LIVE: The Bulwark's No Kings Rally Coverage
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖The 'No Kings' rally, now in its third iteration, aimed to surpass previous turnouts of 5-7 million participants, with 3,100 registered protests nationwide.
- ❖The movement began as a counter to Trump's military parade and evolved amid concerns over his administration's challenges to legal and institutional norms.
- ❖While Trump's administration has become less 'scattershot' in its attacks, the underlying authoritarian impulse persists, maintaining the relevance of these protests.
- ❖The 'ask' of the movement is debated, but includes 'no mass deportation,' 'no unwarranted wars,' and 'no further corruption/degradation of democracy.'
- ❖Rally demographics are generally older and whiter, but show increasing diversity, including millennials, Gen Z, and families.
- ❖The tone is overwhelmingly patriotic, featuring American flags and national songs, with minimal 'lefty' or radical messaging.
- ❖The Iran war has emerged as a new, significant protest theme, alongside ongoing concerns about ICE and democratic integrity.
- ❖Unlike Trump rallies, 'No Kings' events lack idol worship, focus on America's inherent goodness (viewing Trump as an aberration), and have no commercial merchandise.
- ❖The challenge for the movement is to channel its ecumenical, anti-idolatrous energy into concrete political power and electoral outcomes.
- ❖A potential decrease in turnout, despite Trump's objective political weakening, would be a 'warning sign' for the movement's momentum.
Insights
1Evolution and Scale of the 'No Kings' Movement
The 'No Kings' protests have grown significantly since their inception. The first rally in June against a Trump military parade drew 5 million, followed by 7 million in October. The third rally aimed to be the largest yet, with 3,100 registered protests, many in non-urban areas, indicating widespread reach.
Host JBL notes the first protest in June had 5 million turnout, the second in October had 7 million, and organizers expected the third to be the biggest yet with 3,100 protests registered across the country. (, , )
2Shifting Political Context and Enduring Authoritarian Impulse
Andrew Egger highlights that initial 'No Kings' protests countered Trump's claim of a mass mandate amid a 'barrage' against institutions. While Trump's unpopularity is now clearer and his administration is more selective in its battles, the fundamental 'authoritarian impulse' remains, making the protests continuously relevant.
Andrew Egger states the first protests countered Trump's 'mass mandate' narrative (). He notes the administration has 'burrowed in a little bit' and is 'picking their battles' more, but the 'authoritarian impulse has not gone away.' (, )
3The Movement's 'Ask' and Challenge of Specificity
Katherine Rampell questions the specific 'ask' or next step for the movement, beyond psychological boosts and a show of force. Bill Kristol suggests the 'ask' includes 'no mass deportation,' 'no unwarranted wars,' and 'no further corruption and degradation of our democracy,' framing it as a 'reasonable mainstream agenda.'
Katherine Rampell asks, 'what is the ask now? Or what is the next step?' (). Bill Kristol identifies the 'ask' as 'no more mass deportation, no unwarranted wars in Iran or anywhere else, no further corruption and degradation of our democracy.' ()
4Patriotic and Mainstream Tone
Reports from various locations consistently describe the rallies as patriotic and mainstream. Bill Kristol observed 'a lot of American flags' and 'very few conspicuously lefty kind of banners' in Waltham, noting a mood not different from more conservative Northern Virginia. Jim Swift in Cincinnati also noted a 'July 4th parade' atmosphere with American flags.
Bill Kristol describes the Waltham rally: 'Patriot A lot of American flags, a lot of uh very few sort of conspicuously, I'm going to say, lefty kind of, you know, banners and stuff.' (). Jim Swift in Cincinnati saw 'a guy giving away American flags to kids' and described it as 'kind of like a July 4th parade.' ()
5Evolving Issues: War and Immigration
While anti-ICE and pro-democracy themes remain central, the Iran war has emerged as a significant, though not universally dominant, new focus. Bill Kristol noted 'a fair amount of war stuff' in Waltham, while Andrew Egger observed fewer war signs in his local protests, suggesting regional variation or evolving emphasis.
Bill Kristol notes 'ICE remains big on the placards' () and 'no war, now a big theme' (). Andrew Egger observed 'I did not see a lot of war signs. It was a lot of ICE stuff.' (). Ansley Skipper in Chicago saw 'lots of anti-war signs' ().
6Contrast with Trump Rallies
JBL contrasts 'No Kings' rallies with Trump rallies: 'No Kings' avoids deifying any person, frames Trump as having 'hoodwinked Americans,' believes 'America's great' and the current situation is an aberration, and lacks commercial merchandise. Trump rallies, conversely, feature idol worship, a belief that 'America was fundamentally rotten,' and an 'us vs. them' narrative.
JBL details the differences: Trump rallies show 'real idol worship,' belief 'America was fundamentally rotten,' and 'us them' mentality (). No Kings avoids 'deifying any person,' sees Trump as having 'hoodwinked Americans,' believes 'America's great' and the situation is an 'aberration,' and has 'no merch.' (, )
7Challenge of Channelling Energy into Political Power
Andrew Egger points out that while 'No Kings' rallies have an admirable 'ecumenism' and are important for demonstrating dissent, their 'negative space' nature (opposing Trump rather than supporting a specific figure) makes it 'trickier to figure out how to harness it' into actual political power or electoral outcomes, unlike Trump rallies with their clear 'ask' to vote for him.
Andrew Egger states the 'ask is immediate and it's political' at Trump rallies (), but for 'No Kings,' 'it's do the opposite of that, oppose Donald Trump' (). He notes the 'admirable ecumenism' but it's 'trickier to figure out how to harness it' into 'actual political power.' (, )
8Significance of Turnout Momentum
JBL emphasizes that while mass turnout has its own quality, the 'step increase' in size from June to October was meaningful. If the current rally's turnout 'ticks backwards' from the previous 7 million, especially given Trump's objective political weakening (economy, war, approval), it would be a 'warning sign' and 'mean something.'
JBL states the 'step increase from the June to October no kings protest was very meaningful' (). He warns that if this rally 'ticks backwards to like 5 million or God forbid 4 million' despite things being 'objectively worse for Trump,' it 'would be interesting and it would mean something.' (, )
Lessons
- Participate in local protests and civic actions to visibly demonstrate dissent and contribute to the collective counter-narrative against perceived authoritarianism.
- Engage with local organizing efforts at rallies, such as voter registration drives or support for immigrant communities, to translate broad protest energy into concrete community action.
- Understand the 'No Kings' movement as a patriotic, institution-preserving force that critiques specific actions and policies, rather than seeking to dismantle the system entirely or deify a single leader.
Quotes
"The general authoritarian impulse has not gone away. You know, anytime Donald Trump wants to wield power, he's choosing to wield power in just the same way that it was last year."
"These protests have been very effective at showing people that they are not alone, that they are in the fight together, that they're not the only ones who are feeling like the world has gone crazy, and that there is power in numbers."
"I mean, the number of old folks who were in sort of roll with rolling walkers in 30° weather. Like, I just thought, God bless you guys. Like, you know, these are people who are showing up not for themselves, but for their grandchildren, and it was it was pretty inspiring and touching."
"At the Trump rallies, what you saw was a lot of like real idol worship. Like Trump the man can fix it. This guy is the savior. This is the strong man. You also saw a lot of belief that America was fundamentally rotten."
"It's do the opposite of that, you know, oppose Donald Trump. And there is this kind of admirable ecumenism that you're talking about where where it's pulling a lot of different kinds of people who probably feel a lot of different kinds of ways about a lot of different kinds of things other than this."
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