AFP USA

A manhunt was underway Sunday for a gunman who shot two Democratic state lawmakers in Minnesota, killing Melissa Hortman and her husband and wounding the other, in what the northern US state’s governor said were politically motivated attacks.The shootings Saturday came as deep political divisions have riven the United States, the same day that hundreds of thousands of protesters across the country took to the streets to rally against the policies of Republican President Donald Trump.Democratic State Representative Hortman — a former speaker of the House — and her husband Mark were killed at their home in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Park, Governor Tim Walz announced in a news conference.State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were shot and wounded at their home in nearby Champlin, he said.Authorities named the assailant as 57-year-old Vance Luther Boelter, who was still at large and considered “armed and dangerous.””We believe he’s working to potentially flee the (Minneapolis-St Paul) area,” Drew Evans, superintendent of the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, told reporters.Boelter had been spotted Saturday morning in the Minneapolis area on surveillance footage obtained from a business, the official said.Evans said authorities were still investigating the suspect’s motives, and did not know if additional people were involved in the attacks. Trump and US Attorney General Pam Bondi decried what they called “horrific violence” and said perpetrators would be prosecuted to “the fullest extent of the law.”The Federal Bureau of Investigation offered a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to the capture or conviction of Boelter. – ‘Targeted political violence’ -Walz called the shootings “an act of targeted political violence.””Peaceful discourse is the foundation of our democracy. We don’t settle our differences with violence or at gunpoint,” he said during a news conference.He later announced on X that Minnesota’s flags will fly at half-staff in honor of Hortman. “She woke up every morning determined to make Minnesota a better place,” the Democratic governor said.State official Evans said Hoffman — who was “in stable condition” — and his wife were shot first, and as police investigated, Hortman and her husband were shot about 90 minutes later.The gunman was able to escape during an exchange of fire with officers near Hortman’s residence.Praetorian Guards Security Services, a home security company, described Boelter on its website as its director of security patrols.- Impersonating law enforcement -In both attacks, authorities believe the assailant impersonated a law enforcement officer.An image of Boelter released by the FBI showed him wearing what appeared to be a latex mask, potentially an attempt to evade identification. Flyers for the anti-Trump protests planned for Minnesota — — part of Saturday’s national wave of “No Kings” demonstrations — were found in the suspect’s car, as well as a manifesto that named numerous politicians and state officials, police said.The roommate of Boelter, David Carlson, told local TV affiliate KARE that he had received a text message from the suspect saying he was going to be gone for a while and “may be dead shortly.”Authorities recommended that people do not attend political rallies across Minnesota “out of an abundance of caution.”But footage from local TV stations showed huge crowds of protesters still turned out in state capital St Paul in a demonstration that doubled as a public mourning for Hortman. “She fought for the people, she stood with people, she was a powerful political leader,” said Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison in a speech during the protest. “Melissa proved that you could be a politician and be a good person.” -‘Precipice moment’ -Tensions were high across the country, and in Texas authorities said they evacuated the state capitol complex after a “credible threat” towards lawmakers planning to attend a protest there.In Brooklyn Park, where Hortman lived, authorities searching for the suspect lifted a shelter-in-place order Saturday afternoon, saying that there was “reason to believe he is no longer in the area.”The United States has been deeply divided since Trump returned to the White House in January.The Republican president has drawn criticism from Democrats over his harsh immigration policy, his assault on universities and the media, and a perceived flouting of limits on executive power.Former US congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who survived a shooting to the head in 2011 and is now a prominent advocate for the prevention of gun violence, said she was “devastated” by Hortman’s death. “We must protect our democracy from those who try to destroy it with a gun,” Giffords wrote on X.

