Republicans mostly silent as millions of Americans protest Trump on No Kings day | Protests (US)
Republican voices were mostly silent as No Kings rallies and marches against the Trump administration’s policies unfolded Saturday, many in the spirit of a street party that countered the “hate America” description put forward by senior party members.
Instead of provocation, there were marching bands, huge banners with references to the US constitution “we the people”, and demonstrators wearing inflatable costumes, particularly frogs, which appeared as a sign of resistance.
In his comments Friday, Donald Trump objected to protest organizers’ characterization of him as a potential monarch.
“They say they consider me a king. I’m not a king,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News.
At a White House event on Wednesday, Trump attempted to downplay the events at No Kings. “I hear very few people [are] “They’re going to be there, by the way, but they have their day coming up and they want to spend their day in the sun,” he said. Trump is spending the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.
In a counter-programming move, JD Vance and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth attended a demonstration of live-fire amphibious capabilities at Camp Pendleton in California to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the United States Marine Corps.
However, a plan to fire live shells at a nearby highway drew objections from Gov. Gavin Newsom, who said it required the California Highway Patrol to close part of a major highway through Southern California for safety reasons.
“The president is putting his ego ahead of his responsibilities with this disregard for public safety,” the Democratic governor said in a statement. “Firing live ammunition on a busy highway is not only wrong: it is dangerous. »
Vance posted a comment on
“I have been reliably informed that Democrats are opposed to any form of political violence, so I look forward to them universally condemning Zohran Mamdani for campaigning with an unindicted co-conspirator in a terrorist plot that killed 6 New Yorkers,” Vance wrote.
Fox News, meanwhile, published a report claiming that organizers involved in the global Intifada aimed at destroying the State of Israel had decided to join the No Kings protests in New York under the organizational groups “UAW Labor for Palestine” and “NYC Labor for Palestine.”
The right-wing outlet also reported Friday that foundations linked to George Soros were funding the No Kings protests via a $3 million grant to organizer Indivisible “to support the recipient’s social activities.”
The relative silence from Republican leaders Saturday contrasted with efforts last week to portray the second No Kings Day as a “hate America” day populated by Hamas sympathizers and a reason for Democrats to delay a deal to end the government shutdown, now in its 18th day.
Republican leaders called the protesters “communists” and “Marxists” and claimed that centrist Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who marched in New York, were being held political hostage by the far left.
“I encourage you to watch — we call it the ‘hate America’ rally — that will take place on Saturday,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana.
“Let’s see who runs for this,” Johnson added, listing groups including “antifa types,” people who “hate capitalism” and “Marxists on full display.”
