Protesters waylay cop, disrupt "Hardball," reach RNC floor, nearly touch Cheney

Protesters disrupt convention event
From Jonathan Wald and Laura Dolan, CNN

NEW YORK (CNN) — Eleven protesters were arrested Wednesday on the floor of Madison Square Garden, site of the Republican National Convention, law enforcement officials said.

The protesters were members of the AIDS activist group ACT UP and will face trespassing charges. They shouted and carried signs on the convention floor during a speech by White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card.

A protester, wearing a T-shirt that said "Bush Global AIDS War," stood on a chair, pointing and shouting at the stage.

One person on the convention floor tore a banner, which said "Stop AIDS, Drop the Debt," from the hands of another protester. Security officials removed the demonstrators from the floor.

Card did not acknowledge the protesters during his speech.

All the hecklers had valid floor passes. The U.S. Secret Service said the screening process is working and no one who has demonstrated inside the convention has had a weapon or posed a threat to anyone.

...

Suspect in beating arrested

Meanwhile, police said they have arrested a man in connection with the beating of a detective in a protest Monday night.

Officers grabbed Jamal Holiday, 19, during another demonstration Tuesday night in Lower Manhattan. The night before, police said, Holiday was in a rally outside the United Nations. A group of more than 1,000 people had walked west toward Madison Square Garden, where there was a clash with police.

Detective William Sample was riding through the demonstration on a motor scooter when he was attacked. A freelance photographer caught a man on camera, pushing Sample off the scooter, pummeling him with his fists and then delivering a kick to his head.

Sample was taken to St. Vincent’s Hospital and then released Tuesday.

"He is home recovering," said Detective Noel Waters.

Protester charges "Hardball" set

In one incident Tuesday night, a protester jumped a fence and ran onto a stage being used by MSNBC during a live broadcast of "Hardball."

Host Chris Matthews was on the set with former Environmental Protection Agency chief Christie Todd Whitman, NBC correspondent David Gregory, Newsweek’s Howard Fineman and GOP strategist Sheri Annis when the protester leapt onto the stage, ran in front of the camera and charged toward the set.

Security personnel grabbed the hooded man. No one was hurt.

Protester Arrested Near Cheney at NY Convention

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Yale University student was charged on Tuesday with assaulting Secret Service agents as he tried to climb into Vice President Dick Cheney’s box seat at the Republican National Convention.

Thomas Frampton, shouting anti-war statements, came within 10 feet of Cheney before he was wrestled to the ground and handcuffed by Secret Service agents on the opening night of the convention on Monday, according to court papers.

... According to the complaint filed in federal court, Secret Service agents spotted Frampton on a walkway near the vice president’s seat carrying a "Bush-Cheney ’04" sign.

When the agents asked Frampton to "move along," he nodded but quickly turned back toward Cheney and started shouting anti-Bush administration statements. He then attempted to climb over a small wall separating the box from the walkway.

Two Secret Service agents then attempted to restrain Frampton, but he swung his elbow at one and continued to shout at Cheney. After a brief struggle, Frampton was dragged away from the box and handcuffed, the court papers said.

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