President Donald Trump hosted the largest US military parade in decades on his 79th birthday as protesters rallied across the country to accuse him of acting like a dictator.Trump hailed the United States as the “hottest country in the world” after watching tanks, aircraft and troops file past him in Washington on Saturday to honor the 250th anniversary of the US army.It formed a stark split screen with turmoil at home and abroad, as police used teargas to disperse protesters in Los Angeles and US ally Israel traded missile fire with Iran in a rapidly escalating conflict in the Middle East.Trump’s parade on an overcast night in Washington came after hundreds of thousands of “No Kings” demonstrators thronged the streets in cities including New York, Philadelphia, Houston and Atlanta.The Republican largely avoided his usual domestic political diatribes in an unusually brief speech and instead focused on praising the US army, saying that they “fight, fight, fight, and they win, win, win.”The display of military might comes as Trump asserts his power domestically and on the international stage.Trump used his parade address to send a warning to Washington’s adversaries of “total and complete” defeat, with the United States increasingly at risk of entanglement in Israel’s conflict with Iran. “Time and again, America’s enemies have learned that if you threaten the American people, our soldiers are coming for you,” Trump said.- ‘Happy Birthday’ -Trump had openly dreamed since his first term as president of having a grand military parade of the type more often seen in Moscow or Pyongyang.The last such parade in the United States was at the end of the Gulf War in 1991.Trump stood and saluted on a stage outside the White House as tanks rumbled past, aircraft roared overhead and nearly 7,000 troops marched by. Troops and military hardware from different eras passed by, with an announcer reeling off US victories in battles with Japanese, German, Chinese and Vietnamese forces in past wars.The army said the parade cost up to $45 million.The crowd sang “Happy Birthday” and there were occasional chants of “USA! USA!” but the atmosphere was less intense than one of the barnstorming rallies that swept Trump to power.The White House said that “over 250,000 patriots showed up” for the event, without providing evidence. Communications Director Steven Cheung described the “No Kings” protests as a “complete and utter failure.””No Kings” organizers said protesters gathered in hundreds of places, with AFP journalists seeing large crowds in several cities.Organizers said they were protesting against Trump’s dictatorial overreach, particularly what they described as the strongman symbolism of the parade.”I think people are mad as hell,” Lindsay Ross, a 28-year-old musician, told AFP in New York, where tens of thousands of people rallied.Some protesters targeted Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, while a small group even gathered in Paris.- ‘Display of authoritarianism’ -“I think it’s disgusting,” protester Sarah Hargrave, 42, said in the Washington suburb of Bethesda, describing Trump’s parade as a “display of authoritarianism.”Thousands turned out in Los Angeles to protest against Trump’s deployment of troops in the country’s second-largest city following clashes sparked by immigration raids.”He’s trying to bully Los Angeles into complying with everything that he’s trying to do, and we’re not going to do that. We’re a city of immigrants,” a protester who gave his name as Armando told AFP. After a day of largely peaceful protests, police unexpectedly began moving people away from the LA protest area, igniting confusion and anger among demonstrators caught off guard and unsure of where to go.Police on horseback pushed crowds back as law enforcement fired tear gas and flash-bang grenades hours ahead of an 8:00 pm (0300 GMT) curfew. Police officials said a “small group of agitators” had begun throwing rocks, bottles and fireworks at officers, prompting the decision to deploy tear gas and order the crowd to disperse.Violence shattered the calm elsewhere, with a shooting at a “No Kings” demonstration in the western US city of Salt Lake City. At least one person was critically injured and three people were taken into custody, police said.The killing of a Democratic lawmaker and her husband in the northern state of Minnesota on Saturday, in what the governor called a targeted attack, also cast a pall over the parade.Trump was quick to condemn the attacks outside Minneapolis in which former state speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed, while another state lawmaker and his wife were hospitalized with gunshot wounds.

