The school of politics, hardball division, holds that leaders must reward their friends and punish their enemies.

But beyond the basics are many trickier situations. Take the present landscape in Maine, where a party long out of power has taken full control, but not everyone is on the same page.

Democrats are simply trying to be an opposition party. The harder lessons, though, are for the governing Republicans, testing the appropriate balance between executive and legislative roles.

Gov. Paul LePage has few doubts. If he feels strongly about something, legislative leaders should go along. That was the clear message behind LePage’s threat, aired during an interview with veteran journalist Mal Leary, that he would veto the biennial budget unless it contains the full amount of his proposed tax cuts ($203 million) and pension reductions ($410 million and up.)

It was odd because, in Maine, scheduling realities dictate that major budget bills must pass by two-thirds, also the margin needed to override a veto. There’s more to it than that, of course. Republicans would be loath to challenge LePage and, doubtless, want to create a budget he can sign off on. But he isn’t making it easy.

The logic of LePage’s message is less than clear. The pension reductions – all taken from present state employees, teachers and present and future retirees – are larger than they need to be to achieve the stated goals.

LePage’s ally, State Treasurer Bruce Poliquin, has been barnstorming the state, trying to make the pension gap as alarming as possible, the better to stampede legislators into major cuts. He is denouncing the sensible idea of recalculating the pension system’s liability this year, which would surely shrink the gap. And his doomsday scenario of pension payments gobbling up a quarter of the state budget is based on unrealistically low revenue projections. It’s as if his job is to create the biggest possible disaster.

Even if budget cuts are needed, and they surely are, they’ll have to be a lot deeper to fund all of LePage’s tax cuts. It has occurred to legislative moderates of both parties that scaling back the tax cuts will allow them to inflict less pain on the spending side – and they have to face voters a lot sooner than the governor.

This was, undoubtedly, part of LePage’s message: Cross me, and you’ll regret it.

This is a risky course. LePage needs Republican votes for each major initiative, and he’s less likely to get them if the basic concept is “my way or the highway.” How risky was on display last week at what should have been a triumphal moment for Sen. David Trahan (R-Lincoln County), one of the chamber’s hardest-working members.

Trahan was part of the announcement of a new whitetail deer restoration plan, which he co-authored, to repopulate the shrunken herd in northern, eastern and western counties, where big bucks used to roam but are now few and far between.

Never before has a governor taken such an interest in the issue. LePage said all the right things — up to discussion of the Land for Maine’s Future program.

Trahan, like other outdoor-minded Republicans, is a strong supporter of LMF, which has spent many millions of dollars to protect and increase recreational opportunities. He suggested that preserving deer yards, wintering areas crucial for survival, could be a valid use of the program’s dollars. The last LMF bond, approved overwhelmingly by voters in November, is for only $6.5 million. Lawmakers have previously carved out funding for farmland preservation and working waterfront, in addition to recreation, so adding deer yards could stretch funds even thinner, but LePage said it was a good idea.

Then Trahan’s new $36 million bond proposal for LMF came up. LePage was asked if supported it. He said no.

Now, LePage hasn’t been crystal clear on his intentions about borrowing. His inaugural address was widely read to suggest he wouldn’t support a nickel in bond issues. Later, he amended that to say that he wouldn’t agree to any proposal that didn’t also require approval by voters, which LMF bonds do.

The politic thing, in both senses of the word, would have been to skip the reporter’s question. Saying “no” this early squashes the hopes of those, like Trahan, who’d like to create a note of optimism about rebuilding the deer herd.

New governors need to acquire political friends – legislators who are reliable even on tough votes. Those who fail to do this end up regretting it.

Douglas Rooks is a former daily and weekly newspaper editor who has covered the State House for 25 years. He may be reached at [email protected].