By Daniel Trotta
()- Approximately 1,200 protests are scheduled nationwide for Saturday, with organizers anticipating this will mark the biggest collective demonstration yet against President Donald Trump and his wealthy supporter Elon Musk. This comes as part of their swift push to instill a conservative ethos throughout the federal government.
Several hours prior to the start of the " Hands Off! " demonstrations, numerous American expatriates opposing Trump assembled in cities like Berlin, Frankfurt, Paris, and London. Their aim was to express their disapproval of Trump’s extensive changes to both U.S. foreign policy and domestic affairs.
Approximately 200 individuals, largely Americans, convened at Paris' Place de la République where they listened to various speakers and held up signs reading “ Resist Dictatorship,” “State of Law,” “Feminists for Liberty Not Fascism,” and “Defend Democracy.”
"We must demonstrate our support for all the protests happening across a thousand cities in the USA today," stated Timothy Kautz, a spokesperson for Democrats Abroad, from his location in Frankfurt. protester Jose Sanchez commented that Trump was an imposter undermining American democracy.
The demonstrations in the United States will provide Trump's adversaries with a chance to collectively express their discontent in reaction to his series of executive actions.
This massive protest is clearly conveying a strong message to Musk, Trump, Republican members of Congress, and all the supporters aligned with the Make America Great Again agenda: We do not desire them having influence over our democracy, communities, schools, nor our friends and neighbors," stated Ezra Levin, who co-founded Indivisible, one of the organizations behind the demonstrations scheduled for Saturday.
The White House did not promptly reply to requests for comments from both Trump and Musk.
Approximately 150 activist organizations have registered to take part, as stated on the event's webpage.
Events are scheduled across all 50 states as well as in Canada and Mexico. The largest rally is anticipated to take place at Washington's National Mall.
On January 20th, Trump made his return to the White House accompanied by numerous executive actions and initiatives criticized for aligning closely with the goals set forth by Project 2025—a highly conservative movement aimed at overhauling governmental structures and centralizing power within the presidency. Supporters have commended Trump’s boldness as crucial for challenging established liberal factions.
The White House assistant press secretary, Liz Huston, refuted the claim made by the demonstrators that Trump planned to reduce funding for Social Security and Medicaid.
President Trump’s stance remains firm: he will consistently safeguard Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for those who qualify. In contrast, according to Huston’s email, the Democratic Party intends to extend Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare benefits to individuals without proper documentation, a move they argue could lead to financial ruin for these programs and place America's senior citizens under immense strain.
Many aspects of Trump's plans have been limited by legal actions arguing that he has exceeded his power through efforts to dismiss government employees, expel immigrants, and revoke transgender rights.
Groups supporting Palestine and against both Israel’s resumed military operations in Gaza—supported by the U.S.—and the Trump administration’s efforts to curb demonstrations on college campuses, announced their intention to join marches and protests in Washington according to statements from the organizing bodies.
In early 2017, at the beginning of President Trump’s first term, hundreds of thousands of individuals participated in the Women's March on Washington to show their dissent.
This year’s protests have been less crowded, however, activist leaders have been plotting to come together for a major demonstration, according to Levin.
Indivisible, established following Trump's initial election win in 2016, has collaborated with various left-leaning entities such as MoveOn and the Working Families Party. This collaboration aims to bring together progressive movements across the country.
The participating organizations include the Service Employees International Union, which represents around 2 million workers; the Human Rights Campaign, the leading LGBTQ rights organization in the U.S.; and Greenpeace, an environmental activist group.
(Daniel Trotta reported from Carlsbad, California; Additional reporting was provided by Kanishka Singh and John Irish in Paris, Emma-Victoria Farr, Christian Mang, and Frank Simon in Berlin and Frankfurt; Sarah Young contributed from London; The piece was edited by Frank McGurty, Rod Nickel, and Toby Chopra.)