Thousands protest Trump at third ‘No Kings’ rally

At least a thousand demonstrators protested the actions of President Donald Trump in Patchogue last weekend in the third “No Kings” rally.

Crowds of demonstrators expressed disapproval of the Trump administration and the ongoing War in Iran at the Great Patchogue Lake in Patchogue, nearly filling the park shoulder-to-shoulder, before marching down Main Street towards the office of U.S. Rep. Andrew Garbarino, and returning to the park.

The protest was among 16 across Long Island and over 3,000 nationwide, drawing some of the largest crowds out of the numerous protests held outside Garbarino’s office since Trump took office last January.

Demonstrators and organizations at the protest each had different motivations for publicly airing their disapproval of the Trump administration, from increased Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity to uncertainties about federal funding for social services to the ongoing Iran War and resulting rise in fuel prices.

“One person shouldn’t make decisions for the country. We’ve got our process of co-equal branches of government,” said Karin Wagner, member of South Country Unites, the Bellport-based advocacy group that helped organize the Patchogue protest. “We’ve got Trump deciding on things himself. We don’t even know what’s going on with the war… And the Republicans are really following along pretty mindlessly, so they’re afraid to stand up.”

Wagner and South Country Unites organizers said their group has been consistently in communication with Garbarino’s office, especially since Trump took office, and that staff members have treated them with respect and have attempted to answer their inquiries.

But other group organizers said the official responses they’ve received from the congressman about his stance on legislation and the Trump administration’s actions haven’t directly addressed their concerns.

For South Country Unites, marching past Garbarino’s office held a symbolic power.

“The symbolism of that is to do your job,” Wagner said about Garbarino. “He’s head of [the House Committee on] Homeland Security, and he’s not having town halls.”

U.S. Rep Garbarino hosted a virtual town hall last year. Garbarino’s office did not respond to a request for comment about the protest outside his office.

The “No Kings” protest comes one month into the United States’ ongoing War in Iran. About 61 percent of Americans disapprove of the war as of March 16-22, according to the Pew Research Center, with nearly half of poll respondents saying the military operation is not going well.

Pat Halpin, a Democratic candidate running against Garbarino for Congress, said at the “No Kings” protest that war needed congressional approval.

Halpin also expressed disapproval of a proposed ICE detention center at the Internal Revenue Service building in Holtsville.

“It’s not a detention center; it’s a jail,” Halpin said at the protest. “Processing them means that you’re arresting them, like what went on in Nazi freaking Germany.”

Town of Brookhaven officials, including town attorney Annette Eaderesto, according to Newsday, have publicly opposed the proposed ICE detention center in Holtsville since early March.

“We need a Congress that’s going to do their job. No wars without congressional approval, no taxes without congressional approval, tariffs without congressional approval,” Halpin said.

Two other Democratic candidates running for Garbarino’s seat, Garrett Petersen and Jessica Murphy, were also present at the protest.

Petersen, who also serves as deputy chair of the Islip Democrats, is a frequent face at local protests against the Trump administration and previously told The Long Island Advance that he aims to calm any tensions that may arise at demonstrations. At this protest, aside from a few drivers passing by shouting pro-Trump slogans, organizers said there was little disruption.

“People are energized, and people are calling for America to meet the moment that it’s in,” Petersen said.

Petersen said he expects the upcoming mid-term elections to be a “blue tsunami” across the country, and that despite Republicans winning across Suffolk County in recent years, the county is more “purple” than red or blue leaning.

The Cook Political Report, however, rated the first and second congressional districts, which cover almost all of Suffolk County, as “solid Republican” in the upcoming midterms.

Along with political candidates and their supporters, most of the crowd comprised local residents, each holding a sign, wearing a shirt, or vocally expressing their disapproval of the Trump administration.

Demonstrator Sue Ellen Catlett of Patchogue came dressed in a suffragette costume in honor of her grandmother, who was a suffragette in Chicago. For Catlett, who handed out protest cards and signs to those without one, the day represented a continued fight for human rights.

“Power from the people is more powerful than the people in power,” Catlett said.