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RALEIGH - Gov. Bev Perdue's first State of the State address was short on specifics but long on warnings about North Carolina's grim fiscal health.

Given every two years, the address traditionally has been a chance for governors to lay out what new policies and priorities they hope to pursue.

But the same battered economy that has caused layoffs and depressed tax collections has put Perdue on the defensive, leaving her mainly to lay out which programs she wants protected from cuts.

"Even as we search out ways to cope with our deteriorating economic landscape, we must be sure to protect our most precious asset, our children, our future workers," Perdue, a Democrat, told the General Assembly on Monday night.

She pledged to expand per-pupil spending in the public schools and take the first steps toward her "College Promise" program, which would lower the cost of higher education for North Carolina students.

But to do that, she warned, politicians would have to forgo some of the grease that typically lubricates the machinery of the government budget.

"This is the time to stand up to the sweet seductions of special interests, to the temptations of politically popular pork-barrel spending and end the practice of backroom dealing," she said. "Those days are gone because we simply cannot afford them in these perilous times."

Her speech was short on specifics about numbers or where she might look for cuts.

But Perdue made clear that the budget she would unveil to the General Assembly next week would make nobody happy.

"We will reduce and cut state government programs and services that many, including me, know have been effective but which, in these times, we simply cannot afford," Perdue told the legislators.

Republicans reacted to Perdue's speech by issuing their own calls for austerity. The Democrats have controlled both chambers of the General Assembly and have grown the size of the state budget.

"The current economic situation is an opportunity to get North Carolina's fiscal house in order," said Sen. Phil Berger , an Eden Republican, delivering the GOP's official response.

When asked, he was skeptical of Perdue's promise to raise per-pupil spending.

"I'd like to know specifically what she plans to spend that money on," he said.

Berger insisted that education funding needed to be spent in the right ways but that too often North Carolina simply "threw money" at education problems.

Berger also said that deep cuts in North Carolina's budget could be accomplished with little pain to the average taxpayer.

"If it's done right, most people in the state of North Carolina will not notice those cuts," he said.

That suggestion drew swift criticism from House Speaker Joe Hackney , who like Perdue is a Democrat.

"I think Sen. Berger hasn't looked at the budget yet," Hackney said. "There will be cuts that affect every North Carolinian, and they will know it."

Guilford County representatives gave the speech generally positive, if cautious, reviews.

"I think we got the message," said Rep. Alma Adams , a Greensboro Democrat. "I just hope everyone adheres to it."

Adams said she was particularly pleased by Perdue's focus on education.

Rep. John Blust , a Greensboro Republican, said he appreciated Perdue's call for more open government and said she should start with the legislative budget process.

"I'm going to give her a chance to live up to the things she came here and said," Blust said.

Contact Mark Binker at (919) 832-5549 or mark.binker@news-record.com