New York:
United States President Barack Obama got heckled at a fundraiser on Wednesday night by protesters pushing for more funding for AIDS programmes and quicker action to allow gays to serve openly in the military.
Activists yelled slogans and held signs aloft, whilst supporters of the president tried to drown them out with shouts of "Obama! Obama!"
The hecklers were so raucous Obama went off-script several times to address them, insisting he'd increased AIDS funding and was working to overturn the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.
He told them to go shout at Republicans, noting that a vote on repealing "don't ask, don't tell" failed this week in the Senate, with Republicans united in opposition.
Addressing an activist pushing for more funding for global AIDS initiatives, the president said, "We heard your point. And as I said before, we increased AIDS funding. ... The people who will take over if we don't focus on this election, I promise you, will cut AIDS funding."
The protest took place in the ballroom of the Roosevelt Hotel as Obama raised US$1.4 (m) million dollars at receptions and a dinner for the House and Senate Democratic campaign committees.
Obama is in New York to attend the annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly.
Obama had just finished saying it's "nice just to stop by and see some friends" when the shouting began.
Bystanders briefly tried to snatch the signs, and ultimately the heckling subsided.
The signs stayed aloft throughout Obama's remarks, and even as he shook hands afterward with well-wishers a few feet away.
One of the activists, Jennifer Flynn, told reporters she and the others bought tickets to the reception.