Gov. Tom Corbett cast himself as a trustworthy guardian of Pennsylvania's "long, proud and sustaining democracy" in his inaugural address last January.

On a chilly, overcast day, the white-haired, 61-year-old Corbett pledged to "move forward with government and legislative reform," to do "the right things, for the right reasons," to not confuse "partisanship with principle" and to deliver "good government."

But a year later, the governor's words ring hollow, and those who had hoped Corbett's election would be a harbinger of a pro-democracy Pennsylvania spring can only be disappointed.

Under Corbett's watch, the Legislature remains a captive of the same grandiose entitlement mentality that led to such corrupt and anti-democratic practices as the midnight pay raise and the Bonusgate shenanigans.

Lawmakers, unlike governors, are not term-limited, opening the door to a careerlong gravy train that rewards those who lie low, toe the party line and quietly accumulate seniority. Left to their own devices, lawmakers have shown they're too wedded to cushy privilege to make anything more than a show of retrenchment.

And now Corbett, too, is reading from the Legislature's playbook. Rather than champion structural change to make Pennsylvania's leaders and judges more accountable to the people than to moneyed interests, he has been silent.

He has shown no interest in shrinking the unwieldy 253-member Legislature, reining in campaign contributions, ending the election of appellate judges or taking redistricting out of the hands of politicians.

On that last point, in particular, Corbett played the game rather than stepping up as a game-changer. He signed, with no apparent regrets, one of the most partisan, gerrymandered congressional maps in the nation, a map forged by backroom deals, a map  rushed to passage without public input.

The state constitution says legislative districts must be compact and contiguous. But presented with a scheme that split communities and improved the odds of fellow Republicans, Corbett showed his true colors. He put partisanship above principle.

Corbett's true colors also were shown throughout the year for doing questionable things for questionable reasons.

Is it reasonable, for example, to kill affordable health insurance for nearly 41,000 low-wage but taxpaying workers — the people who change your oil, wait on your table and deliver your newspaper? While options were available to keep the adultBasic plan going without spending tax dollars, Corbett did not lift a finger.

Is it reasonable, too, to ask the poorest school districts to lay off the greatest number of educators? Is it reasonable to drive up college tuition with one hand and with the other to cut corporate taxes? And is it reasonable to fight harder for the natural gas industry than for the people who thought the government was supposed to be on their side?

A year ago, Corbett gave a good speech. His spare and elegant prose honored the vision of William Penn and appealed to our better natures.

Would that the governor go back and reread it.

jhawkes@lnpnews.com