Obama clashes with gay rights hecklers in L.A. - Yahoo! News

Obama clashes with gay rights hecklers in L.A. - Yahoo! News

President Obama is used to hearing his name yelled angrily at conservative Tea Party protests. On Monday night, however, he faced hecklers at a more unlikely venue: a Democratic fundraiser in Los Angeles for California Sen. Barbara Boxer.

And yes, the hecklers were attacking the president from the left. "Repeal 'don't ask, don't tell'!" the protesters yelled, referring to the 1993 military policy that bans gays and lesbians from openly serving. Obama responded, "We are going to do that; hey, hold on a second, hold on a second."

The rest of the crowd then began chanting Obama's signature campaign chant: "Yes we can! Yes we can! Yes we can!" You can watch the outburst — and Obama's replies — here:

During the 2008 campaign, Obama repeatedly pledged to kill the controversial policy, and in January's State of the Union address, he reiterated that vow. But progress has been slow. The administration claims that's because a full repeal would require a separate bill in Congress repudiating the congressionally approved 1993 law — and it's been hard to work such a bill into an already overcrowded Capitol Hill agenda. In March, the Pentagon announced it was relaxing enforcement of the ban, to clear the path for eventual repeal.