Trump and Musk denounced as thousands protest in cities across US: ‘The politics of Mussolini’

Millions flocked to the streets across the country in protest of President Donald Trump’s administration’s cuts to health program funding, mass firings of federal workers and steps toward shuttering entire agencies.

“Hands Off” protests, organized by nearly 200 advocacy groups, cropped up in more than 1,000 locations across the U.S. and around the globe Saturday in what became the largest day of collective action since Trump was inaugurated for a second time.

The protests aimed to put a stop to the “most brazen power grab in modern history,” organizers said. Millions — from Los Angeles to London — marched to advocate for civil rights, healthcare, democracy, workers’ rights and LGBTQ+ rights that have been under “assault” by the Trump administration and GOP Congress members, they added.

A man dressed as President George Washington carries a sign that reads 'George Washington Told Congress No Kings' at Boston City Hall Plaza weeks after Trump declared himself a ‘king’

A man dressed as President George Washington carries a sign that reads ‘George Washington Told Congress No Kings’ at Boston City Hall Plaza weeks after Trump declared himself a ‘king’ (EPA)
A blimp portraying Trump as a Confederate general flies above protesters in downtown Los Angeles

A blimp portraying Trump as a Confederate general flies above protesters in downtown Los Angeles (REUTERS)

The Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency has taken a chainsaw to the federal government, haphazardly firing thousands of federal workers, cutting humanitarian aid programs, and planning to shutter federal office buildings.

The Trump administration is drowning in court battles as it swiftly moves to deport a host of immigrants, implement sweeping tariffs, and attempts to ban transgender Americans from serving in the U.S. military.

Protesters in St. Paul, Minnesota held up a sign comparing Trump and Musk to Nazis, including a photo of the world’s richest person doing the ‘Nazi salute’ at an inauguration event in January

Protesters in St. Paul, Minnesota held up a sign comparing Trump and Musk to Nazis, including a photo of the world’s richest person doing the ‘Nazi salute’ at an inauguration event in January (AFP via Getty Images)
Demonstrators gather outside the Minnesota State Capitol during the nationwide

Demonstrators gather outside the Minnesota State Capitol during the nationwide “Hands Off!” protest, with some holding up a sign depicting Trump as a clown (AFP via Getty Images)

“What we witnessed today was nothing short of extraordinary. Across the country and around the world, people came together to say: we will not be silent while our rights, our futures, and our democracy are under attack,” Rahna Epting, executive director of advocacy group MoveOn, said in a statement Saturday.

“This peaceful movement is powered by everyday people—nurses, teachers, students, parents—who are rising up to protect what matters most,” Epting continued. “We are united, we are relentless, and we are just getting started.”

A demonstrator in New York City held a sign next to a dog indicating the approval of dogs but not DOGE, the Elon Musk-led cost-cutting arm of the federal government that has slashed contracts and executed mass layoffs

A demonstrator in New York City held a sign next to a dog indicating the approval of dogs but not DOGE, the Elon Musk-led cost-cutting arm of the federal government that has slashed contracts and executed mass layoffs (AFP via Getty Images)
Protesters in Boston held up signs calling to free detained Tufts University PhD student Rumeysa Ozturk, a 30-year-old Turkish national

Protesters in Boston held up signs calling to free detained Tufts University PhD student Rumeysa Ozturk, a 30-year-old Turkish national (EPA)

Speaking to the crowd at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin denounced the president’s recent tariff plan that led to a stock market bloodbath this week.

A dog wears a sign reading ‘I bite fascists’ in downtown Los Angeles

A dog wears a sign reading ‘I bite fascists’ in downtown Los Angeles (AFP via Getty Images)
Demonstrators flood the streets in LA

Demonstrators flood the streets in LA (REUTERS)
Vividly dressed protesters in Pershing Square, Los Angeles

Vividly dressed protesters in Pershing Square, Los Angeles (REUTERS)
A demonstration at the statehouse in Columbia, South Carolina

A demonstration at the statehouse in Columbia, South Carolina (Getty Images)

“No moral person wants an economy-crushing dictator who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing,” Raskin said.

As business leaders know, the congressman claimed: “There is no prosperity with stupid trade wars against the whole world. There’s no prosperity with stock market collapse and mass unemployment. There’s no future with presidents who have the politics of Mussolini and the economics of Herbert Hoover.”

Demonstrators gathered in West Palm Beach, Florida in protest of Trump as the president golfed in the state Saturday

Demonstrators gathered in West Palm Beach, Florida in protest of Trump as the president golfed in the state Saturday (AFP via Getty Images)
A woman carries a sign that reads 'Driverless Government,' showing a flame engulfed Tesla vehicle as she and thousands of people gather on Boston City Hall Plaza

A woman carries a sign that reads ‘Driverless Government,’ showing a flame engulfed Tesla vehicle as she and thousands of people gather on Boston City Hall Plaza (EPA)

The Maryland Democrat also called for the administration to keep its “hands off” Greenland, Canada and Panama Canal — all of which Trump hopes the U.S. will absorb.

Florida Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost took the stage after Raskin, taking aim at billionaires, corporations and oligarchs, whom he accused of “this insidious rise of authoritarianism.”

There were also protests around the world, including this one in London

There were also protests around the world, including this one in London (AP)
A demonstrator dressed as the Statue of Liberty holds up a placard during a protest in London’s Trafalgar Square

A demonstrator dressed as the Statue of Liberty holds up a placard during a protest in London’s Trafalgar Square (AFP via Getty Images)

The rightwing “movement is run by fear, trying to put us against one another,” the Congressman said. But, he continued, “we’re in this situation not because of our neighbors. I promise you, your bank account looks a lot more like your trans neighbors and your immigrant neighbors and nothing like Elon Musk.”

Trump was spending the weekend at a golf tournament in Florida

Trump was spending the weekend at a golf tournament in Florida (AP)

Trump himself, meanwhile, was at a golf tournament in Florida.

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