine; and $750,000 to expand health care education at the University of Maine and the state’s community colleges.

He also set a goal of raising average teacher salaries from $27,000 a year to $30,000 a year in 2007, and promised financial support for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Southern Maine.

Add it all up, and there’s plenty of new spending.

Goodies aside, it was the third part of the speech that gave the sharpest preview of the gubernatorial campaign ahead. Baldacci offered a spirited defense of Dirigo Health, his signature program.

The governor didn’t mince words, didn’t back down and didn’t hold out an olive branch or suggest a compromise.

Lauding the savings he says Dirigo has produced and the expanded access to health care it offers small businesses and individuals, the governor was on the offensive, saving his strongest language for insurance companies.

“The superintendent of insurance identified nearly $44 million in savings in the health care system because of Dirigo. Those are real savings that belong in your pocket, not in the pocket of an insurance company. Therefore, I intend to support legislation to require insurance companies to pass those savings back.”

Going further, the governor said that he has brought in a national health care expert to work with his administration to determine the next steps for Dirigo. He sounded an order of advance, not retreat.

Attacks on Dirigo appear to have steeled the governor. People who supported Dirigo – and its funding mechanism – have turned against it, and it appears the governor feels betrayed. It’s almost as if the governor is daring his opponents to make the campaign about health care.

With Dirigo at the center of the race for governor, we don’t expect either side to give an inch on health care during this year’s legislative session. While that might suit both sides perfectly well for the campaign, it’ll also limit what can be done.