The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.
© (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017.Thousands of demonstrators plan to disrupt Trump inauguration
WASHINGTON©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.
93 Comments
Login to comment
PTownsend
If it's a peaceful protest, fine. If not, anyone participating in any form of violence is wrong and needs to be appropriately dealt with by law enforcement.
I can understand many are frustrated that this president was elected by a voting minority, but at this point they have to accept that's their US system. If they think there are problems with the system, and with the Electoral College in particular, they should channel their energy into finding better ways to deciding how a presidents is elected.
A starting point could be a re-think of how electoral districts are determined.
TumbleDry
Whining is not going to be heard and won't solve anything. Violence even less. Better work at finding everything the next administration will break/hide and prepare to fix.
PTownsend: voting minoriity thing, US is a federation.
Strangerland
I agree with you. It must remain peaceful.
But lets not forget, peaceful protest in public is not on the accepted list of protest types right now. Neither is protesting while black, nor protesting while rich, nor protesting while poor. So as long as the protestors are all middle-class white people, who do it where no one that disagrees with them can see, there will be no complaints.
SuperLib
Protest, but do not engage in violence or scorched earth policies or you will lose my support.
PTownsend
Do you mean 'republic', perhaps 'democratic republic'? My point stands: a minority of eligible voters elected Trump. Among those protesting will be people from the majority of eligible voters who voted against him and who perhaps feel he will not be a president representing the full spectrum of the US, and instead will represent those who comprise the range from .01% to 1%. In other words, his people.
theFu
Protesting is fine. Being seen and making the news is fine.
Disrupting other lawful activities is not fine. Violence is never ok. Why do we even need to say this?
Strangerland
Me too.
Disruption is likely to be bad as well. People must be free to move around as they need, or else the protestors are just going to overshadow their message.
Bartholomew Harte
Hmmm,,, Perhaps I should open a stand & sell "Crying Towels"for the many in need of solace-
Thunderbird
sad.... so sad...... it doesn't matter who's going to be your president. Disrupt an inauguration? Stalk and bully other voters, attack other people because they think different from you, is this ★America☆ or a corrupt, violent fifth world country?
samwatters
Hope they have a permit. It's required and it's the law. People who wanted to protest President Obama's inauguration needed one. Ditto for former presidents Clinton and Bush.
PTownsend
From the article above:
Blacklabel
So this guy is coming to do a seething rebellion yet they have to say they are worried about violence from Trump supporters? Uh what?
How about you except the results of the lawful election and protest by means that do not have the potential of having someone die or get hurt? Civil rights and other basic human rights are worse risking your personal safety or even your life. Being butthurt because your candidate didnt win is not. Protest at the ballot box next time and use tools at your disposal to get more people to vote the way you want next time.
Imagine the outcry if Trump had lost and his supporters would do this. I am extremely disappointed that Obama didnt use his 50 min speech of talking about himself and his legacy to tell people not to do this. Wheres Hillary by the way? A statement from her would be nice to remind people that is un-American to not accept the results of the election and that its HORRIFYING, as she said.
Strangerland
Verdict: Only approved location of protest is at the ballot box. All other locations of protest are not approved.
smartacus
This is bad for lots of reasons. It will increase the division in the country. I can't think of a similar case in any country ever, where the elected leader has been hated by so many people both at home an abroad, even before coming to power.
Although I am not a Trump supporter and believe he is not fit to be president, I do believe in democracy and am willing to wait and see how he does.
My advice to the protesters is don't make trouble. Give the man a chance. If he screws up, then you can vote him out of office in three years and 10 months from now.
Texas A&M Aggie
this president was elected by a voting minority
President (elect) Trump won the popular vote in 30 of our 50 states, and he shellacked Mrs. Clinton in the EC vote 304-228. That's 57 percent of the total tally. He clearly received a mandate from those of us who voted in November. . . .
Sabrage
Really hope I'm wrong, but I predict violence.
goldorak
Terrible and irresponsible thing to say. How can one expect demonstrators to walk peacefully and avoid any clash with the other side when organizers themselves claim they do NOT want a peaceful transition?
