By Kelly Garrity and Lisa Kashinsky

PROGRAMMING NOTE: Massachusetts Playbook is taking its annual end-of-summer hiatus starting Monday, Aug. 28. We'll be back Tuesday, Sept. 5.

BASHING THE BAY STATE — Massachusetts is having a moment on the broader political stage. Just not a good one.

The Bay State is serving as a political punching bag from the White Mountains of New Hampshire to the Hudson Valley of New York. Granite State gubernatorial hopeful and former U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte has spent more time attacking her neighbor to the south than her GOP primary opponent(s), warning voters again and again that they’re just “one election away from becoming Massachusetts.”

Meanwhile, in New York, a super PAC working to elect Democrats to the U.S. House is throwing shade at Republican Rep. Mike Lawler simply for setting foot in Massachusetts. “Massachusetts Mike,” as House Majority PAC dubbed him earlier this month, stands accused of what is considered a grave sin in New York: abandoning his home state for “Red Sox and Patriots country” — aka hitting the summer fundraising circuit on Nantucket.

So what makes Massachusetts mockable? Our liberal elitist reputation surely doesn’t help. Nor does our Bay-State-best-state ethos.

“We're so much better than everybody else,” Democratic strategist Scott Ferson told Playbook, with full acknowledgment that saying so just “makes everyone hate us more.”

Massachusetts politicians also sometimes bring the hate upon themselves by coming across as out-of-touch. John Kerry was mercilessly mocked in 2004 for allegedly saying, “Who among us does not love NASCAR?” The then-presidential candidate was misquoted, but it doesn’t matter. “That sounds like something someone from Massachusetts would say,” Ferson said.

“The way people perceive us, we're out of touch. We're judgmental of states that are ‘beneath us.’” Ferson said. “It's a convenient touchstone for contrast.”

There are also our high taxes, high housing costs, high cost of living, high ... well, you get the picture.

“In moderate to conservative states, Massachusetts has become a cautionary liberal tale to avoid,” Republican consultant Rob Gray said. “Crazy ideas for laws come from states like California or Massachusetts, and get people saying ‘thank goodness I don’t live there.’”

But hey, at least one big-name pol is out there waxing enthusiastic about the Bay State: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Yes, the guy who used to deride Massachusetts for helping the dozens of migrants his administration had flown here last year (he’s left the line out of some of his more recent speeches in the region) is now leaning into his love for the Red Sox on the campaign trail.

“By the time I was [at Harvard Law School], I was part of Red Sox Nation, I was rooting for them. … And so when they went down three to nothing in 2004, I was like, man, is this ever going to happen?” DeSantis said during a recent interview on WBZ’s “NightSide with Dan Rea." “When they came back to beat the Yankees winning four in a row, I knew the curse was gone.”

GOOD THURSDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. At least no one mentioned our fair state during the GOP presidential primary debate last night.

TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll launch their “MassReconnect” free community college program at 11 a.m. at MassBay Community College. Driscoll participates in a Caribbean American cultural panel at 5:30 p.m. at the Massachusetts Historical Society and attends the Dominicanisimo award ceremony at 7:30 p.m. in Danvers.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu attends a MBTA Board of Directors meeting at 10:15 a.m. and speaks at the NAAAP National Leadership Conference at 12:50 p.m. at the Sheraton Boston. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas hosts an awards ceremony at Coast Guard Base Boston at 10:30 a.m. Rep. Jake Auchincloss is on a congressional delegation trip to Ireland and the U.K. Sen. Elizabeth Warren is also in Europe.

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Republican presidential candidates, from left, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former Vice President Mike Pence, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum stand on stage before a Republican presidential primary debate hosted by FOX News Channel on Aug. 23, 2023. | Morry Gash/AP Photo

— UP FOR DEBATE: Nikki Haley impressed. Tim Scott underwhelmed. And there were plenty of canned lines to go around.

Those are some of the takeaways from the first GOP presidential primary debate from a handful of Massachusetts and New Hampshire Republican voters and operatives Playbook texted with through the melee in Milwaukee.

Political newcomer Vivek Ramaswamy was the top target of the night, despite standing next to higher-polling Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. But “piling on the new guy was a mistake — it will cause even more people to rally around him,” former Massachusetts state representative and GOP gubernatorial nominee Geoff Diehl told Playbook. Diehl was at a Ramaswamy watch party in New Hampshire last night “scouting the field” — but says he hasn’t moved away from former President Donald Trump.

Democratic Rep. Jake Auchincloss, meanwhile, took to the platform formerly known as Twitter to rebut the foreign policy and national security positions of half the Republicans onstage — continuing his trend of doing battle with the GOP candidates as an unofficial surrogate for President Joe Biden.

More from the POLITICO team:

— “Pile-on in Milwaukee: Who won, who lost and who fizzled in the first Republican debate.”

— “The spiciest moments of the first GOP debate.”

— “Trump counter programs the Republican debate — even though he doesn’t need to.”

— “State restrictions on pork sales take effect,” by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: “A voter-approved law banning the sale of pork from pigs confined in gestation cages takes effect on Thursday, after years of delays and warnings that the rules will lead to price spikes and shortages of pork chops and bacon.”

— "Jewish Groups Watching State’s Approach To Security Grants," by Alison Kuznitz, State House News Service (paywall): "Frightened in recent years by the stabbing of a rabbi in Brighton, a hostage situation at a Texas synagogue, and the mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue, Jewish organizations in Massachusetts have clamored for state funding to strengthen security infrastructure at their temples and day schools. ... Earlier this month, as [Gov. Maura] Healey signed the fiscal 2024 budget into law, she slashed the $4 million allocation for the next round of nonprofit security grants approved by the Legislature by $2.5 million."

