Peaceful protests and soft targets
A brief dispatch from Los Angeles.
I woke up in Los Angeles today to see the bizarre and troubling news of what authorities are calling a “politically-motivated” assassination of two Democratic state lawmakers in Minnesota. Early reports indicate that the killer was probably right-wing and may have intended to target the “No Kings” protests taking place across the country today.
There’s a lot left to go today; it’s just noon out here on the west coast. But if protests remain peaceful — and even if they don’t, depending on the circumstances — this weekend’s actions are looking like a big loss for Donald Trump and the authoritarian right. The violence and flames that Trump claimed required him to send in the troops haven’t materialized, at least not yet. A court has ruled that Trump overplayed his hand with the federalization of the California National Guard. (Aside: what about the Marines? Are we going to straighten that one out in the courts while we’re at it?) Trump’s big birthday celebration/American juche parade is being met with protests across nationwide, including in heavily-Republican states.
But these gatherings are, unfortunately, something else: they’re big, soft targets for people like the killer in Minnesota to target and make their point on behalf of Trump. I’m sure the president will double down at some point, claiming that these protests are acts of insurrection that should be crushed. But for now, the biggest crowd I’ve seen in the 10 years I’ve covered American unrest has the streets in Los Angeles, and is peaceful. We’ll see what night brings.
***
Please follow AD on our social media for a little more doom to your scroll. That’s what we all need, right?
Bluesky - @americandoom.bsky.social
TikTok - @americandoom_
YouTube - @americandoom_
Instagram - @americandoom_
X - @americandoom_
Justin - GOOD WORK!