Def not in the same league/class as Obama.
Blacklabel
@Strangerland. yes, at the ballot box in a lawful manner. All of the so called protests of this era are some form of this:
Lets go march around and break and burn something. Lets destroy the economy in our own neighborhood. Oh that pair of shoes you wanted, lets go break the window and you can just take those. You DESERVE those shoes because you are being repressed, man!
Dont have work or school tomorrow so lets try to get on TV. Hey, Im on CNN! Why am I protesting, you ask? What is our message? Well because....uh....RACISM! Im angry! Hands up! The man! JUSTICE!
So why did the people in this article not talk about peaceful protests with a message? Their message is disruption, resistance, rebellion and they are NOT for peaceful transfer of power? What do they propose instead then?
dcog9065
27 different protest groups?! Damn, Trump is not liked
toshiko
Trump won. Just wait four years and new one might be. Give Trump chances to dither succeed or fail.
wtfjapan
PTownsend: voting minority thing, US is a federation. first its a republic , then its a federation. The US harps on about being the pillar of modern democracy, yet one of modern democracy's fundamental rule/rights is "one person one vote " Even Japans courts have ruled voter disparity is unconstitutional. Why should a rural persons vote be it in Japan or America be worth more than the POTUS or prime minister. Sound undemocratic and discriminatory to urban voters
Blacklabel
Not quite sure why Black Lives Matter is involved? Trump hasnt done anything to them, are they just paid professional protestors now? Trump has said there will be law and order, they want to protest that?
Also seriously where is Hillary? She was soooo against and horrified by all of this when she thought it would be Trump supporters doing it.
nfijapan
vote 304-228. That's 57 percent of the total tally. No the total tally is Clinton 65,844,954 48.2%. Trump 62,979,879 46.1%. Clearly Trump has less support than the 57% the Trumpsters keep claiming
Strangerland
President Trump was chosen to be president by 3 million people less than Clinton. He did not receive a mandate from the people. He got less than 50% of the vote, which was voted by only ~60% of the population. That means only ~30% of the population actually voted for him. Hardly a mandate.
Thunderbird
hey america, ever heard about impeachment?? let the guy do his job, if he's really unfit as you think, he'll be out. simple. and media please stop inciting division and violence.
Strangerland
You're using the extreme to criticize the moderate. Rioting and looting is never acceptable. But you've used that example to determine that approved protest can only happen at the ballot box.
Verdict: Only approved location of protest is at the ballot box. All other locations of protest are not approved.
Blacklabel
Yes, I agree with that verdict. At least until such time as protestors can articulate why they are protesting and do it without claiming rebellion, disruption and resistance. Also disregarding peaceful processes and trying to incite violence by harassing people on the other side until they get punched? Then use that to claim the other side is violent?
Can anyone really support this as a valid form of protest?
bass4funk
Commander in chief, head of the armed forces, has the House, the Senate, more Republican legislators, the presidency, I would call that a very strong mandate.
Blacklabel
Have these protestors even considered that all the resources that are going to be taken up dealing with them leaves the inauguration less protected from non protestors who may actually want to do harm? If I were a praying person, I would pray that no one gets hurt and that security is able to prevent anything bad from happening from outside sources.
Texas A&M Aggie
Protest, but do not engage in violence or scorched earth policies or you will lose my support
To see how Jan. 20th will play out, look no further than how Mrs. Clinton supporters reacted by rioting in the streets in the states that voted for her for days after Donald Trump won the election. Or, the lMrs. Clinton supporters who assaulted a motorist simply because he had a Trump bumper sticker on his car. Or, the Mrs. Clinton supporters who beat up a mentally challenged person and broadcast the attack on YouTube Live in the hopes of it "going viral".
To the the radical alt left, violence is the only way they can express themselves. . . .
CaptDingleheimer
After it's all finished and cleaned up and everybody has gone home, all the protesters will still be poor and stupid, and Donald Trump will be President.
lucabrasi
@CaptDingleheimer
... and stupid.
