Broadway bigs host liberal fund-raiser

[Khephra]

By VERENA DOBNIK
Associated Press Writer

September 14, 2004, 4:27 PM EDT

NEW YORK -- A tongue-in-cheek troupe called Billionaires for Bush and some of Broadway's boldfaced names got together to fan the flames of political discontent.

"You've got to have a sense of humor," comedian Robert Klein told a political fund-raiser that filled Avalon, a Manhattan church-turned-nightclub.

"I feel much safer with Bush," deadpanned Klein, who hosted the Monday night event. "These days, an air marshal can remove any Mideastern-looking man from a plane. The other day, one guy misread something, and removed a Midwestern man!"

Through two hours of punchlines, the liberal message came through: "This is about getting rid of Bush," said comedian and radio talk-show host Al Franken.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-ny--broadwayvsbush0914sep14,0,7239141.story?coll=ny-ap-regional-wire