NEW YORK — In the wake of David Letterman's apology for his joke last week about Alaska Governor Sarah Palin's daughter, a number of protesters flocked around the "Late Show" studios in Midtown Manhattan on Tuesday (June 16) to show their support for Palin — albeit not in the numbers previously expected.

Approximately three dozen protestors stood across the street from the studios, chanting "Fire Dave! Shame on CBS!," and spoke about Letterman's joke, for which he has twice apologized and Palin has accepted his apology. Last week, Letterman joked in his monologue about an "awkward moment" for Palin at a New York Yankees game, when "her daughter was knocked up by Alex Rodriguez." Letterman did not refer to the daughter by name, though he later claimed he was referring to 18-year-old unwed mother Bristol, not 14-year-old Willow, who actually accompanied her mother to the game.

"It's a disgrace what's going on in our country today," said a protestor named Ellen. "We wouldn't do that to Obama's daughters."

Before Palin accepted the apology, it was rumored that nearly 2,000 people would protest outside the "Late Show" studios Tuesday. Some of the Palin supporters who did show up, like Robert Gretczko, said they didn't think Letterman's apology was good enough.

"It doesn't matter," Gretczko said. "Don Imus was still fired for his comments."

Gretczko later said he showed up because it was personal, not political. "I don't see this thing as political," he said. "It's about degrading women on national TV."

Tamra Burgess heard about the protest this morning and said it was a waste of time. "We don't have time for this," she said. "It's really sad. Letterman isn't going anywhere."

Melany Purrier-Blake was walking home from work when she saw the protestors gathering, and took offense when protestors attacked Obama.

"Nothing is wrong with the president," Purrier-Blake said. "Palin needs to be educated about politics."