Massachusetts Governor Makes His State the Butt of His Jokes

Exhibit A of how politicians usually treat their home states: George W. Bush. For Bush, Texas has served as both a showcase for his educational reforms and a symbol of his grounding in the real world -- a place where he was proud to wear blue jeans and cut brush.

When Romney speaks to audiences out of state, however, he uses a different blueprint. He does describe policy successes achieved during his term as governor, including the streamlining of state bureaucracy and improvements in educational opportunities.

But the native-pride element is missing. Instead, Romney favors comedic riffs that depict him as a bemused and besieged "red dot" in a sea of liberalism.

For example, at a June speech to the New Hampshire Federation of Republican Women, Romney had a routine that made fun of his state's far-over-budget "Big Dig" highway project, its problems with organized crime and its Democratic junior senator.

Specifically, he made fun of Sen. John F. Kerry's suntan, with a joke that included the term "Code Orange." That is bad for Kerry, but it also reminds people that Romney's state elected him.

Presidential campaign historians say they understand why Romney is doing it: He has to overcome the same "liberal Massachusetts" stereotype that has stymied previous Democratic presidential candidates such as Kerry and former Massachusetts governor Michael S. Dukakis.

But the same historians are hard-pressed to come up with any previous candidates who have tried the same tack.

Yanek Mieczkowski, a presidential historian at Dowling College in New York, said that Lyndon B. Johnson had to separate himself from racist elements in Texas, and Ronald Reagan did the same with the hippie fringe in California. Looking further back, there was Grover Cleveland, who in 1884 used the slogan "Grover the Good" to separate himself from the political corruption in his home state of New York.

But Romney is "much more overt," he said: It's not a fringe element he's talking badly about, it's the entire electorate.

"You have to be cautious about criticizing your own," Mieczkowski said. "It casts a negative light about you, and that's not good."

Romney declined to be interviewed for this story. In his stead, spokeswoman Julie Teer released a statement saying, in part, "Of course, the Governor loves Massachusetts." But the jokes will probably continue, she said.

Right now, his reelection prospects do not look great. In a survey last month that pitted Romney against the state attorney general -- a likely Democratic front-runner for 2006 -- the governor was trounced 51 percent to 38 percent.

This might be the case even without his out-of-state comedy routines. Romney has been criticized for the conservative stands he has taken on abortion, same-sex marriage and embryonic stem cell research, which are more in tune with the national Republican Party than with many Massachusetts voters.

But the jokes have not helped. Frank van Overbeeke, a chef at Matt Murphy's Pub in Brookline, said he had a question for the governor after hearing what he'd said about Massachusetts.

"Well," van Overbeeke said, "what are you doing here?"