Strangerland
By that logic, Kim Jong Un also has a very strong mandate.
CaptDingleheimer
All those protesters sure are lucky they're getting the day off from work to be there...
Oh, wait- nevermind
Blacklabel
Based on what I have heard about paid protestors I think that is the only day of the month some of them will actually be working.
Texas A&M Aggie
All those protesters sure are lucky they're getting the day off from work to be there...
Oh, wait- nevermind
Heh, they will be just killing time until their welfare checks arrive in the mail at the end of the month. BTW, wonder how they will be able to get by after they start taking mandatory monthly drug and alcohol tests before getting their EBT cards replenished or be able to contact each other after President Trump orders that all Obama phones be turned off. . . .
Strangerland
Interesting you'd use an example of fake news to support your point.
Blacklabel
Its not fake news, its just not able to be verified.
ThePBot
As long as it's peaceful, no problem. It will be a golden moment.
Strangerland
Made up with no basis in fact = fake news.
You my friend, got trolled.
Blacklabel
here are several documents where others say that people are being paid and that has examples of job listings for $15 per hour. This is unverified and could be incorrect, but I feel I have to let everyone know that it is possible this is happening.
http://thefreethoughtproject.com/soros-funding-hiring-anti-trump-protesters/
Can I work for CNN now?
FizzBit
Be careful what you ask for, you just might get it. But it might not end as you had hoped.
From the #DisruptJ20 website
Turns out they don't offer legal assistance, just a list of Do's and Dont's.
So why didn't they protest Obama? After all, he's sold more weapons than any other President, bombed many countries, and oppressed a lot of Syrian's, Libyan's and Yemen's, that's for sure.
So THIS is how Trumps gonna pay for the inauguration. Genius!
Wait WHAT? So they're communists or anarchists? I'm confused.
This looks more like a well organized "fundraising campaign" rather than a call to action, IMO. Besides, if they try to move out of their "protest zones" they are going to be met with direct action themselves. Hopefully be the authorities, but maybe a few citizen groups as well. I just hope nobody gets shot.
http://www.disruptj20.org
OR, this could be just a Deep State False Flag op. and only a small handful of protesters who were stupid enough to believe this crap. Anyway, they've called for, and plan on "taking direct action", so they will be arrested immediately for inciting violence.
And in fairness, I read that they had previously planned on protesting Hillary's inauguration. So there's that. Can't verify.
CaptDingleheimer
You know, speaking of Russian hacking... it would be funny if the Russians hacked all the EBT card readers in DC for the days before and of the inauguration. All those protesters would be mighty hungry...
Strangerland
Ahh I see the problem. You read news reporting unverified reports, and believed them to be true without them actually having been so. So the problem isn't actually in the news you read, it was in your lack of reading comprehension that led you to believe a rumor was true.
Unfortunately, that means that in this case, the problem wasn't in the news, it was in your reading comprehension.
Blacklabel
The first time I can remember hearing about fake news was from Hillary and her people when her health issues came up. They were saying those were made up with no basis in fact. Then it was proven to not be fake news after all but unverified real news that was then verified when she collapsed in public on 9/11.
I am doing the CNN approach from now on. If another website has documents and reports it as true, I am reporting it as news with no attempt to prove or verify any of it. It is up to the reader of my post if they believe it or not. But a document exists so it cant be fake news.
Strangerland
As long as you are reporting it as unverified, then it's fine (though somewhat unethical). Brietbart does it all the time, and you guys love that site. If you are reporting it as true without confirming however, then you are simply creating fake news.
Fouxdefa
Do they really want to become a country that has a coup d'etat every election? Be careful what you wish for.
Blacklabel
My reading comprehension is just fine. I believe the contents of the document on the website, just as others believed the contents of the Trump dossier. If it later turns out to be not true, then its not my fault. Same as people saying when they found out Michael Cohen never went to Prague, that immediately makes that document made up fake news
Well, maybe some of the rest of it could be true......they say. So even if some of the documents in that link can be proven false, doesnt mean that other parts arent true. See what happens when people dont have to have proof or evidence before they start talking about things?
