Protesting the country’s direction under President Donald Trump, thousands of people brought a street party vibe to the nation’s capital and communities across the U.S. Saturday for “No Kings” demonstrations, which the president’s Republican Party calls “Hate America” rallies.
Organizers said nearly 7 million people turned out Saturday to more than 2,700 No Kings protests across the U.S., NBC News reported. That included more than 200,000 demonstrators in D.C., organizers said.
Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Chris Murphy of Connecticut, plus Bill Nye, spoke at the D.C. rally.
This is the third mass mobilization since Trump’s return to the White House and comes against the backdrop of a government shutdown that not only has closed federal programs and services, but is testing the core balance of power as an aggressive executive confronts Congress and the courts in ways that organizers warn are a slide toward American authoritarianism.
Trump himself is away from Washington at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.
“They say they’re referring to me as a king. I’m not a king,” Trump said in a Fox News interview airing early Friday, before he departed for a $1 million-per-plate MAGA Inc. super PAC fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago. Protests are expected nearby Saturday.
More than 2,600 rallies were planned for Saturday in cities large and small, organized by hundreds of coalition partners.
What’s happening in the DC area?
Rallygoers marched from Arlington, Virginia, crossing the Potomac River via the Arlington Memorial Bridge, about 10 a.m. From there, they marched to Pennsylvania Avenue and 3rd Street NW to participate in the rally.
By 11:30 a.m., demonstrators were seen gathering along the National Mall ahead of the rally scheduled for noon. Many were carrying signs bearing messages such as “Reject Fascism, Reject Racism, Reject Trump” and “Let Freedom Reign!!! Not Tyranny!”
Organizers estimated 200,000 demonstrators joined the protest. No counterprotests could be seen.
No arrests were made, according to D.C. police.
There were 11 medical emergencies in the crowd, D.C. Fire and EMS said, but nobody had to be taken to a hospital.
Multiple parking restrictions and road closures are in place downtown, including Pennsylvania Avenue NW between 7th Street NW and Constitution Avenue. See the full list from D.C. police here.
A growing opposition movement
While the earlier protests this year — against Elon Musk’s cuts in spring, then to counter Trump’s military parade in June — drew crowds, organizers say this one is building a more unified opposition movement. Top Democrats such as Senate Leader Chuck Schumer and Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders are joining in what organizers view as an antidote to Trump’s actions, from the administration’s clampdown on free speech to its military-style immigration raids.
“There is no greater threat to an authoritarian regime than patriotic people-power,” said Ezra Levin, a co-founder of Indivisible, among the key organizers.
As Republicans and the White House dismiss the protests as a rally of radicals, Levin said their own sign-up numbers are growing. Organizers said rallies are being planned within a one-hour drive for most Americans.
Rallies were held in major European cities, where gatherings of a few hundred Americans chanted slogans and held signs and U.S. flags.
‘Crooks and conmen’ and fears of police response
Retired family doctor Terence McCormally was heading to Arlington National Cemetery to join up with others Saturday morning and walk across the Memorial Bridge that enters Washington directly in front of the Lincoln Memorial. He thought the protests would be peaceful but said the recent deployment of the National Guard makes him more leery about the police than he used to be.
“I really don’t like the crooks and conmen and religious zealots who are trying to use the country” for personal gain, McCormally said, “while they are killing and hurting millions of people with bombs.”
Republicans denounce ‘Hate America’ rallies
Republicans have sought to portray participants in Saturday’s rallies as far outside the mainstream of American politics, and a main reason for the prolonged government shutdown, now in its 18th day.
From the White House to Capitol Hill, GOP leaders disparaged the rallygoers as “communists” and “Marxists.”
They say Democratic leaders, including Schumer, are beholden to the far-left flank and willing to keep the government shut down to appease those liberal forces.
“I encourage you to watch — we call it the Hate America rally — that will happen Saturday,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.
“Let’s see who shows up for that,” Johnson said, listing groups including “antifa types,” people who “hate capitalism” and “Marxists in full display.”
In a Facebook post, former presidential contender Sanders said, “It’s a love America rally.”
“It’s a rally of millions of people all over this country who believe in our Constitution, who believe in American freedom and,” he said, pointing at the GOP leadership, “are not going to let you and Donald Trump turn this country into an authoritarian society.”
Democrats try to regain their footing
Democrats have refused to vote on legislation that would reopen the government as they demand funding for health care. Republicans say they are willing to discuss the issue later, only after the government reopens.
But for many Democrats, the government closure is also a way to stand up to Trump, and try to push the presidency back to its place in the U.S. system as a coequal branch of government.
The situation is a potential turnaround from just six months ago, when Democrats and their allies were divided and despondent, unsure about how best to respond to Trump’s return to the White House. Schumer in particular was berated by his party for allowing an earlier government funding bill to sail through the Senate without using it to challenge Trump.
In April, the national march against Trump and Elon Musk had 1,300 registered locations. In June, for the first “No Kings” day, there were 2,100 registered locations.
“What we are seeing from the Democrats is some spine,” Levin said. “The worst thing the Democrats could do right now is surrender.”
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he wasn’t sure if he would join the rallygoers Saturday, but he took issue with the Republicans’ characterization of the events.
“What’s hateful is what happened on Jan. 6,” he said, referring to the 2021 Capitol attack, as Trump’s supporters stormed the building to protest Joe Biden’s election victory. “What you’ll see this weekend is what patriotism looks like.”
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Riddle reported from Montgomery, Alabama. Associated Press writer Chris Megerian contributed.
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