If there was a surprise last week when Statehouse insiders leaned of the daunting $235 million revenue shortfall for the remainder of this state fiscal year, it was probably the calm, measured response by the guy who says he'll fix it -- Gov. Mark Parkinson.

It sounded almost like something from the 1960s, probably from someone with long hair in a tie-dyed T-shirt.

It is part of a move by Parkinson to mellow out rhetoric from the Statehouse, to take a minute to choose words carefully, and to deal with government problems in a measured, civil, respectful way.

"Today, we confirmed that the state will take in less money in fiscal year 2010 than we had planned. As concerning as this news is, alarmists rarely make good decisions; therefore, we must maintain a calm and measured approach to balancing this budget within our existing means.  These deficit numbers are challenging, but they are manageable," Parkinson said in a press release after the state's semi-annual revenue projection was made public.

This clearly is not the voice of an excited, frantic guy (who before some audiences says he "Forrest Gumped" his way to the governorship) who seems overwhelmed by the task ahead -- cutting at least $235 million from the state budget this year before starting to assemble next year's budget.

He's talking about calmly doing the work ahead, and urging lawmakers and their leaders to ratchet-down the political rancor that tends to be the argot of the Statehouse.

"I understand that in today's political climate, the challenges of governing are dominated by sound bites and slogans -- but we have an opportunity to change this.

"To legislators across Kansas, I say this: In the coming weeks, I will take whatever steps are necessary to balance the 2010 budget before the Legislature returns; that is a promise I have made, and it is a promise I will keep.  In return, I only ask that we rise above the normal partisan bickering that prevents us from moving forward, and find a higher ground to build a better state and future.   We have avoided the political degeneration that has caused gridlock in Washington D.C., and I appreciate that, but we can only continue to meet these challenges by acting like civil adults and working together," Parkinson said.

Sound a little mellow coming from the Statehouse? Like someone is telling the kids to calm down? Sure does.

We'll see how well it works once lawmakers get the list of where Parkinson will make budget cuts.

Syndicated by Hawver News Co. of Topeka, Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report. To learn more about this statewide political news service, visit www.hawvernews.com