The US central bank is expected to keep interest rates unchanged for a fourth straight policy meeting this week, despite President Donald Trump’s push for rate cuts, as officials contend with uncertainty sparked by the Republican’s tariffs.While the independent Federal Reserve has started lowering rates from recent highs, officials have held the level steady this year as Trump’s tariffs began rippling through the world’s biggest economy.The Fed has kept interest rates between 4.25 percent and 4.50 percent since December, while it monitors the health of the jobs market and inflation.”The hope is to stay below the radar screen at this meeting,” KPMG chief economist Diane Swonk told AFP. “Uncertainty is still very high.””Until they know sufficiently, and convincingly that inflation is not going to pick up” either in response to tariffs or related threats, “they just can’t move,” she said.Since returning to the presidency, Trump has slapped a 10 percent tariff on most US trading partners. Higher rates on dozens of economies are due to take effect in July, unless an existing pause is extended.Trump has also engaged in a tit-for-tat tariff war with China and imposed levies on imports of steel, aluminum and automobiles, rattling financial markets and tanking consumer sentiment.But economists expect it will take three to four months for tariff effects to show up in consumer prices.Although hiring has cooled slightly and there was some shrinking of the labor force according to government data, the unemployment rate has stayed unchanged.Inflation has been muted too, even as analysts noted signs of smaller business margins — meaning companies are bearing the brunt of tariffs for now.At the end of the Fed’s two-day meeting Wednesday, analysts will be parsing through its economic projections for changes to growth and unemployment expectations — and for signs of the number of rate cuts to come.The Fed faces growing pressure from Trump — citing benign inflation data — to lower rates more quickly, a move the president argues will help the country “pay much less interest on debt coming due.”On Wednesday, Trump urged Fed Chair Jerome Powell to slash interest rates by a full percentage point, and on Thursday, he called Powell a “numbskull” for not doing so.He said Powell could raise rates again if inflation picked up then.But Powell has defended US central bank independence over interest rates when engaging with Trump.- ‘Cautious patience’ -For their part, Fed policymakers have signaled “little urgency” to adjust rates, said EY chief economist Gregory Daco.He believes they are unwilling to get ahead of the net effects from Trump’s trade, tax, immigration and regulation policy changes.Powell “will likely strike a tone of cautious patience, reiterating that policy remains data dependent,” Daco said.While economists have warned that Trump’s tariffs would fuel inflation and weigh on economic growth, supporters of Trump’s policies argue the president’s plans for tax cuts next year will boost the economy.On the Fed’s path ahead, HSBC Global Research said: “Weak labor market data could lead to larger cuts, while elevated inflation would tend to imply the opposite.”For now, analysts expect the central bank to slash rates two more times this year, beginning in September.The Fed is likely to be eyeing data over the summer for inflationary pressures from tariffs, said Ryan Sweet, chief US economist at Oxford Economics.”They want to make sure that they’re reading the tea leaves correctly,” he said.Swonk warned the US economy is in a different place than during the Covid-19 pandemic, which could change how consumers react to price increases.During the pandemic, government stimulus payments helped households cushion the blow from higher costs, allowing them to keep spending.It is unclear if consumers, a key driver of the economy, will keep their dollars flowing this time, meaning demand could collapse and complicate the Fed’s calculus.”If this had been a world without tariffs, the Fed would be cutting right now. There’s no question,” Swonk said.

Parachutists glided through the air as soldiers marched and tanks groaned through the barricaded streets of Washington Saturday during a military parade long-coveted by US President Donald Trump, as a largely quiet crowd watched on. On the National Mall, enclosed within almost 20 miles (32 kilometers) of high-security fencing, nearly 7,000 soldiers and about 150 military vehicles paraded to intermittent cheers.Rain had threatened to wash out the event but it never came, much to the relief of those lining the four-lane street that runs past the White House, where Trump stood watching and frequently saluting the passing troops.The crowd was mostly quiet as soldiers in uniforms dating back to the 1700s marched past, bar the occasional shouts of “Thank you, Army!” that spurred cheers and whoops. Many wore Trump’s signature red “Make America Great Again” baseball caps, but others attending made clear they supported the Army — but opposed the norm-bending president. “Personally, I’m not a fan of Trump, but I’m a fan of the Army,” said Andrew Smith, 24, whose brother serves in the military.”I feel like we can separate politics and what we stand for, and then hopefully get along,” he added.- ‘Beat Fascism!’ -Marty Wrin echoed the sentiments expressed among the crowds of protesters gathered outside the parade area in Washington, and around the country Saturday.   “I’m proud to be American,” insisted the 56-year-old IT worker from Washington, wearing a hat saying “resist” and holding a sign saying “Go Army. Beat Fascism!””I’m proud of our democracy, and I’m worried about our democracy right now for the first time in my life,” he told AFP. Wrin said he was impressed by the parade, but did not like something he associated with dictatorships happening on US streets.”It’s the Army being used by Trump to make himself feel more powerful,” he said. With cloudy skies overhead, people stood on tiptoes to catch a glimpse of the military gear on display. Several children sat on their parents’ shoulders to get a better view and waved back to soldiers sitting atop tanks and other armored vehicles.Michele Sabat, who said she had attended several past Trump rallies, told AFP she was thrilled that she had traveled from Pennsylvania to watch the parade.”I wanted to honor the military, I feel it’s the right thing to do. They protect us, they save us, and you’ve got to respect them,” the retired 68-year-old said.She sat on a curb next to Camila Rodriguez, 30, watching as thousands of troops marched by in the largest such parade in decades. Rodriguez, an auditor from Boston, said she was impressed by what she saw. “All the troops… There’s so many of them. So anything to support them,” she said.”I will always be here for that.”

