President Bush made an appearance at a barbecue at the farm of Doug and Stella Scamman in Stratham this past Friday, drawing out an estimated 3,000 attendees, plus supporters and protestors lined up along Route 33 waving signs, playing trumpets and trailing a 12-foot-tall figure of President Bush with his pants on fire.

That's what Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry's was doing.

Cohen and Dwayne Patterson of True Majority Action drove down from Burlington, Vt., Friday morning to let everybody see the Pants On Fire mobile, a 12-foot likeness of Bush dressed in a flight suit, with built in speakers and fake flame machines on his pants. Despite the fact that the trailer was stuck in traffic a mile away from the farm where the president was appearing when the motorcade arrived, neither Patterson nor Cohen were discouraged.

"You can't drive around with a 12-foot statue of the president with his pants on fire and not get noticed and have a good time," said Patterson.

Protestors from A.C.T. (Americans Coming Together) took a more traditional, but still creative, approach.

"We're holding what we call a 'silent protest,'" said Delacey Skinner, communications director. "We're letting the facts speak for themselves."

A.C.T. members gathered at locations along Route 33, with the majority standing in front of the farmhouse, waiting for the motorcade. They held signs reading, "More than 125,000 in New Hampshire without health insurance" and "25,000 manufacturing jobs lost since Bush took office."

"We're trying to help people see that the Bush administration is not good for New Hampshire," said Skinner.

Bush supporters, like the Toomey family of Lunenburg, Mass., didn't appreciate the protestors' efforts.

"I think it's disrespectful," said Bonnie Toomey, who, along with her husband, Steve, and her children, Natalie, 20, Steve Jr., 19, Jill, 16, and Sean, 14, held signs that read "The Toomey Family supports President Bush" and "We love President Bush," outside a gas station down the road from the site of the barbecue.

"We're trying to do our part for Bush," said Steve Jr., a marine who leaves for Iraq in December. The family believes the nation can use improvement, and the facts show Bush is the man to provide it.

"Give Bush four more years," he advised before I left the family. "How long did it take you to settle into being a reporter when you first started?"

Just after the motorcade arrived, a sort of shout-off was held, with those in the pro-Bush camp cheering, "Four more years," and those in opposition to Bush chanting, "Three more months."

For some people, the event wasn't as divisive.

"It's part of what makes our country great," said David Saxton of Brentwood when I asked him what he thought about the activity of the supporters and protestors. "Everyone should have a voice."

At the picnic, President Bush and top state Republicans, including Gov. Craig Benson, Sen. John Sununu and Rep. Jeb Bradley, addressed Republican Party members. Bush spoke on the campaign, further criticizing John Kerry for his positions on taxes and the war in Iraq. Bush also reassured those listening that he would continue to fight the war on terror and continue to make this world a more peaceful place.