Protesters oppose DOGE cuts from coast to coast
Protesters across the U.S. rallied behind the message that “Elon Musk has got to go.”
Thousands have committed to gather at numerous locations nationwide on Saturday, including every congressional district, to express their concerns regarding President Donald Trump’s actions since his inauguration.
The “Hands Off” protests are expected to be the largest series of demonstrations since the onset of Trump’s second term. Over 500,000 individuals have RSVP’d to participate in roughly 1,000 rallies, marches, or protests organized by grassroots groups across the country.
For months, various activist organizations have conducted protests nationwide, targeting congressional town halls, federal office buildings, and public areas to challenge the changes Trump has initiated since his inauguration in January.
They have protested against Trump’s rollback of protections for immigrants and transgender individuals, as well as the layoffs of tens of thousands of federal employees. Some demonstrations have particularly focused on supporting federal workers, LGBTQ rights, immigrant rights, Palestinian self-determination, or Ukraine, while others oppose Trump’s policies in general.
The White House has downplayed the protests, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stating to USA TODAY this week that “protests, lawsuits, and lawfare” will not deter Trump from “delivering on the promises he made to enhance the efficiency and accountability of our federal government.”
Nationwide Protests
Hosting organizations consist of established groups like Indivisible, Women’s March, MoveOn, Working Families Power, and Public Citizen, alongside grassroots organizations like 50501 that have emerged since Election Day.
The Washington, D.C. gathering, anticipated to be the largest, is scheduled to start at noon at the Washington Monument. Organizers expect participation to exceed that of the People’s March that took place the weekend prior to Trump’s second inauguration. The protests will be livestreamed here.
More than 1,200 additional protests are scheduled across the nation. Organizers aim to ensure that demonstrations are not only widespread but also highly visible, showcasing that opposition exists throughout the entire country.
“I don’t mind being part of the town square, whether it’s with three individuals or 300,000, or even 3 million protesters; I want this to be documented. I want the narrative to reflect that people resisted this and fought against it at every turn, even acknowledging the places where we did not prevail,” said Rachel O’Leary Carmona, executive director of Women’s March.
In February alone, over 2,085 protests occurred nationwide, according to the Crowd Counting Consortium, a collaborative project by the Harvard Kennedy School and the University of Connecticut.
This marks an increase from 937 protests in February 2017, the first complete month of Trump’s first term. However, many early protests during Trump’s first administration were significantly larger than those witnessed so far in 2025, and media coverage of protests this year has been less frequent.
Rahna Epting, Executive Director of MoveOn, stated that the aim is to consolidate all these protests into one single day to clearly demonstrate how many Americans are against cuts to essential services and benefits they’ve earned, such as Medicare.
“Hands Off signifies a plea to refrain from interfering not only with our services and benefits, but also with our rights and freedoms, all of which are currently under threat, and we experience this daily,” she emphasized.
(This is an evolving story and will be updated.)
