Will ‘No Kings’ rallies make a difference?

The “No Kings” demonstrations drew millions to the streets to protest President Donald Trump. Organizers estimate that between five and seven million Americans turned out, making it one of the largest single-day rallies in American history. 

Republicans predicted violence and chaos and tried to brand it as a “hate America” rally, but the protests were almost entirely peaceful, patriotic and even whimsical with people dressed in hot dog, panda, T-rex, Santa Claus and frog costumes. 

On the day of the protests, the president posted on Truth Social an AI-generated video of him flying a jet with a crown on his head, dumping what looked like human feces onto the demonstrators.

On this episode of Studio 2, we look at the power of protest to make social and political change. Are peaceful protests an effective strategy and what’s the end goal? Will “No Kings” become a mass movement or fizzle out?

Guests: 

Omar Wasow, professor of political science at UC Berkeley 

Charlie Sykes, co-founder of The Bulwark and author of the newsletter To the Contrary