President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson voiced their frustration after Saturday over why approximately 7 million Americans would participate in "No Kings" protests after the president explicitly stated multiple times that he is not, in fact, a king.
"I'm not a king at all," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, seemingly puzzled that nearly 3 million more people showed up to this protest than the previous one in June. "I work my ass off to make our country great. I don't understand why they're upset."
The president's confusion appeared especially acute given his immediate response to the protests: sharing an AI-generated video depicting himself wearing a crown while flying a fighter jet labeled "KING TRUMP" and dumping what appeared to be fecal matter on protesters below. Sources close to the president confirmed he genuinely could not understand why this gesture failed to clarify his non-monarchical status.
Speaker Johnson echoed Trump's bewilderment during a Sunday interview, calling the protests "a stunt" while simultaneously arguing their very existence proved Trump wasn't a king because he allowed them to happen. "If President Trump was a king, they would not have been able to engage in that free speech exercise," Johnson explained, apparently unable to grasp that preventing citizens from exercising free speech is typically considered evidence of authoritarian rule, not proof of its absence.
The protests came after Trump deployed National Guard troops to multiple Democratic-led cities without governors' consent—the first time such action had occurred since 1965—implemented mass immigration raids using masked federal agents, attempted to unilaterally cut federal programs during a government shutdown he claimed gave him special powers, and ordered the Justice Department to arrest former advisers including John Bolton. Administration officials remained genuinely mystified that any of these actions might prompt citizens to question executive authority.
"We call it the 'hate America' rally," Johnson told reporters before the protests, predicting attendance by "the pro-Hamas wing, antifa people, and Marxists." When the actual protests featured families with children, retired government workers celebrating their 70th birthdays, and Iraq War veterans, Johnson appeared no less certain of his initial assessment.
Trump's spokeswoman, when asked about the 2,700 peaceful demonstrations spanning all 50 states, offered a succinct response that perfectly captured the administration's comprehension of democratic dissent: "Who cares?"