— “‘A moment of great momentum’: Boston authorities tout potential future of Long Island, site of old recovery campus,” by Danny McDonald, Boston Globe: “Weeks after Mayor Michelle Wu announced that Boston had received a key permit to rebuild a bridge to Long Island, city officials and health care providers on Wednesday toured the shuttered and derelict addiction recovery campus in Boston Harbor, hailing the site’s potential to help solve the city’s opioid and homelessness crises. … Wu hopes to have services up and running on the island in four years."

— “Federal officials tout Dorchester remodel as future of clean energy projects,” by Xavier Cullen, GBH News.

— ENDORSEMENT CORNER: The Boston Globe editorial board has endorsed Ben Weber for District 6 Boston city councilor over incumbent Kendra Lara, saying that despite her “eloquence and passion,” Lara has “shown many lapses in judgment that make the challenger a better choice.” It appears to be the Globe editorial board’s first endorsement in this year’s council races. Read the endorsement.

— “Four teens hacked the MBTA for free rides. The agency says they're listening,” by Kana Ruhalter and Arun Rath, GBH News: “About 15 years ago, three MIT undergrads found themselves in legal trouble for speaking out about security vulnerabilities in the MBTA payment system. … 15 years later, four high schoolers — Matty Harris, Scott Campbell, Noah Gibson and Zack Bertocchi — decided to pick up where the MIT students left off to see if the transit system fixed those exposed vulnerabilities. Spoiler alert: they didn't.”

— “If you ride it, you know. The Red Line is the worst. Just look at the stats,” by Daniel Kool, Boston Globe.

— “Boston, Harvard, BU pledge $300m for I-90 Allston project,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine.

— “Elizabeth Warren travels to Ukraine, meets with Zelensky ahead of funding showdown,” by Tal Kopan, Boston Globe: “Senator Elizabeth Warren made a covert trip to Ukraine on Wednesday to commemorate the country’s independence day, as a messy fight is brewing in Congress over whether to continue funding the country’s war against Russia’s invasion. … The goal: to send the message that the United States still stands with Ukraine as it battles a Russian invasion launched a year and a half ago.”

— "Pressley presses big banks for updates on $30 billion in racial equity pledges," by Aris Folley, The Hill.

Enter the “room where it happens”, where global power players shape policy and politics, with Power Play. POLITICO’s brand-new podcast will host conversations with the leaders and power players shaping the biggest ideas and driving the global conversations, moderated by award-winning journalist Anne McElvoy. Sign up today to be notified of the first episodes in September – click here.

— “Once seen as opponents to climate action, utilities and the business community are making changes. Is that a sign the tides are turning?” by Sabrina Shankman, Boston Globe: “As business opportunities in a burgeoning clean economy grow, two influential lobbying groups now have leaders with strong environmental credentials. Meanwhile, a prominent business group parted ways with an executive who had represented gas interests, and the state’s two largest utilities have made moves that advocates believe could lead them to deemphasize their fossil fuel based operations.”

— “DPU approves termination of offshore wind contract,” by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine.

— “Lowell may welcome migrant families,” by Melanie Gilbert, Lowell Sun: “The state of emergency that Gov. Maura Healey announced during a State House press conference on Aug. 8 hit close to home with the administration allegedly looking at UMass Lowell’s Inn & Conference Center as a possible housing site for migrants fleeing unrest and violence in Haiti and Venezuela.”

— “Gov. Healey’s budget cut puts region’s antipoverty services in jeopardy,” by Chris Lisinski and Chris Larabee, State House News Service and Daily Hampshire Gazette: “Community Action Pioneer Valley is looking at scaling back a host of programs that support low-income residents throughout the Valley after Gov. Maura Healey this month vetoed significant funding for the state’s 23 community action agencies.”

— “Police settlements in Pittsfield and North Adams aren’t public information — despite use of tax dollars,” by Amanda Burke and Greta Jochem, Berkshire Eagle.

— “Officials say services, housing policy best tools to address growing homeless camps,” by Dustin Luca, The Salem News: “Local officials say efforts in Boston to relocate a large homeless encampment and drug market at ‘Mass and Cass’ may be contributing to an uptick in such encampments in Salem.”

— “LGBTQ+ community, advocates protest Diocese of Worcester gender policy,” by Dave Thompson, MassLive: “In the wake of a new Diocese of Worcester policy barring transgender students from expressing their identity in school as well as restricting other LGBTQ+ expression in the city’s Catholic schools, dozens of protesters lined sidewalks in front of the diocese and, later, City Hall, displaying signs and chanting pro-acceptance slogans.”

— “Public toilets, more green space, or both? Somerville residents will decide how to spend $1 million,” by Alex Koller, Boston Globe.

— “Wayland is trying a four-day week for town employees. How that impacts office hours,” by Tom Benoit, MetroWest Daily News.

SPOTTED — among the Massachusetts contingent at the GOP debate in Milwaukee: MassGOP Chair Amy Carnevale, Weymouth Mayor Bob Hedlund and Massachusetts RNC national committeeman Ron Kaufman.

TRANSITIONS — Margot Botsford, a former Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court justice, has been named chair of the State Ethics Commission.

— Adrian Bispham has joined Morgan, Brown & Joy as an associate.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Lawrence Bacow, Emily Cherniack, Sarah Heinonen and Keith Sonia of Regina Villa Associates.

NEW HORSE RACE ALERT: A DAY AT THE STEEPLECHASES — Hosts Jennifer Smith and Steve Koczela talk to the Boston Globe’s Tal Kopan about Rep. Stephen Lynch and the ethical questions surrounding congressional earmarks. Smith explains the legal issues surrounding churches getting historic preservation grants. Koczela talks new polling on Joe Biden and Maura Healey. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud.

Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: [email protected].

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