A giant orange balloon depicting  Donald Trump in a diaper towered over one “No Kings” protest Saturday, as hundreds of thousands thronged streets across the United States to decry the president’s policies.Protest organizers expected rallies in all 50 US states, calling them the largest since Trump returned to office in January, with the aim of “rejecting authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarization of our democracy.”Wielding signs with messages like “No KKKings” and “No crown for the clown,” the protests stood in stark contrast to a massive military parade in Washington on Saturday.The parade was meant to commemorate the founding of the US Army, but also fell on the president’s 79th birthday.As thousands of soldiers marched and tanks rumbled through Washington’s streets, protesters across the country slammed Trump as a “fascist.””We have a dictator,” said Robin Breed, a 56-year-old retired nurse, in Austin, Texas, where thousands demonstrated while surrounded by hundreds of police and state troopers.”He is trampling on people’s lives, he’s militarizing our streets, he is terrorizing our communities,” he said, insisting it was important “to push back and say it’s our country, not his.”In New York, tens of thousands of people, many wearing raincoats and carrying colorful umbrellas, marched down Fifth Avenue in a downpour to the sounds of drums, bells and chants of “Hey hey, ho ho, Donald Trump has got to go!”Actors Susan Sarandon and Mark Ruffalo were seen getting drenched among the protesters.- ‘Outraged’ -“I’m miserable and outraged about how this administration is destroying the ideals of the American Constitution,” Polly Shulman, a 62-year-old museum employee, told AFP.Holding a sign reading “Protect the Constitution,” she said the most shocking thing was “the illegal deportations of law-abiding residents.They were “being kidnapped and disappeared and sent to torture prisons in foreign countries.”In March, the Trump administration expelled more than 250 Venezuelans to a mega-prison in El Salvador after accusing them of being members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang, which it has declared a terrorist organization.At least four protesters in New York were arrested at a separate, smaller protest against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, police said.- ‘Mad as hell’ -“I think people are mad as hell,” said Lindsay Ross, a 28-year-old musician who urged others to show “the administration that we’re not going to take this.”Bill Kennedy, a retired psychologist from Pennsylvania, was in Washington protesting a few hours before Trump’s $45 million parade.”I’m tired of the current administration. I think they’re a bunch of fascists,” he said, describing the military parade as “ridiculous.”Suzanne Brown in Boston also lamented the money spent on the parade “for one man’s vanity.”Massive “No Kings” protests were also underway in Los Angeles, which in recent days has been rocked by demonstrations over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, as federal agents swept up even law-abiding undocumented people. On Saturday, protesters shouted “You are not welcome here” at some of the 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines that Trump dispatched to the city against the wishes of local and state authorities. With a giant orange Trump-in-a-diaper balloon towering above them, thousands filled the city streets, sporting slogans like “No faux-king way” and “Impeach Trump.”Members of Russian feminist protest and performance art group Pussy Riot held up a large banner in front of city hall warning: “It’s beginning to look a lot like Russia.” After a day of largely peaceful protests, police on Saturday evening unexpectedly began moving people away from the protest area, igniting confusion and anger among demonstrators caught off guard and unsure of where to go.Police on horseback pushed crowds back as law enforcement fired tear gas and flash-bang grenades hours ahead of an 8:00 pm (0300 GMT) curfew. A police spokeswoman said a “small group of agitators” had begun throwing rocks, bottles and fireworks at officers, prompting the decision to order the crowd to disperse.If people refused to leave, “we will make arrests,” she said, adding: “We have been patient all day.” There was unrest elsewhere, too, with at least one person “critically injured” in a shooting at a demonstration in the western US city of Salt Lake City, police said, with local media reporting the incident took place at a “No Kings” rally.In Virginia, police said a man in Culpeper “intentionally” rammed his car into a group of demonstrators as they left an anti-Trump event. No injuries were reported.

