As the president made his way through a list of the state’s alleged transgressions, including a thinly-veiled reference to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruling that legalized gay marriage, a cacophony of nods and “uh-hums” spread through the crowd.

“Taxachusetts!” one supporter yelled aloud.

“Mass. exodus!” cheered another.

The Harvard undergraduates who attended the rally did not appear fazed by the assault on their school’s home state.

Stephanie N. Kendall ’05, executive director of Massachusetts Students for Bush, said her Bay State pride does not cloud her objections to some of the state’s policies.

“I think the president is correct in characterizing Massachusetts as a very liberal state,” said the Indiana native, adding, “The Massachusetts message doesn’t resonate with a lot of Americans in the rest of the country.”

POLITICAL THEATER

The Manchester rally on Friday, like most every political event in this presidential campaign, played out with theatrical precision.

With New Hampshire’s treasured foliage beginning to turn the colors of autumn, Bush delivered his remarks from a podium flanked by pumpkins and bundles of hay—ostensibly reaped from the state’s fall harvest.

Behind Bush, two images of New Hampshire’s iconic “Man in the Mountain,” which crumbled late last year, were placed in full view of the television cameras.

And though the crowd of thousands—8,000, according to the New Hampshire Republican State Committee—was clearly engaged in the proceedings, the event carried an unmistakable air of stagecraft familiar to both party’s campaign events this year.

Barbara Bush, the president’s mother, said she had flown in to surprise her son. “Don’t tell the president,” she implored the crowd.

Later, Bush began his remarks with an aside: “I love you, Mom. Thanks for coming.”

Harvard undergraduates and a handful of other college students who attended the event stayed at the rally afterwards, making calls to registered Republicans on cell phones provided by the party.