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Bill Clinton Undeterred By 9/11 Hecklers

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January 31, 2008 7:43 AM

ABC News' Sarah Amos Reports: Former President Bill Clinton took the phrase "on-message" to a new level in Denver yesterday, when hecklers began shouting about how September 11th was a conspiracy theory that needed further investigation.

Clinton had just begun his speech to the crowd, when a man towards the front of the crowd began shouting about re-opening the 9/11 investigation and the war in Iraq. 

Watch the VIDEO HERE.

When the crowd tried to boo the man into silence, Clinton continued: "Let him talk."

The heckler's exact wording wasn't quite audible from the press risers, but the tone was apparent to everyone in the arena, including Clinton. 

“Are you one of those it was an inside job guys?" the former president asked. Continuing, "Hillary agrees we should end the war, but we have heard from you now, now you hear from me.  I let you be rude and interrupt me screaming at the top of your lungs. Nine-eleven was NOT an inside job, it was an Osama Bin Laden job with 19 people from Saudi Arabia, they murdered 3000 Americans and others foreigners including Muslims and we look like idiots, that the people who murdered our fellow citizens did it, when they are continuing to murder other people around the world.  So we heard from you, you go away," Clinton said to the cheering crowd.

(NOTE: Former President Bill Clinton made a mistake when he cited the nationalities of the 9/11 hijackers. In fact, 15 out of the 19 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia.)

Undeterred, the heckler and his 9/11-sign waving cohorts started up a few minutes later, and Clinton decided to use this opportunity to promote his wife's record in the Senate.

"One of the reasons you ought to be for Hillary for President, since this has been brought up, is that she helped pass bi-partisan legislation in the Senate to help take care of all those firefighters and police officers who got sick because of 9/11.  You talk to the victims of 9/11, the people who had a dozen surgeries just so that they could go back and their bodies could work again, and you ask them if they think it was an inside job, or whether they are glad they had a Senator like Hillary Clinton who gave them a chance to they could stand up stand start their lives over again," responded Clinton.   

Turns out those were the magic words to finally silence heckler number one.  He silently stormed out of the arena and Clinton, un-rattled, breezed right past the rough start, and delivered an energized speech, selling his wife to the people of Denver. 

A crowd of over four thousand braved an evening deluge of snow to hear Clinton's speech at Denver University's Magness arena.  While it was a far cry from the 18,000 people who gathered at the same venue earlier in the day to hear Democratic candidate Barack Obama, the energized crowd was excited to hear Clinton speak.

Clinton made only brief remarks, a departure from his more relaxed town-hall meeting style of campaign stops that were the norm in all four of the early primary states.  He spoke for under 40 minutes, hitting the highlights of Hillary’s platforms on education, healthcare and the war in Iraq. 

Of course, a good heckler loves to have the last word and tonight was no different.  Just when the crowd had finally forgotten the earlier incident and Clinton was hitting what he called "the important reason why people should vote for Hillary," a shout was heard from the last of the 9/11 sign holders.

"How about the real investigation into 9/11?"

Clinton, clearly sick of the entire conversation exchange, "We've heard that, we heard you the first ten times." And with that the former President ended the discussion for good. 

January 31, 2008 in Tancredo, Tom | Permalink | User Comments (141)

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How about letting Osama bin Laden get out of Africa? This after he was offered up to America on a plate bubba bill?

Posted by: RobertHenry | Jan 31, 2008 8:28:57 AM

I don't know what changed but Sen. Obama and his campaign has taken a real nasty turn.

Let's get back to talking about Health Care and the Economy - not the negative attacks that I heard from him at his Denver event.

Posted by: Democrat | Jan 31, 2008 9:46:19 AM

How is this heckler's question any different from Michael Moore's questions in his movie Farenheit 911? They're not. Hundreds of millions of people went to see Moore's questions about 911, and hundreds of millions (including Osama Bin Laden per his video messages) got copies of the DVD. Why? Because people don't want to face the harsh reality that is the reason for the 911 attacks, the reason for Al Queda's rebirth in 12/92, and the reason why Osama Bin Laden went from average ranting Islamic extremist to someone out to kill Americans.
pg 48/49 911 Commission Final Report

Posted by: Scott Malensek | Jan 31, 2008 9:46:21 AM

Obama's negative, really. Apparently you heard nothing of all the race baiting in SC. But okay. Everybody has a right to escape reality every now and then.