They came armed with their wit and, pieces of cardboard: US protesters used “No Kings” parades on Saturday to mock US President Donald Trump with some inventive signs.”Go to therapy Donald. Authoritarianism is not self-care,” read one placard in front of the federal building in Los Angeles, the focus of more than a week of protests over a Trump-ordered crackdown on immigration.”Trump has a mugshot, my father does not,” said one sign, a reference to Trump’s 2023 arrest in Georgia that produced one of the most famous police photographs in the world.One man in a suit stood in front of uniformed soldiers deployed by the president, wearing a big smile and carrying a sign that said: “You’re taking orders from a draft dodger.” In New York, a protester held a board referencing Trump’s infamous election debate claims — widely debunked — that migrants were consuming people’s pets.”They’re eating the checks. They’re eating the balances,” it said.In Denver, a sign said: “Elect a clown, expect a circus,” while back in Los Angeles others picked up the theme: “No crown for the clown.”In a city with a vibrant LGBTQ scene, there was no shortage of references to the community.”Yaas queens! No kings,” said one sign.Other slogans were very specific to the sprawling metropolis.”In LA, only Kobe is King,” read one placard carried by a man wearing a Los Angeles Lakers kit, in homage to legendary guard Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash in 2020.”The only ICE I want is in my matcha” and “ICE melts in California,” said others, taking aim at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers whose raids on workplaces and farms sparked anger.Some signs referenced what they claimed was creeping “fascism” in the United States, with at least one photo of Trump doctored with a mustache to make him look like Adolf Hitler.”Anne Frank wrote about this in her diary,” said one sign, a reference to the young Jewish girl who fled the Nazis and kept a journal of her life in hiding.”America, you in danger girl,” said another.Throughout the nation there were references to the United States’ birth as a republic, one that threw off the absolute power of the British monarchy almost 250 years ago.But demonstrators said they did not get rid of one king to replace him with another.”No faux-king way,” said one sign.In tiny Nome, Alaska, home to fewer than 4,000 people, a small demo was one of thousands taking place across the country.”The only king Alaskans want is king salmon,” said one demonstrator’s sign, according to pictures published on the website of the local Nome Nugget newspaper.Some protesters opted for the pithy.”NOPE,” said one sign, the letter “E” replaced by a sideways crown.”That’s enough,” said another.”I’m not usually a sign person, but GEEZ…” said one.

