This wasn?t supposed to happen with the new Democratic governor, who last year on the campaign trail repeatedly blasted a planned 72 percent “Ehrlich/BGE” rate hike.

A man of the people Martin O?Malley promised he would be.

“The special interests already have their governor ? we need one of our own, Martin O’Malley ? taking on BGE to stop the rate hikes,” one of his commercials declared.

Again, Inconceivable!

Fellow “Princess Bride” character Inigo Montoya told Vizzini, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

Like Montoya, Marylanders should be skeptical of spurious sayings and claims. O?Malley did not and does not have the power to halt electricity rate hikes — not unless he sets commodities prices.

Claiming he could stop a rate hike was a well-constructed lie to paint him as a populist Captain Courageous. It worked for the election but has shattered his credibility.

But options exist to restore it. As governor he oversees the Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities.

He could, as suggested by Thomas Firey, a senior fellow at the Maryland Public Policy Institute, appoint people who know something about electricity markets to the board. The state is home to a number of world-renowned academic institutions with economists who could offer insight to fellow board members on the complexity of electric markets and, just as importantly, explain to the public why prices may rise and why “deregulation” couldn?t guarantee low prices.

O?Malley could also use this as a lesson in learning not to promise things out of his control. If he truly believed he could stop a rate hike, he is delusional. If he did not believe and spewed the lie as a campaign ploy, he is a deceiver. Marylanders need a leader with the courage and foresight to explain to them how things really are, not how they want them to be, unless he is willing to take decisive action to get thingsthe way he wants them to be.