Recent activities by the Trump administration singularly and collectively sent powerful messages to the world. The dueling fronts were in full motion. The Democracy Defenders and MAGA-ites deepened their respective lines in the sand. Trump’s abuse of authority has forced a massive, coordinated response from the Defenders.

Leading up to the eventful weekend were the escalating ICE raids in California and elsewhere. The trump administration’s big lie is that only the most vicious and violent of those in the country without proper documentation would be rounded up. Nazi wanna-be Stephen Miller, a key trump advisor, has been the torch bearer for mass deportations. He also led the charge against DEI. Being called a despicable human being, a racist and a xenophobe only adds to his desired persona as someone to be feared.

We now know the first wave of ICE roundups reveal the immigrants being held or disappeared are hard-working, tax-paying people who are struggling for a safe and better life. Miller has failed miserably in moving his daily quota of 3000 so-called violent thugs out of the country. We can expect him to double down with more aggressive tactics toward immigrants.

There was the utter disregard for the established process of deploying the National Guard. Kristi Noem, the incompetent head of Homeland Security, vowed to keep troops in Los Angeles to “liberate the City from the socialist and the burdensome leadership” of Mayor Bass and Gov. Newsom. Both the mayor and the governor were firm in their abilities to deal with the ICE protests in the City of Angels.

During a press conference by Noem, U.S. Senator Alex Padillo, was tackled to the ground and handcuffed for trying to simply ask a question. The release of the full video exposed the lies by Noem that Padillo moved in a threatening manner and did not identify himself.

Then there was the deployment of U.S. Marines to LA–a military arm trained to kill, disrupt and destroy, not control protesters. They were sent into LA despite the vocal opposition of the mayor, the governor and others who understand the U.S. Constitution and state authority.

The tragic assassination of a U.S. senator and her spouse in Minnesota, along with the attempted assassination of another senator and his spouse, along with the discovery of a hit-list of other Democratic state leaders, took the violence to a new level.

There was the  flagrant use of the $45 million parade to celebrate trump’s birthday under the guise of celebrating the U.S. Army. And most disgusting, it’s at a time when veteran agencies and benefits are being gutted. The parade was rightfully overshadowed by the millions who poured into the streets chanting “No Kings!”  The 2100 protests were held in all fifty states and showed that people, including some trump supporters, understood that we are in dangerous territory. We must stand up against authoritarianism and continue to organize the resistance.

The pressure on MAGA has pushed them into revealing their true identities and agenda at all costs. Dictator trump has promised to carry out ICE raids and put military troops in every city. That promise was subsequently exposed to mean cities where there are Democrats in elected leadership. All this points to extremist attacks targeting Democrats and ratcheting up state repression for the rest of us.

Let us not ignore the character of trump and those around him. Even if we only focus on the line between January 6 and now, MAGA has  unapologetically unveiled its plan for the country. What happened on January 6, how trump incited an insurrection and how he rewarded the actions of those who killed, maimed and threatened under the banner of making America white again with pardons is proof positive that we who believe in Freedom have plenty of work to do.

I still passionately believe that Congress needs to invoke Amendment 25 for trump’s insane and reckless leadership. This man is not only stoking civil unrest nationally but in foreign affairs​ like Gaza and Iran. His actions are a threat to national security as well as our personal security.

The No Kings protests cannot be a moment of temporary anger at what we’re seeing and experiencing. It must be shaped into a multiracial, nonpartisan movement to oppose homegrown authoritarianism. Only then will it be respected as part of a global united front against fascism. We must do our part here and now.