ChatGPT-maker OpenAI has enlisted the legendary designer behind the iPhone to create an irresistible gadget for using generative artificial intelligence (AI).The ability to engage digital assistants as easily as speaking with friends is being built into eyewear, speakers, computers and smartphones, but some argue that the Age of AI calls for a transformational new gizmo.”The products that we’re using to deliver and connect us to unimaginable technology are decades old,” former Apple chief design officer Jony Ive said when his alliance with OpenAI was announced.”It’s just common sense to at least think, surely there’s something beyond these legacy products.”Sharing no details, OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said that a prototype Ive shared with him “is the coolest piece of technology that the world will have ever seen.”According to several US media outlets, the device won’t have a screen, nor will it be worn like a watch or broach.Kyle Li, a professor at The New School, said that since AI is not yet integrated into people’s lives, there is room for a new product tailored to its use.The type of device won’t be as important as whether the AI innovators like OpenAI make “pro-human” choices when building the software that will power them, said Rob Howard of consulting firm Innovating with AI- Learning from flops -The industry is well aware of the spectacular failure of the AI Pin, a square gadget worn like a badge packed with AI features but gone from the market less than a year after its debut in 2024 due to a dearth of buyers.The AI Pin marketed by startup Humane to incredible buzz was priced at $699.Now, Meta and OpenAI are making “big bets” on AI-infused hardware, according to CCS Insight analyst Ben Wood.OpenAI made a multi-billion-dollar deal to bring Ive’s startup into the fold.Google announced early this year it is working on mixed-reality glasses with AI smarts, while Amazon continues to ramp up Alexa digital assistant capabilities in its Echo speakers and displays.Apple is being cautious embracing generative AI, slowly integrating it into iPhones even as rivals race ahead with the technology. Plans to soup up its Siri chatbot with generative AI have been indefinitely delayed.The quest for creating an AI interface that people love “is something Apple should have jumped on a long time ago,” said Futurum research director Olivier Blanchard.- Time to talk -Blanchard envisions some kind of hub that lets users tap into AI, most likely by speaking to it and without being connected to the internet.”You can’t push it all out in the cloud,” Blanchard said, citing concerns about reliability, security, cost, and harm to the environment due to energy demand.”There is not enough energy in the world to do this, so we need to find local solutions,” he added.Howard expects a fierce battle over what will be the must-have personal device for AI, since the number of things someone is willing to wear is limited and “people can feel overwhelmed.”A new piece of hardware devoted to AI isn’t the obvious solution, but OpenAI has the funding and the talent to deliver, according to Julien Codorniou, a partner at venture capital firm 20VC and a former Facebook executive.OpenAI recently hired former Facebook executive and Instacart chief Fidji Simo as head of applications, and her job will be to help answer the hardware question.Voice is expected by many to be a primary way people command AI.Google chief Sundar Pichai has long expressed a vision of “ambient computing” in which technology blends invisibly into the world, waiting to be called upon.”There’s no longer any reason to type or touch if you can speak instead,” Blanchard said.”Generative AI wants to be increasingly human” so spoken dialogues with the technology “make sense,” he added.However, smartphones are too embedded in people’s lives to be snubbed any time soon, said Wood.

For hours, thousands of people in Los Angeles peacefully celebrated their defiance of US President Donald Trump Saturday with music, marching, bubbles and balloons — then police unexpectedly moved in, and chaos and confusion broke out.The demonstration — part of the nationwide “No Kings” day of protests across the country — was by far the largest in more than a week of protests ignited by anger against immigration raids the Trump administration has been carrying out across the country’s second-largest city. Like those before it, Saturday’s had been largely peaceful. A march that began in the morning had finished, with demonstrators milling about on a sunny afternoon as the scene took on the air of a street festival. Then police unexpectedly began moving people away from the area, igniting confusion and anger among demonstrators caught off guard and unsure of where to go.Police on horseback pushed crowds back as law enforcement fired tear gas and flash-bang grenades hours ahead of an 8:00 pm (0300 GMT) curfew. A police spokeswoman later told local TV channel KTLA that a “small group of agitators” had begun throwing rocks, bottles and fireworks at officers, prompting the decision to order the crowd to disperse.If people refused to leave, “we will make arrests,” she said, adding: “We have been patient all day.”The clashes came after more than a week of demonstrations in Los Angeles against the immigration raids, which have rocked the city.The protests have mostly been calm and contained to a small segment of downtown.But at times they have spiraled into violence, which Trump pounced on to send in 4,000 National Guard and 700 Marines — an exceedingly rare deployment of soldiers on US soil against the will of local officials, who have repeatedly said the situation was under control.The troops did not immediately appear to be involved in the clashes Saturday afternoon, with Los Angeles police and the sheriff’s department taking the lead.