Here's why Barack Obama is a pro when it comes to dealing with hecklers.
After an immigration reform activist disrupted his speech Monday in San Francisco, the President smoothly used the interruption as a teachable moment about the democratic process.
A young man standing on stage began shouting for Obama to do an end-run around Congress and use executive orders to halt the deportation of those undocumented immigrants in the country.
"You have the power to stop deportations," yelled the heckler.
Instead of allowing the Secret Service eject the activist, the commander in chief flipped the script instead and made a point about the limits of his authority.
"Actually, I don't and that's why we're here," Obama replied, motioning for security to let the man stay.
Unruffled, the prez took the high road, noting his respect for "the passion of these young people because they feel deeply about the concerns of their families."
"Now, what you need to know, when I'm speaking as president of the United States, and I come to this community, is that, in fact, if I could solve all these problems without passing laws in Congress, then I would do so," said Obama. "But we're also a nation of laws. That's part of our tradition. And so the easy way out is to try to yell and pretend like I can do something by violating our laws."
He continued: "What I'm proposing is the harder path, which is to use our democratic processes to achieve the same goal that you want to achieve, but it won't be as easy as just shouting. It requires us lobbying and getting it done."
Obama, who is currently on a West Coast fundraising swing, subsequently flew to Los Angeles after the event and a pair of fundraisers in San Fran where he attended a reception at Magic Johnson's Beverly Hills home.
The president is scheduled to attend another fundraiser Tuesday morning at the home of Friends co-creator Marta Kauffman, after which he's due to visit DreamWorks Animation studio in Glendale and meet with its honcho, Jeffrey Katzenberg, who's been one of his biggest political boosters.