President Barack Obama has been briefly heckled as he addressed students at the largest US Catholic university, amid a row over abortion rights.

Anti-abortion activists have protested against the president's visit to Notre Dame, in Indiana.

Protests and vigils have been held on and around campus, with several people arrested before Mr Obama's speech.

Mr Obama, who received an honorary degree, defended the right to abortion but said the procedure should be rare.

[...]

He was interrupted soon after beginning his speech, prompting a majority of those in the audience to cheer the president, who asked for calm and told listening graduates: "We don't do things the easy way."

The AFP news agency said four men heckled the president, shouting "abortion is murder" and "stop killing babies" before being escorted from the auditorium.

I believe that this whole story of how people would protest Obama's speech at Norte Dame was ginned up by the conservative movement.  Devoid of any real strategy or winning issues they are just throwing mud and hoping something sticks.  Certainly people fell very strongly about their views on abortion, but Obama giving a commencement speech has no bearing on the issue one way or another.  This was just another failed effort by conservatives to try and create a wedge issue.