Protesting the direction of the US under Donald Trump, people have gathered in the nation’s capital and communities across America for No Kings demonstrations — what the president's Republican Party is calling Hate America rallies.
They rallied with signs like “Nothing is more patriotic than protesting” or “Resist Fascism,” and in many places, it looked more like a street party.
There were marching bands, a huge banner with the US Constitution’s “We The People,” preamble that people could sign, and protesters in frog costumes, which have emerged as a sign of resistance in Portland, Oregon.
Huge anti-Trump protests across US, GOP denounces 'hate America' rallies - watch on TVNZ+
This is the third mass mobilisation 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 organisers warn are a slide toward American authoritarianism.
Trump himself is spending the weekend 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 US$1 million-per-plate MAGA Inc. fundraiser at his club. Protests are expected nearby Saturday.
Demonstrators packed places like New York City's Times Square, the historic Boston Common, Chicago's Grant Park, Washington, DC, and hundreds of smaller public spaces.
Many protesters were angered by attacks on their motives. In Washington, Brian Reymann said being called a terrorist all week by Republicans was “pathetic.”
“This is America. I disagree with their politics, but I don’t believe that they don’t love this country,” Reymann said, carrying a large American flag.
“I believe they are misguided. I think they are power hungry.”
Organisers hope to build opposition movement
More than 2600 rallies are planned Saturday in cities large and small, organized by hundreds of coalition partners.
“Big rallies like this give confidence to people who have been sitting on the sidelines but are ready to speak up,” Democratic US senator Chris Murphy said in an interview with The Associated Press.
While protests earlier this year — against Elon Musk's cuts in the spring and Trump’s June military parade — drew crowds, organisers say this one is uniting the opposition.
Top Democrats such as Senate Leader Chuck Schumer and Independent Senator Bernie Sanders are joining what organisers view as an antidote to Trump's actions, from the administration's clampdown on free speech to its military-style immigration raids.
“We’re here because we love America,” Sanders said, addressing the crowd from a stage in Washington. He said the American experiment is “in danger” under Trump, but insisted “We the people will rule.”
Before noon, several thousand people had gathered in Times Square, chanting “Trump must go now,” and waving sometimes-profane signs with slogans insulting the president and condemning his immigration crackdown. Some people carried American flags.
Retired family doctor Terence McCormally was heading to Arlington National Cemetery to join others walking across the Memorial Bridge that enters Washington directly in front of the Lincoln Memorial. He said the recent deployment of the National Guard made him more wary of police than in the past.
“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.”
In April, the national march against Trump and Musk had 1300 registered locations. The first “No Kings” day in June registered 2100 locations.
Republicans denounce ‘Hate America’ rallies
Republicans have sought to portray Saturday's protesters as far outside the mainstream and a prime reason for the 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, Republican-Louisiana.
“Let’s see who shows up for that," Johnson said, listing groups including “antifa types,” people who “hate capitalism” and “Marxists in full display.”
Many demonstrators say they're responding to such hyperbole with silliness in part because Trump leans heavily on theatrics — like claiming cities he sends troops to are war zones — said Glen Kalbaugh, a Washington protester.
“So much of what we’ve seen from this administration has been so unserious and silly that we have to respond with the same energy,” said Kalbaugh, who wore a wizard hat and held a sign with a frog on it.
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 US system as a co-equal branch of government.
It's also a way to draw a moral line in the sand, said Murphy, the senator from Connecticut.
“Trump does think that he’s a king," Murphy said at the Washington rally, "and he thinks that he can act more corruptly when the government is shut down. But he cannot.”
The situation is a potential turnaround from just six months ago, when Democrats and their allies were divided and despondent.
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.
“What we are seeing from the Democrats is some spine,” said Ezra Levin, a co-founder of Indivisible, a key organizing group.
“The worst thing the Democrats could do right now is surrender.”
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