Fiery moment heckler confronts ‘hypocritical’ Hillary Clinton and demands she denounce Joe Biden’s ‘warmongering’ speech calling for additional Israel, Ukraine funding

Hillary Clinton scolded a far-left protester who interrupted her speech at Columbia University on Monday night and heckled her for three minutes about President Joe Biden’s funding of Israel and Ukraine.

Clinton took the stage in New York as part of a panel discussion marking the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The former foreign minister was accompanied by Michelle Bachelet, the former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and former president of Chile, and journalist Maria Ressa, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for her work with Philippine investigative news website Rappler.

Clinton was speaking when activist Robert Castle stood up and began berating her.

Castle – who describes himself on Substack as an “independent researcher, disillusioned optimist” – was praised by far-left peace activist and anti-nuclear campaigner Diane Sare, who challenged Chuck Schumer for his New York Senate seat in 2020. Kirsten Gillibrand out for hers in 2024.

Sare wrote on Twitter: “Excellent work from someone else on my team!”

Castle asked a question, and when Clinton tried to continue, Castle kept talking.

“I’m sorry,” he said, continuing to talk over her.

“Well, I’m not sorry, just sit down,” she said.

“I know you’re not sorry: that’s the point,” Castle continued. ‘The hypocrisy of this speech.’

Clinton tried to push the panel to talk to another panelist, Frank Mugisha, a Ugandan LGBT rights lawyer.

But Castle wouldn’t let him speak.

“Can you please make a statement regarding President Joe Biden’s speech? This is clearly a bellicose speech. President Joe Biden is calling for $100 billion in funding for Israel, Taiwan and Ukraine, and the plan is for us to pool it together and rush into World War III,” Castle said.

Clinton told him, “This is not the way to have a conversation.” If you want to have a conversation, feel free to come and talk to me afterwards.’

Castle responded that he didn’t believe her, then continued speaking as the panelists looked on.

Columbia University officials tried to ask Castle to sit down, but he clung to the microphone.

Castle stated that “the voice of the American people must be heard, and it is not being heard.”

Clinton responded, “Well, that’s your opinion, and we heard your opinion, so sit down.”

Castle kept yelling, “I’m not sitting down!” I’m not going to stop!’

Clinton said she wanted to reach out to “people working on the front lines of human rights.”

Castle shouted that he wanted to “exercise my freedom of speech.”

Clinton responded, “It’s not free speech if you disrupt everyone’s opportunity to speak.”

Castle continued to shout about freedom of speech, Eleanor Roosevelt, General Augusto Pinochet and the CIA.

“You’re brilliant at your historical cherry-picking,” Clinton replied sarcastically.

His tirade continued, with Castle at one point shouting, “It’s not football. It’s not Team America.’

Clinton responded, “Some of us are on Team America, despite our shortcomings and our problems.”

The audience cheered her answer.

Allida Black, editor of The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers and professor of history and international affairs at George Washington University, warned Castle.

“Every person on this stage has put their life, their livelihood, their reputation, their career on the line – and what have you done, except stand up and disrupt?”

Castle stated, “I’ll answer: What I did was ask Hillary Rodham Clinton to denounce the president’s openly belligerent, suicidal, idiotic speech.”

Clinton responded, “And I have given my answer. I won’t do that. But I’ll still see you outside.’