Kucinich-Supporting Hecklers Interrupt Bill Maher On "The Tonight Show"

Just a week after making the boldest talk show appearance ever (third video down), Bill Maher found himself in another awkward position: this time at "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno."

While asking about Maher's opinion on the current crop of presidential contenders, Leno was interrupted Tuesday night by a Dennis Kucinich supporter, who yelled, "Let Dennis debate! Stop censorship! Help save democracy!" (Dennis was shut out from MSNBC's debate last night in Las Vegas).

Then, after a commercial break, Maher was interrupted by a separate audience member, shouting a more ambiguous message: "GE, NBC, Put Impeachment on TV!". Too bad he didn't handle the nuisance like he did on his own show.

Check out the clip from "The Tonight Show" below:

From NBC 1/15/08.

Comments

[mpgarr]

The thing with what those people did---it is hardly effective-in fact it only brings a degree of ridicule on what they are arguing for---everyone's thoughts about people who do that-"What a bunch of freakin' idiots"
In order to be effective---you do have to choose a proper forumn.

[raker]

Leno. What a douchebag, pretending he didn't know that the protesters were talking about NBC's exclusion of Kucinich from the debate. Shame on Maher for pretending he didn't know either. Vote Kucinich.

[FranklinS]

If the other candidates had spine, they'd boycott the debates themselves.

[samguy]

so everyone in the audicne should have the right to just start calling out whatever they want? the tonight show, like mahr's are not audiecne participation a la oprah or jerry springer.

[zizyphus]

MSNBC wants to limit debate participants to those who can buy the most television commercial time.

Of all the candidates on both sides, Kucinich and Paul are the most dangerous to the status quo, because they speak the truth spontaneously, as they see it, without apologies to anyone, or any parsing of the language for different audiences. I have seen them get the most ovations at every debate they got to be in.

Bill Maher continues to disappoint, and now has little new to offer. In this case, a passionate member of the audience calls about censorship, surely a topic of importance to everyone. Then another person cries out about impeachment, another topic of immense import at this time.

But Maher sneers at them, and says facetiously, How entertaining....

[KarmaSartre]

Obama and Clinton should be refusing debates that exclude candidates for nasty purposes.

[jae1227]

You don't get your message out by screaming in the audience of the Tonight Show. It makes you seem stupid and crazy. I am not that all upset that Kucinich was not included in the debate. Sure, I wish he could be there, but NBC should maintain the right to include who they want at their debate. Also Kucinich did not do well in Iowa and New Hampshire. But this is just stupid to start screaming on Tonight Show about the debate and getting made at Leno and Maher.

[welshTerrier2]

Any person who has met the requirements to be on the ballot should be allowed to participate in all public debates. Under no circumstances should a for-profit corporation have the right to make the rules that keep any qualified candidate from participating in a public forum.

Political parties should ensure that all of their candidates who are on the ballot (in even one state in the country) should have the right to appear in all public forums. Other candidates should not participate in a debate where a for-profit corporation has barred any candidate on the ballot from participating. To do so condones the right of massive media corporations to decide who can participate.

I hold NBC, the Democratic Party and all three candidates who participated directly responsible for yesterday's affront to democracy. This is not about Dennis Kucinich and it is not about "rude" protestors. This is about ensuring the integrity of the electoral process.

[Rendon76]

I'm with Bill and Jay, #%@$ those hecklers. Jay and Bill are cool and all they're doing is causing a disturbance. Find another way to get your stupid point out rather than sounding like some deranged lunatic.

[trippin]

They exclude Kucinich using the excuse that they want to devote more time to the candidates to discuss issues of concern to the people.

Then, for the entire initial half hour, a full one quarter of the entire event, the sonsofbitches they pick to do the questioning (Russert, Williams, and Morales, the first two only thinly disguised right wingers and the third an unknown quantity) ask nothing but personality questions: you said this are you sorry, so-and-so said such-and-such about so-and-so was it over the line, is Hillary "likable enough," and so on: pure, unadulterated, issue-free media red meat bullshit.

They out and out WASTED the time that could have been afforded to Kucinich in equal proportion to the three candidates they chose. To me, this moves the notion that NBC had an ulterior motive in excluding Kucinich from the realm of "highly likely" to "beyond any doubt."

The only rational explanation is that weapons manufacturer General Electric wanted to keep an unwavering voice for peace away from the public consciousness.

[Mabo]

When is Maher going to realize that he says batsh** too much? It must be his favorite word.

[Vinnie]

I couldn't decipher a fucking thing the hecklers said.

Was it relevant or was Maher just being a jerk?

[BarryChamplain]

First of all, I wasn't born yesterday. Maher certainly was aware of what Heckler Number One was saying, and so was Jay "friend of the Writers" Leno. They just were not about to give it any play. The heckler might have been a mush-mouth, but sadly (if you're they), the microphones worked just fine.

Secondly, let me point out to the younger and more behaved amongst us here, that it was only when "assholes" started disrupting genteel, adult occasions of lighthearted banter and pleasantries in the 1960'a and '70's, that the American mainstream started paying attention to the fact that, um, something might not be as advertised over there in that Viet Nam place.

And I think you'd have to concede that in today's media climate, catapulting the propaganda only works if you're Republican or Beltway. One of the reasons Kucinich hasn't got an ice cube's chance in Hell of being president, is that most Americans have no freaking idea what he's all about. BY DESIGN.

Who knows, maybe Heckler #1 changed that a little. Maybe Heckler #2 will propel Wexler's Cheney Impeachment push into the first 20 pages of the NY Times and WaPo. One can hope. But I'm not about to jump on the "hecklers are assholes" bandwagon. Bring 'em on! Disrupt EVERYTHING! (It's not like mass media doesn't suck to begin with. They're hardly ruining anything of substance, y'know?)

But the side effect of Bill Maher getting heckled every time he shows his snotty face on TV is going to make him a look lot less sexy, to the various network guest bookers. Awww. Such are the fruits of being censorous and tyrannical about pushing your own agenda, yet trying to style yourself as a free-thinking Maverick [tm]. You're gonna get called on it, dude.

[jqmes]

What's even sadder than the fact that neither Maher or Leno knew what the guy was yelling about is how quick the audience is to stone the dissenter. God forbid someone butt into the soma of Jay and Bill's incredibly thought-provoking conversation.... Bad but not surprising is Maher and Leno both belittling the guy (not only the guy, but the strike is just hilarious to these SCAB dickheads). But worse are the sheep....

[degjack]

Maybe these numbskulls (Maher & Leno) should have concluded:

THE PEOPLE HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!1