CaptDingleheimer
For every dopey liberal comment I read on here from now on, I'm going to remove one item from my recycle bin and throw it in with the regular garbage.
Strangerland
The website says it's unverified. So if your reading comprehension is just fine, and you choose to believe it as true even when the website doesn't make that claim, then it shows a lack of reality comprehension.
Which to be fair, is a lot of what led to Trump being elected.
Blacklabel
The editor of Buzzfeed posted that there is
Even that disclaimer didnt stop CNN. Even Obama said what does this have to do with anything? when he was briefed.
Im good with the fake news topic, its going to be debated for some time by people much smarter than me. I just hope no protestor does something stupid on the 20th.
bass4funk
If you use that logic and comparison, please don't just stop there, people like Obama and Clinton would have been brought in front of a firing squad a long time ago
Texas A&M Aggie
The first time I can remember hearing about fake news was from Hillary and her people when her health issues came up.
The first time I heard about fake news (which wound up being the biggest fake news story of 2016) was immediately after the DNC convention when the radical alt left media reported -- and kept reporting all the way up to Election Day -- that Donald Trump "had no path to 270 votes". . . .
Strangerland
Me too. Unfortunately I'm skeptical. Some radical left-wing fool is probably going to do something violent.
See once again your showing that you don't understand what fake means. The only way that could be fake is if someone could see the future, knew for a fact trump was going to win, and reported the above regardless.
IparryU
Looks like the HhilTrain came through town... because anything not negative about Trump was down voted.
Blacklabel
Oh yeah it was reported nearly every day that Trump had no path to 270. Yet here we are talking about people being butthurt about his inauguration. So I guess there was a path after all...? Thinking back shouldnt there always be a path? Unless there is a WALL :-)
Strangerland
Yeah there is no denying those predictions were entirely wrong. They are going to need to tweak their algorithm before the next election. That was a serious failure.
Blacklabel
So when aliens actually land on Earth someday, do we go back and change all the Alien abduction/UFO fake news of today into real news? or does it stay fake because it was obviously made up and unverified at the time it was published?
Same as Hillary DID have health problems as the so called fake news reported. But is it still fake news now because it was fake at the time and not proven until after?
Man, this is confusing. Im done with this topic, its messing up my head. All I know is it that to ME is much much more likely that protesters were paid than it is that Trump did all that stuff in the dossier. What we are gonna call fake news and what we are gonna call unverified news, I dont know.
wtfjapan
all the protesters will still be poor and stupid, and Donald Trump will be President. actually statistics show Trump supporters come from uneducated middle/lower class. meaning the average IQ and income is lower than that of Clinton supporters. SO after Trump has existed the white house, "his supporters will still be poor and uneducated, nothings going to change that." there fixed it for you.
Strangerland
Who was claiming otherwise?
Thunderbird2
So are protest marches in America illegal? Over here they are part of our right to express ourselves. As long as there is no violence or breach of the peace the police are okay with protests.
Personally if I was American I'd be protesting too... I mean how can someone who got less actual votes win? Why not a proper one man one vote system? Surely that's fair?
Daniel Naumoff
Democratic hypocrisy - you have to respect what the majority thinks, but then you go on demonstration trying to block legal process supported by both the majority and the law. America is such a joke from the common human decency perspective.
theFu
Not sure people from outside the USA understand how we feel about protesting here.
The right to protest (freedom of speech) is similar to the right to bare arms or freedom to follow (or not follow) any religion or freedom of the press. Just because I don't like your speech or religion or news story, doesn't mean I won't protect your right to it.
If I don't want to hear it, I can leave the area. It can be an inconvenience, but those are things we (Americans) feel strongly about.
Most of us have traveled to places in the world where these "rights" are not rights at all. Those cultures are different, not better, nor worse, just different. Sure, I'd love to be able to "protest" in Mexico, but it is illegal for me to do so. I'd also like to speak the truth when in Thailand or Indonesia.
