Why ‘Fascist’? Anti-Trump Protesters Struggle to Justify the Label

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Elon Musk criticized the alleged “puppetmasters” behind anti-Trump protests after a video went viral showing protesters struggling to articulate why they consider President Donald Trump a “fascist,” Fox News reports. Musk posted on X, accompanied by video footage of protesters faltering when asked about their issues with Trump, “The problem is the puppetmasters, not the puppets, as the latter have no idea why they are even there.”

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The video, recorded by political strategist Ted Goodman in Washington, D.C., featured one protester saying Trump “just does everything he wants… He’s a convicted felon, you know, that’s all I know,” while holding a sign that read, “The Fascist Trump Regime Must Go.” Another protester claimed Trump was “trying to control the media,” but when Goodman pointed out that presidents often try to control their narrative, the protester cited Trump’s renaming of the Gulf of Mexico and barring the Associated Press from the White House.

The protesters also said they were there because they “saw people were hanging out” or due to “executive overreach.” One admitted to receiving a sign calling Trump a “fascist” and a flyer with a photoshopped image of Trump with a Hitler-styled mustache. The video gained over 12 million views on X by Sunday afternoon.

Nationwide, over 1,200 protests occurred, addressing issues like the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), reciprocal tariffs, federal layoffs, and immigration reform. Protesters told Fox News Digital that they were protesting “how horrible things have become in our country” and that the U.S. is transitioning “to a dictatorship” and “almost in a fascist state.”

“I mean, we’ve been taken over by a bunch of robber barons who are trying to take away all of our rights, benefits and liberty,” one protestor said.

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These protests followed similar demonstrations against Tesla. Musk, who is helping lead DOGE under the Trump administration, has seen his company targeted by anti-Trump critics. Musk questioned, “Who is funding and organizing all these paid protests?” last weekend regarding the anti-Tesla protests. Critics have speculated that the anti-Tesla protests are an “astroturfing” campaign, which is defined as actions falsely appearing as a grassroots movement.

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