For two years now, Gov. Ronnie Musgrove’s calls for fiscalresponsibility have fallen on deaf ears as lawmakers haveoverridden his vetoes of state budget actions. The latest cameFriday when representatives and senators rammed through theirdeficit Medicaid spending plan despite the governor’sobjections.

Rather than leave budgets in limbo after the session ended,lawmakers anticipated the veto and arranged to extend the sessionto Friday and address any needed override action then. The sessionextension was nothing more than an insurance policy to make surelawmakers get their way.

Where is the dialogue between the executive and legislativebranches of government? Why would anyone want to be governor underwhat we have now? What — besides the teddy bear toy and othercosmetic actions — did the legislature really accomplish thissession? When will lawmakers actually make some tough decisions tofix state problems?

Legislative leaders say Musgrove is using “scare tactics” whenhe talks about nursing homes closing their doors and prescriptiondrug benefits being cut. Perhaps, but with Washington’scontribution, a potential $400 million-plus shortfall will have tobe made up somewhere.

For Medicaid and several other budgets, lawmakers this year usedone-time money to make ends meets for some agencies andprograms.

After this one time, though, what happens the next time? Somelawmakers believe next year could be even worse than the currentone.

Furthermore this year, a portion of the state’s tobacco lawsuitsettlement is being used. Try as some lawmakers might to avoid it,that’s a slippery slope that’s bound to produce spending snowballsin the future.

With Musgrove’s apparent ineffectiveness and the legislature’s”our way” road map on budget issues, the duty falls to thelawmakers to chart a course through the state’s financial roughwaters. With Medicaid and other state programs, we hope they find agood star to steer by before too many constituents are lost atsea.