Story highlights Black Lives Matter protesters interrupted Bill Clinton's speech in Philadelphia

The former president defended his wife against her past comments

(CNN) Bill Clinton traded verbal shots in a feisty 15-minute exchange with Black Lives Matter protesters in Philadelphia on Thursday, as he defended his wife's presidential bid.

The protesters shouted that "black youth are not super predators," taking issue with a phrase then-first lady Hillary Clinton used in a 1996 speech about violent crime committed by young people. They heckled Bill Clinton for the 1994 crime bill he signed into law as president that cracked down on gangs but also put more non-violent offenders in prison for longer stays.

"You are defending the people who killed the lives you say matter," the former president told protesters.

One protester's signs declared, in an apparent reference to the toppling of Muammar Gaddafi in Libya, that "Hillary is a murderer." The protesters repeatedly shouted over Clinton, ignoring his responses and invoking Clinton's ties to Wall Street, as well.

In the exchange, Clinton repeatedly said, "I love protesters" -- but complained that they wouldn't let him respond. "Here's the thing. I like protesters, but the ones that won't let you answer are afraid of the truth. That's a simple rule," Clinton said.

Read More