The USA is not a democracy. We are a "democratic-republic" - look it up. 1-person, 1-vote seems fair on the surface, but the USA is a country with widely varied lifestyles for good reasons. The land demands it. The climate demands it. Should all the people in Tokyo control what happens in Sarufutsu? The smart men who wrote our Constitution knew that the east coast would have more population than the western parts of the country, so as a way to prevent city-folks from overruling what was best for rural people, they made senators. I think the senate originally elected the president directly, not the people.
There are good reasons for the EC.
Daniel Naumoff
Protesting democratically chosen president is a paradox for what democracy stands for. On the one hand, you have freedom of speech even if it is hate speech against the Mr. President, so it is fine. On the other hand, you have the majority, which is the foundation of democracy, who have chosen their president democratically. Now the protestors do not respect the BASICS OF DEMOCRACY. It is either a demention on national scale or a democratic paradox that makes the whole system America tried to uphold gloriously for the last 300 years IS UTTERLY BROKEN LADS! Yet they keep biting yourself in the leg. While they are at it, at least you can not bite the rest of the world.
Zodiac
Lets hope it doesnt turn violent I got all respect for people willing to protest but burning an looting stores aint really a good way to get your message across.
FizzBit
I wouldn't go that far, broken, yes. Utterly, no. It's called inverted totalitarianism, and the MSM, a very important part of it, has many of my fellow citizens by the ears.
Simple Wiki version
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_totalitarianism
One reason we are having a hard time with healthcare is that Big Medical and our government protects them. If you want to be a doctor in the US you have to do your residency in the US, and there are lines around the block to get in. Meds, patents, insurance for profit, on and on. Obamacare was written by these pigs. Why can't we import thousands of doctors from China?
Serrano
"After a deeply polarizing campaign,"
Thanks, Clinton and Obama.
"Some 300 DisruptJ20 volunteers will work to mobilize demonstrators for a series of protests the group has dubbed the “Festival of Resistance.”
“We are not in favor of a peaceful transition of power, and we need to stop it,” organizer Legba Carrefour said."
Looks like Legba's going to jail.
turbotsat
Soros-paid agitators, doing the Democratic Party proud.
Cliffy
What is that going to accomplish? It is not like they will redo the election all over again. They could hope for him to step out of line and start the impeachment process.
Cliffy
One good thing about an official with so many haters is that everything he/she does will be put under a microscope being monitored by those who want to take him/her down.
Kuya 808
It was just that kind of affected classist sophistication that handed Trump the Presidency. If the liberal left learns anything from the last campaign cycle and subsequent Trump election, it should be that demeaning and dismissing the opposition's supporters is not a winning strategy.
“Do not patronize the passionate supporters of your opponents by looking down your nose at them,” (William Jefferson Clinton, 42nd POTUS)
Maybe the liberal/left should have taken heed of his advice. Instead they believed their own caricature of Trump supporters and dismissed them as "deplorable" and"irredeemable" and that cost them the election.
Daniel Naumoff
Even if Trump supporters are as uneducated as the opposite call them, they managed to vote up the president they believe would represent their lives in their society. Which means, that the majority of the society supports Trump. No matter how you look at it, those angry at Trump for winning do not want a better, just society, they just want their own society. Inhumane.
Serrano
Inaugurations are about the presidency,not just the president. These demonstrators don't get that.
Cavuto: Honoring the institutions that define us:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esrDKTnhOwo
SuperLib
C!inton won the popular vote by nearly 3,000,000 votes. I'm not sure why people think that is a mandate for Trump or that the Democrats have some house cleaning to do.
Serrano
Clinton lost the Electoral College 228 to 304, and lost 30 out of 50 states I'm not sure why some peope think she should be president. And the Democrats lost not only the White House, they lost the House and the Senate, I'm not sure why some people don't think they have some house cleaning to do.
arrestpaul
Fun with numbers? 27 protest groups simply means that 27 people filed for a permit.
