Latest news with #NoKingsonPresidentsDay
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
'No Kings Day' Protests Planned Across U.S. Amid L.A. Battle
People gather in Detroit, Michigan on Feb. 17, 2025 to say 'No Kings on Presidents Day' in response to what they say are President Trump's and Elon Musk's undemocratic action. Credit - Jim West—UCG/UniversalMore than 1,500 'No Kings Day' demonstrations are set to take place across the U.S. this weekend to protest the Trump Administration as President Donald Trump holds a military parade in Washington, D.C. The demonstrations will take place all over the country on Saturday, coinciding with the parade Trump has planned to mark the U.S. Army's 250th birthday. Ezra Levin, the co-founder and co-executive director of the progressive organization Indivisible that's behind 'No Kings Day,' told MSNBC on Monday that the protests—originally announced last month—have generated 'overwhelming interest' in the aftermath of the Administration's response to the immigration-related protests in Los Angeles. 'In America, we don't do kings,' reads a website for the events. 'They've defied our courts, deported Americans, disappeared people off the streets, attacked our civil rights, and slashed our services. The corruption has gone too. Far.' The protests will follow days of demonstrations in L.A. over Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids targeting undocumented immigrants. In a rare and controversial exercise of presidential power, Trump over the weekend mobilized the National Guard—against the wishes of California Gov. Gavin Newsom—to quell the protests in the L.A. area, which had been largely peaceful. The move sparked immediate outcry from Democratic politicians, advocacy organizations, and legal experts. Trump has since escalated federal involvement by deploying hundreds of Marines and thousands of additional National Guard troops to the city. 'No Kings is a nationwide day of defiance. From city blocks to small towns, from courthouse steps to community parks, we're taking action to reject authoritarianism—and show the world what democracy really looks like,' the 'No Kings Day' description said. 'On June 14th, we're showing up everywhere [Trump] isn't—to say no thrones, no crowns, no kings.' Read more: What the Founding Fathers Said About Kings The event's organizers aren't holding a protest in D.C. itself, saying they want to make the demonstrations elsewhere the story of the day rather than allowing Saturday's military parade to be 'the center of gravity.' On Tuesday, Trump warned people planning to protest at the parade that they would face 'very big force.' 'For those people that want to protest, they're going to be met with very big force,' Trump said. 'And I haven't even heard about a protest, but you know, this is people that hate our country, but they will be met with very heavy force.' Contact us at letters@
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Bay Area protesters take aim at Musk, Trump
The Brief Rallies were held around the Bay Area and across the nation on Presidents Day to protest against Elon Musk's role in government and President Donald Trump's policies. Demonstrations took place outside Tesla dealerships. The rallies followed Trump's executive orders and layoffs across federal agencies. SAN FRANCISCO - Billionaire Elon Musk has drawn the ire of thousands of activists around the Bay Area and across the country who are protesting his government involvement. They also pointed fingers at President Donald Trump, who has pushed to gut federal health, education, and human services agencies. What they're saying A protest was held outside a Tesla showroom in San Francisco and others held in San Jose and Oakland, with organizers wanting to send a clear message that Musk is overstepping his authority. Similar protests were held outside congressional offices on Monday and over the weekend in Seattle, San Diego and New York. Demonstrations by the 50501 movement dubbed the "No Kings on Presidents Day" and "We Reject Project 2025" were aimed at both Musk and Trump. Over 1,000 people took part in the group's San Jose rally, holding up anti-Trump signs and calling his recent policies illegal. The rally was peaceful, but vocal. "We knew Trump was bad, but we didn't know Elon was going to be the President. I think we're kind of pissed off about that, and things are going in the absolute wrong direction," said one protester. Organizer James Kuszmaul said, "It's more than just President Trump and Elon Musk ignoring the will of the people. It's also them ignoring the fundamental basis of the American way." A loose coalition of Democrats and progressives is coalescing around Musk's rise as Trump's top lieutenant and his purge of the federal bureaucracy. Musk is the leader of Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency, an outside-government organization designed to slash federal spending. "He's a major weak link in the MAGA coalition," Ezra Levin, co-founder of the progressive group Indivisible, said of Musk. "I can't think of something that polls worse than the richest man in the world is coming after your Social Security check or your Meals on Wheels or your Head Start." "The disappointment I had in the election. How my family feels about the new presidency and the government; and the people that are part of the government but weren't elected to the government," said Sal Ventura, who attended the 50501's San Jose rally. What they're saying Indivisible, which claims more than 1,300 local chapters nationwide, is encouraging members to protest at the offices of their members of Congress, regardless of political party. The group also offered a step-by-step guide for protesting at Tesla dealerships, Musk's electric vehicle company. The memo encourages protesters to stay on sidewalks and public spaces and to avoid any actions that might directly interfere with business operations, such as blocking entrances or trespassing on private property. It also calls for Tesla protesters to stay on message: "This is about Musk's political takeover, not Tesla, SpaceX, or X as companies." What we know The wave of protests comes at a critical moment as fractured Democrats struggle to stop the Republican president's purge of the federal bureaucracy, which features thousands of layoffs inside departments focused on public health, education, veterans affairs, and human services, among others. Firings in recent days at the Department of Veterans Affairs include researchers working on cancer treatment, opioid addiction, prosthetics and burn pit exposure, according to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington state. The cuts also include more than 5,000 employees at the Department of Health and Human Services and roughly one-tenth of the workforce at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In some cases, Musk's team is trying — with Trump's blessing but without congressional approval — to shutter entire agencies, including the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Department of Education and the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Trump has defended the cuts as necessary to eliminate waste and fraud. And he has praised Musk's work with his Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, saying it has found "shocking" evidence of wasteful spending. He signed an executive order expanding Musk's influence. Musk, meanwhile, has defended the swift and extensive cuts he's pushing across the federal government while acknowledging there have been mistakes. The Source The Associated Press, KTVU reporting.