- ‘No faux-king Trump’ -The day had begun with Indigenous dancing at City Hall, as musicians played a light-hearted drumbeat on metal security barriers and street vendors filled the air with the smell of frying onions. Then, beneath a giant balloon depicting Trump as a baby wearing a diaper, the demonstrators marched through downtown Los Angeles.Parents brought their children, pet owners their dogs, and the lunchtime crowd at one popular market along the route enjoyed tacos and donuts as demonstrators passed by chanting while passing cars honked their support.”No faux-king Trump,” read one sign as marchers chanted “Impeach Trump!”Passing several armed National Guard in front of one federal building along the route, the protesters cried “Shame!”  Many of the signs had a light touch — “America, you in danger girl” read one, while another riffed on the acronym for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and a favorite drink in Los Angeles: “ICE belongs in my matcha, not the streets.”Others were more pointed. Many involved the words “Trump” and various expletives. Some showed images of the president as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.”Santa Monica Fascist,” read one sign with a photo of Trump’s top immigration adviser Stephen Miller, who is from the coastal city west of downtown Los Angeles.People waved flags — predominantly US flags, some upside down as a signal of distress; but also the flags of Mexico, El Salvador, South Korea, the Palestinians, California’s state flag, and the Pride flag celebrating LGBTQ rights.”This isn’t a war zone,” protester Jennifer Franks, who was carrying her infant son, told AFP in front of City Hall earlier in the day. “There is no reason to have the military called in here… I want my child to grow up in a nation where common sense pervades.”

A giant orange balloon depicting  Donald Trump in a diaper towered over one “No Kings” protest Saturday, as tens of thousands thronged streets across the United States to decry the president’s policies.Protest organizers expected rallies in all 50 US states, calling them the largest since Trump returned to office in January, with the aim of “rejecting authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarization of our democracy.”Wielding signs with messages like “No KKKings,” “No crown for the clown” and “The Trump fascist regime must go now!” the protests stood in stark contrast to a massive military parade in Washington on Saturday.The parade was meant to commemorate the founding of the US Army, but also fell on the president’s 79th birthday.”I am here today to tell the world that we don’t have kings in America. In America, the law is king,” Ilene Ryan told AFP at a demonstration in Boston.In New York, tens of thousands of people, wearing raincoats and carrying colorful umbrellas, marched down Fifth Avenue in a downpour to the sounds of drums, bells and chants of “Hey hey, ho ho, Donald Trump has got to go!”Actors Susan Sarandon and Mark Ruffalo were seen getting drenched among the protesters.- ‘Outraged’ -A few blocks away, Polly Shulman was preparing to join the march with her “Protect the Constitution” sign.”I’m miserable and outraged about how this administration is destroying the ideals of the American Constitution,” the 62-year-old museum employee told AFP.The most shocking thing, she said, was “the illegal deportations of law-abiding residents.”They are “being kidnapped and disappeared and sent to torture prisons in foreign countries.”In March, the Trump administration expelled more than 250 Venezuelans to a mega-prison in El Salvador after accusing them of being members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang, which it has declared a terrorist organization.At least four protesters in New York were arrested at a separate, smaller protest against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, police said.- ‘Mad as hell’ -“I think people are mad as hell,” said Lindsay Ross, a 28-year-old musician who urged others to show “the administration that we’re not going to take this.”Bill Kennedy, a retired psychologist from Pennsylvania, was in Washington protesting a few hours before Trump’s $45 million parade.”I’m tired of the current administration. I think they’re a bunch of fascists,” he said, describing the military parade as “ridiculous.”Suzanne Brown in Boston also lamented the money spent on the parade “for one man’s vanity.”Massive “No Kings” protests were  underway in Los Angeles, which in recent days has been rocked by demonstrations over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, as federal agents swept up even law-abiding undocumented people. On Saturday, protesters shouted “You are not welcome here” at some of the 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines that Trump dispatched to the city against the wishes of local and state authorities. With a giant orange Trump-in-a-diaper balloon towering above them, thousands filled the city streets, sporting slogans like “No faux-king way” and “Impeach Trump.”Members of Russian feminist protest and performance art group Pussy Riot held up a large banner in front of city hall warning: “It’s beginning to look a lot like Russia.” Iris Rodriguez, 44, explained that her family arrived in the United States without papers.”I find it really, really personal… If this was my mom, if this were the 80s, this would be happening to her,” she told AFP.”I was a little scared, but I refuse to be too scared to not come.”The country-wide demonstrations overwhelmingly took place peacefully and without incident.But in Culpeper, Virginia, police said a man “intentionally” rammed his car into a group of protesters as they left the event. No injuries were reported.In Los Angeles, police used tear gas and mounted officers to clear protesters in front of the downtown federal building, the focus of anti-ICE demonstrations for the last week. AFP reporters said there was no disorder, but it appeared officers were moving people away from an area where National Guard troops and Marines were stationed.