Posted by: fraud '08 | Jan 31, 2008 9:52:44 AM

The 9/11 "truthers" are lunatics and anarchists, and they deserve to be ridiculed. But Bill Clinton, who refused to take Osama bin Laden from the Sudanese when he had the chance, and failed to take him out when he had the chance later on, bears a LOT of responsibility for 9/11.

Posted by: Stephen A. | Jan 31, 2008 10:07:53 AM

Nice of Billy Jeff to finally speak the truth. Its such a rare occasion that he does that.

Posted by: RC | Jan 31, 2008 10:08:08 AM

oh but now we have a 1987 story about Hillary and Wal-Mart.

Where is the 2007 story about Michelle Obama and Treehouse/Wal-Mart?

And now to the excuses Bush gives for 9/11.

If Osama got out of Africa, he was given a red carpet entrance by Bush.

It was his watch. Let's remember it was also Rudy's watch. If Hillary had been the mayor of N.Y. all we would have heard about was her imcompetance and lack of judgement in protecting our great city. But it was Rudy, and he's a superhero, not responsible for policing his own city?

And Bush was only in office a short time. He can't be held responsible. Oh really? Not ready to be President on day one Porgy?

If it takes more than 10 months to be prepared as President, then why not have left someone else in there until Bush was ready.

Iraq was about daddy, but we had to have 3,942 people die to satisfy an old family feud.

And let's not forget - the U.S. has to TELL the world we are the only remaining superpower on earth.

Well usually, if you ARE a superpower, your power speaks for itself.

It doesn't need a cheerleader to remind the world who's winning the game.

The enemy of Islam they say is Israel. The enemy of Osama is Israel he says.
The enemy of the Palestinians is Israel, they say.
They enemy of Al Qaida is Israel so they say.

So who did they attack? Us. Not their real enemy. And you want to know why? Because the fundamentalist world would not have been around to gloat over 9/11.

It would be 9/12 that the world remembered, when Israel kicked the holy living hell out of most of the Mindless East, without permission from us, or Europe or the U.N. THAT is why WE were bombed and Israel was NOT.
Israel would have put the major points of this war to rest in about a day. Yeah, they have suicide bombers but they don't have their jets hijacked into their buildings. They don't have their brave soldiers fighting the wrong battle out of revenge concerning a family feud and being sent home without care or concern.

And all we hear about is Clinton. He is STILL to blame for Bush's absolute lack of know-how. If Bush had a brain cell it would die from lonliness.

but you all are talking about the Clinton years. Hmmmmm . . .

Cigars.
Sperm on a dress.
Balanced Budget.
Massive SURPLUS.
Low unemployment, higher wages, low gas prices, affordable utilities.

That was also Clinton's legacy, but we have all you toilet-talking, meth and h00ker using reverend hypocrits forgetting your own truths. Newtie Gingrich was scr3wing HIS own intern while he spoke in the halls of congress about impeaching someone who had an intern.

Ronald Regan is Jesus but he hooked up with Nancy while cheating on his wife and his children, but he is still Jesus.

Now we have a disgustingly poor world image, higher unemployment, a dollar lower than CANADA?, gas prices through the roof, utilities through the roof, no credit, falling home values, falling bridges, torturing people without a trial, veternas hospitals in disgusting filth, veterans pay at an all time low, a trade imbalance that could sink America, poison pet food and poison toys unregulated, China has enough of our debt to send us back into the Dark Ages.

CEOs are making BILLIONS after losing their companies just as much in crooked deals, still waiting for most of the ENRON people to go to jail, the wire tapping illegal mess, Libby pardons while border guards rot in jail, our ports run by the MINDLESS EAST! Oh, and borders wide open. Plus let's war on Science and choose faith over freedom. Let's have a theocracy like Iran but with Jesus at the helm rather than nutting Islam. Let's get rid of the Dept. of Education and turn over teaching to the churches. Let's tell the world global warming is a myth while praying for the apocolypse and the rapture. That sounds helpful.


Wow, I am so glad we are still bringing up Clinton 8 years later. I am so glad that we have are better off today than our parents were. Our kids are so damn lucky. They are going to owe us BIG TIME for leaving them this perfect world.

