“We can do the lounge-singing routine.”

That was no stand-up comedian. That was Gov. Deval Patrick fiddling with a long, red microphone cord before taking questions Monday at Arlington Town Hall, the fourth stop in the series of Summer Town Hall meetings he’s holding across the state.

The phalanx of “Anti-Union, Anti-Police” sign-toting protesters (or “the good people in law enforcement” as he called them later) who greeted him outside town hall hadn’t dampened the governor’s sense of humor.

So what happens at a Summer Town Hall meeting in a community where the governor received more than half the votes cast in the 2006 election? 

The legislative delegation comes out in full force. Rep. Sean Garballey, the clear crowd favorite, got things rolling. “The future of the Commonwealth depends on the choices we make today,” said the youngest member of the Legislature. Rep. William Brownsberger followed, looking like he’d just run in from the nearby Minuteman Bikeway in his causal track suit.  Rep. Jay Kaufman took a lighthearted tone. “No community is more vocal, more engaged. You’re in for a treat. Hope you enjoy it,” he told the governor. Sen. Kenneth Donnelly, echoed Garballey, lamenting a “budget that hurts some of the neediest people in the state.”

A few members of the cabinet tag along too, in this case, Public Safety Secretary Kevin Burke, Department of Labor Director George Noel and Administration and Finance Secretary Leslie Kirwan, an Arlington resident whose local fan base turned out in force to cheer her on.

The headliner didn’t shy away from the mostly bad news. Patrick told the capacity crowd he could lay off every single state employee and still have a $1 billion budget gap. Or he could shut down all Health and Human Services programs and still have a multi-billion problem.

“Tough choices among miserable options,” he called his predicament.

Patrick hailed the recent pension reforms, but said he was “still evaluating” the transportation reform bill “to see if we can implement it” and waiting for “a clear gift ban” in the ethics bill, along with provisos that would “strengthen and not weaken enforcement agencies.”

But the governor, coatless with rolled up shirt sleeves and a loosened tie, also quipped, “You don’t hear about the harmony” between the Corner Office and the Legislature. “We sing Kumbaya a lot.”

For nearly two hours, the governor took more than a dozen questions on subjects ranging from criminal justice to non custodial parents’ rights to Cape Wind.

The highlights:

Health care:  Don from Sudbury asked if Patrick would reject the Massachusetts health care plan in favor of a single payer model. “Can you ask your friend [President Barack Obama] to view the Massachusetts plan objectively?” Patrick praised the Sudbury resident for putting his question “so delicately.” “Will I go to D.C. and trash Massachusetts?” Patrick said. “No, we finished that with the other the other guy,” a not-so-veiled reference to former governor Mitt Romney which got plenty of laughs.

“It’s not perfect,” he said of “the Massachusetts experiment,” but the state has “97 plus percent of its residents are covered. No other state can touch us,” adding that he wasn’t sure if the state plan was “perfect for the whole country.”

MBTA pensions:  When Andy asked if he supported “sustainable” MBTA pension benefits, an obviously pleased Patrick told him that the “23 and out” rule that allowed some T workers to collect pension benefits before the “normal” retirement age “was over” in the transportation reform bill. “This is the kind of thing that discredits everybody else in state government,” Patrick said.

Local aid:  Another man who asked the governor to sign the budget “no matter what” confessed that liked the revenue-generating potential of local option taxes on restaurants and hotels. (Arlington has only one hotel, but dozens of restaurants.) The man also blasted the local aid formula that puts towns like Arlington that pay MBTA and vocational education assessments at a disadvantage.  “Shrewsbury gets $2 for every 1$ that Arlington gets,” the man complained.

Patrick agreed that the distribution formulas for local aid and Chapter 70 education funds are perplexing. Of the Chapter 70 funding formula, the governor said, “There are two living human beings who understand it; one of them is in [the] witness protection [program].”  (Yes, the governor got laughs here.)

Smart growth:  When an older woman named Elsie argued that “smart growth equaled dumb growth,” Patrick questioned her at some length and discovered that what she really didn’t like was the idea of massive buildings around subway stations that increase traffic and pollution. Patrick asked her what she would do instead. “Good question,” she replied, adding that she would “build less.”

Green economy good news: Ms. Becker of Arlington asked the governor to talk about the “bright spots” in the state’s green economy like the Lowell company that manufactures the machines that make solar power cells. “They can’t keep up with the orders,” she said.  “Come get a hug,” Patrick chuckled.

He proceeded to list accomplishments like the 2007 Green Communities Act energy reform bill and the state’s investments in clean technology and tout the latest generation of information technology companies. “This is not your father’s 128 he said of the new IT industry, adding that Massachusetts had the “3rd or 4th highest concentration of video game developers” in the country. (The woman did not take the governor up on the hug offer.)

Cape Wind: Sal told Patrick that he was doing “a terrific job” and asked him “What could he do about Cape Wind?” The governor said that the Nantucket Sound wind farm project had received all of the required state permits and needed one more sign off from the federal Minerals Management Service. He said he’s talked to U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, President Obama and members of the state’s congressional delegation, not all of whom support Cape Wind. He cautioned, “It’s not a slam dunk,” There are “thoughtful” people on the other side of the question, he added.

Income tax:  Patrick’s last questioner, Nancy, who works with special education students wanted to know why he insisted on trying to regain public confidence before moving proposing an income tax hike. She wanted to see more funds going to special education and other services to children.

The income tax is not on the table, Patrick said. While he prefers a graduated income tax (to considerable applause) and some Arlington residents might like the idea of paying a higher income tax, he explained that, in addition to constitutional issues involved, [There] are a lot of people who need to be convinced.”

“My preference would be more sunny days [too], but it can’t happen just like that,” he said.

After getting the high sign from a staff member, a visibly tired Patrick wrapped up.  “I love Arlington. Thank you and good night!”  Afterward, Christine from Arlington, who didn’t clap at all during the event, said that although she hasn’t always liked some of Patrick’s policies, she liked what she heard.

“I was very impressed with the governor,” she admitted. “I didn’t expect to be.”