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘No Kings on Presidents Day': Anti-Trump protestors rally at Kentucky Capitol
Anti-Trump protesters gather in front of the Kentucky Capitol for the second time in two weeks as part of the 50501 movement, Feb. 17, 2025. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Jamie Lucke) FRANKFORT — Bundled against sub-freezing cold and hoisting homemade signs, more than 200 people gathered in front of the Kentucky Capitol Monday for the second anti-Trump rally in as many weeks. The event was part of 'No Kings on Presidents Day' protests around the country organized by the 50501 Movement which first held anti-Trump protests in all 50 states on Feb. 5. Victor Fain of Elizabethtown, who also attended the Feb. 5 rally in Frankfort, said the Monday gathering appeared to have attracted more people. Explaining why he was there, Fain said, 'I feel like this administration is uniquely dangerous. Trump has radicalized me.' Since taking office Jan. 20, Republican President Donald Trump has moved swiftly through executive orders and federal workforce reductions to remake the government. The president empowered billionaire Elon Musk to cut personnel and make other changes in federal agencies via the Trump-created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Trump's actions are being challenged in multiple lawsuits, including one joined by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear challenging Trump's freeze on federal payments, which Beshear said is affecting Medicaid, the Appalachian Regional Commission and the Abandoned Mine Lands program in Kentucky. 'We deserve to be able to rely on the agreements that a federal government has made, regardless of what party is in power,' Beshear said last week in announcing he had joined the suit filed by Democratic state attorneys general. Sherman Fracher of Harrodsburg, who hoisted a sign that said 'No Kings,' told the Lantern, 'We have to do something. We can't just sit by and watch it crumble. They have to know we're not just going to lie down and let them take the government.' Between chants of 'We will not let freedom die' and 'This is what America looks like,' the crowd was urged by speakers to contact their representatives in Congress to register their opposition to the Trump agenda. The Kentucky legislature was not in session Monday.
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘No kings on Presidents Day' rings out from protests against Trump, Musk
BOSTON (AP/WPRI) — Protesters against President Donald Trump and his policies braved frigid temperatures to demonstrate Monday at rallies corresponding with the Presidents Day holiday. Dubbed 'No Kings on Presidents Day' by the 50501 Movement, the latest protests came less than two weeks after a similar nationwide event on Feb. 5 drew participants in dozens of cities. Both protests denounced Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk, the leader of Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency, an outside-government organization designed to slash federal spending. Nearly 1,000 people marched in the snow from the Statehouse in Boston to City Hall, chanting 'Elon Musk has got to go' and 'No kings on Presidents Day!' The temperature was below freezing with wind chills in the teens. Boston protesters, some dressed in Revolutionary War-style clothing from the 1700s, carried signs saying such things as 'This is a Coup' and 'Cowards Bow to Trump, Patriots Stand Up.' One sign had a depiction of Uncle Sam saying 'I Want You to Resist.' 'I thought it was important to be here on Presidents Day to demonstrate for what America stands for,' said Emily Manning, 55, a Boston engineer who came to the rally with her two teenage sons. 'American values are not the values of the plutocracy or the limited few rich people.' A similar protest was held Monday outside the Rhode Island State House. Organizers of Monday's protests, which were focused on state capitals and major cities including Washington, D.C.; Orlando, Florida; and Seattle, said they were targeting 'anti-democratic and illegal actions of the Trump administration and its plutocratic allies.' One sign at the rally that attracted hundreds in the nation's capital said, 'Deport Musk Dethrone Trump.' How Presidents Day has evolved from reverence to retail Many demonstrations were slated for cities where temperatures were well below freezing as a polar vortex worked its way across the country. The rallies followed a series of Trump executive orders and came just days after layoffs across federal agencies as part of an effort to reduce the government workforce. __ Associated Press writer Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, contributed to this report. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
'No kings on Presidents Day' rings out from protests against Trump and Musk
BOSTON (AP) — Protesters against President Donald Trump and his policies braved frigid temperatures to demonstrate Monday at rallies corresponding with the Presidents Day holiday. Dubbed 'No Kings on Presidents Day' by the 50501 Movement, the latest protests came less than two weeks after a similar nationwide event on Feb. 5 drew participants in dozens of cities. Both protests denounced Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk, the leader of Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency, an outside-government organization designed to slash federal spending. Nearly 1,000 people marched in the snow from the Statehouse in Boston to City Hall, chanting 'Elon Musk has got to go' and 'No kings on Presidents Day!' The temperature was below freezing with wind chills in the teens. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Boston protesters, some dressed in Revolutionary War-style clothing from the 1700s, carried signs saying such things as 'This is a Coup' and 'Cowards Bow to Trump, Patriots Stand Up.' One sign had a depiction of Uncle Sam saying 'I Want You to Resist.' 'I thought it was important to be here on Presidents Day to demonstrate for what America stands for,' said Emily Manning, 55, a Boston engineer who came to the rally with her two teenage sons. 'American values are not the values of the plutocracy or the limited few rich people.' Organizers of Monday's protests, which were focused on state capitals and major cities including Washington, D.C.; Orlando, Florida; and Seattle, said they were targeting 'anti-democratic and illegal actions of the Trump administration and its plutocratic allies.' One sign at the rally that attracted hundreds in the nation's capital said, 'Deport Musk Dethrone Trump.' Many demonstrations were slated for cities where temperatures were well below freezing as a polar vortex worked its way across the country. The rallies followed a series of Trump executive orders and came just days after layoffs across federal agencies as part of an effort to reduce the government workforce. __ Associated Press writer Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, contributed to this report.