(sorry, I had to fix the text from before - typing while on the phone - trying to do 4 things at once :)

Posted by: 2009 Where Are You? | Jan 31, 2008 10:16:45 AM

Way to go, Slick.

At least he gets something right - 9-11 Troofers are morons.

Posted by: Good Lt | Jan 31, 2008 10:18:59 AM

Hillary Clinton is a "Cry Baby".

Do we need a "Cry Baby" for President?

John McCain best days are behind Him, if he became President what would he do.

The little wife following him around look like she's 40 years younger than him.

Do we need another 4 years of the Bush era?

Posted by: Boyddollar | Jan 31, 2008 10:19:12 AM

Plant. They saw the positive press he got the first time, and decided to orchestrate a much bigger version.

Not impressed.

Posted by: AUA | Jan 31, 2008 10:23:03 AM

I will like to correct the statement someone made about OBL in Africa. He is in Pakistan and not Africa. Please don't add Africa as one of your 'axis of evil'

Secondly Clinton did a good job of handling the heckler.Whipping up conspiracy theory will not help the nation moving forward

Posted by: TeeFas | Jan 31, 2008 10:32:03 AM

Responding to Scott's comment of:
How is this heckler's question any different from Michael Moore's questions in his movie Farenheit 911? They're not. Hundreds of millions of people went to see Moore's questions about 911, and hundreds of millions (including Osama Bin Laden per his video messages) got copies of the DVD.

Dude, you do realize that there are 300 million people in the U.S., right? So to say hundreds of millions saw his ridiculous propaganda film is...well...a monumental exaggeration.

Posted by: t5 | Jan 31, 2008 11:11:42 AM

why is race playing a role in obama's campaign?

70-80% of African-Americans in each state that has either held a caucus or an election has voted for Obama.

I think voting for someone based on race is a step backwards.

Posted by: jerry | Jan 31, 2008 11:14:02 AM

Bad Lt:

Neither "tour-guide-sans-tourists" Roberts nor the JREF denial specialists can explain the physical evidence of officially impossible high temperatures reported by Jones, by the USGS, by RJ Lee and FEMA.

Perhaps you can.

Posted by: twoofermoron | Jan 31, 2008 11:14:18 AM

t5: Hillary Clinton support is coming from white woman and white man, because they want to see a white woman become President qualified or not. Race is and issue because it's alway been a issue.

Former President Bill Clinton is the biggest fate ever. Playing race against race.

Posted by: Boyddollar | Jan 31, 2008 11:27:13 AM

Obama's suport is mainly from black men and black women...if race is the issue, we are doomed...selecting the best individual to run our government should be the driving force behind every citizen...Obama is simply not ready to handle this job. Do not be blinded by the color of his skin.

Posted by: gizmo | Jan 31, 2008 11:34:18 AM

t5: Hillary Clinton support is coming from white women and white men, because they want to see a white woman become President qualified or not. Race is an issue because it's alway been a issue.

Former President Bill Clinton is the biggest fate ever. Playing race against race.

Posted by: Boyddollar | Jan 31, 2008 11:41:03 AM

t5: Hillary Clinton's support is coming from white women and white men, because they want to see a white woman become President qualified or not. Race is an issue because it's alway been a issue.

Former President Bill Clinton is the biggest fake ever. Playing race against race.

Posted by: Boyddollar | Jan 31, 2008 11:47:34 AM

"My story was never mentioned in the final [9/11 Commission] report and I felt like I was being put on trial in a court room...I finally walked out. They were trying to twist my words and make the story fit only what they wanted to hear. All I wanted to do was tell the truth and when they wouldn't let me do that, I walked out."

Firefighter Lou Cacchioli--Witness before the 9/11 Commission. WTC survivor. Retired 20-year veteran of FDNY, Company 47, Harlem. Injuries on 9/11 and toxic dust inhalation forced retirement.

It was a disgrace to everyone, the victims and the family members who lost loved ones. I don't agree with the 9/11 Commission. The whole experience was terrible."

Posted by: zelikowismyhero | Jan 31, 2008 12:30:15 PM

So Mr Bill by you not getting OBL when you had the chance...3000 Americans were killed. You sir are the idiot!

Posted by: ed | Jan 31, 2008 12:59:05 PM

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