27 different protest groups with an average number of 100 protestors per group equals 2,700 protestors. 200 protestors equal 5,400 protestors. 1,000 protestors per equals 27,000 protestors.
Kuya 808
@Super Lib
If you look at California and New York, Hillary pounded Trump with just a little less than 6,000,000 votes.Yet in the national tally she was only 3,000,000 ahead. I don't know how you interpret those numbers, but from my perspective it looks like Trump won the popular vote in the 48 states outside of California and New York.
If you look at the steady decline of Democratic Party representation in the legislative branch of the federal government as well as State Governors and state legislatures, I personally, don't see why the Democratic Party cannot realize that there might just be something wrong with their message and methods and maybe a reevaluation of their party platform might be in order.
turbotsat
Because:
And why are you mangling 'C!inton'? It's a weird typo to make, the ! and L keys are on opposite sides of the keyboard.
CaptDingleheimer
Just think how many more protesters there would be if Inauguration Day was right after the 1st of the month. Being nearly 3 weeks into a month, the protesters already dipped into their welfare checks pretty hard, and many may be unable to afford a bus ticket to DC.
RabidGaijin
It will be nice to see the police let loose on those protestors. 8 years coming.
Tokyo-Engr
As one who supported neither candidate and certainly no supporter of Trump I am reminded when President Elect Trump was asked if he would honor the results of the election during one of the debate. He answered that he would wait and see and he was crucified for that statement. Now I hear that members of Congress will not attend the inauguration and that protesters wish to "disrupt" it.
I am not happy Trump is our President Elect, however the hypocrisy of this is stunning and the silence from the losing party on this issue speaks volumes.
The United States is a country divided and those in power wish it to remain so for their own selfish benefit.
theFu
I didn't vote for any democrat in the last election, but don't think Mr. Trump has any mandate. People voted for him for 2 reasons: a) anyone BUT Ms. Clinton b) anyone who isn't a lifetime politician - an outsider
Both parties suck, just in different ways.
boweevil
@theFu
I agree-but Trump's suckage exerts exponentially many more pounds per square inch. I bet a large number of these people ddint even vote....kind of like closing barn door after horse done gone...
But again the electoral college which provided the world with the Iraq war and the financial crisis is the gift that keeps on giving the least informed disproportionate voting power. Even Trumpty Dumpty knew that until it benefited him not to.
John-San
Fact: Peaceful Protest = No change to the status-quo , Violent Protest = change to Status-quo, E.G Civils Protest of the 50,s The Protesters were not violent but the response was. The same with Vietnam war Protests end up violent and this change policy. Anti- ApartI in South Africa was a no way non violent struggle. I assume that this protest will be non violent. The election of Bush when he just won with a total vote of 60 million the lowest turn out numbers for voting in the election. Bush went to war saying he had a mandate of the USA people which was only 1/5 of the USA population. There was no protest then. These people are just sore losers, They really have non conviction with how the public feel. When with the Civil right and Vietnam moments they had popular support. this has not. This election was won on Demographic not on the over all public feel. Hills, won the all over vote or the pop vote but not the total backing of the voting system.
mt9334
"“We are not in favor of a peaceful transition of power, and we need to stop it,” organizer Legba Carrefour said."
As you wish. Then Power and Force will be utilized. The transition of power WILL HAPPEN.
JuliusCaesar
This is a paid protest. There is no sympathy from the general populous here in our communities for violence or otherwise. Much to the chagrin of the media, it will be insignificant.
sf2k
more mass protests should be in the making not just one. You the Sheeple have been milked for everything your worth and just do nothing to stop it. If you really are the land of the free, show us how it's done.
smithinjapan
Hahaha! And Trump, the worst rating going in as president-elect in US history, says he's going to unite the nation!
So long as they protest peacefully, all the power to them. Might be the last possible protest in the US after Trump takes power.
Strangerland
I agree. Unfortunately there will be a few extremists who won't protest peacefully, and will taint the whole thing, making the right think they are justified in their beliefs that protest is bad.