US President Donald Trump reveled in a long dreamt-of military parade on his 79th birthday Saturday, as demonstrators across the country branded him a dictator in the biggest protests since his return to power.Trump stood and saluted as tanks rumbled past, aircraft roared overhead and nearly 7,000 troops marched through Washington in the largest such parade in the United States in decades.Chants of “USA! USA!” erupted as the Republican took to a giant stage in front of the White House for the parade which officially marked the 250th birthday of the US Army, but also happened to fall on Trump’s own.The deep political divisions in the United States were underscored however as “No Kings” demonstrators thronged the streets in cities including New York, Los Angeles, Washington, Houston and Atlanta.”I think people are mad as hell,” Lindsay Ross, a 28-year-old musician, told AFP in New York, where tens of thousands of people rallied.The killing of a Democratic lawmaker and her husband Saturday in the northern state of Minnesota — in what authorities called a targeted attack — also cast a pall over the parade.Trump was quick to condemn the attacks outside Minneapolis in which former state speaker Melissa Hortman died along with her husband, while another state lawmaker and his wife were hospitalized with gunshot wounds.- ‘Big day’ -Military parades are a more common sight in capitals like Moscow and Pyongyang than Washington, but Trump has openly expressed his wishes for one since his first term.His dream came true on Saturday with a $45-million spectacle — although starting around half an hour early because of the threat of thunderstorms raining on his parade.The procession began with a 21-gun salute followed by the presentation of a flag to Trump by the army’s Golden Knights parachute team who dropped from the sky.Two huge Abrams tanks were stationed in front of the stage where Trump sat.Troops and military hardware from different eras of US history then passed by, with an announcer reeling off victories over Japanese, German, Chinese and Vietnamese forces in past wars.Trump, who saluted a number of times and chatted occasionally to First Lady Melania Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during the parade, was due to give remarks later.The Republican, who has begun his second term by pushing presidential powers to unprecedented levels, boasted earlier on his Truth Social network that it was a “big day for America!!!”He added that Russian strongman Vladimir Putin, for whom he has repeatedly expressed admiration, had “very nicely” called him to wish him a happy birthday.The two leaders also agreed on the need for an end to the Iran-Israel conflict — a war in which US forces are aiding Israel to shoot down Tehran’s missiles.- ‘Vulgar display’ -The White House meanwhile dismissed the “No Kings” rallies as a “complete and utter failure” and said the numbers involved were “miniscule,” despite images of streets filled with protesters. Organizers expected protests in all 50 states against what they call Trump’s dictatorial overreach, and in particular what they described as the strongman symbolism of the parade.Thousands turned out in Los Angeles to protest Trump’s deployment of troops in the country’s second-largest city following clashes sparked by immigration raids.Some protesters targeted Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida — while a small group even gathered in Paris.”I think it’s disgusting,” protester Sarah Hargrave, 42, told AFP in the Washington suburb of Bethesda, describing Trump’s parade as a “display of authoritarianism.”Critics have accused Trump of acting like the United States’s autocratic adversaries.California’s Governor Gavin Newsom, who slammed Trump for sending National Guard troops into Los Angeles without his consent, called it a “vulgar display of weakness.”