“Hands off” rallies across the nation on Saturday protested the policies of the Trump administration. In Macomb, a couple hundred demonstrators made sure local Republicans saw and heard them.
The rally took place across the street from the annual Lincoln Day Dinner held by McDonough County Republicans.
Sides of the street
Dick Marcott, who helped organize the demonstration, said it’s hypocritical to hold a dinner named in honor of Lincoln while also supporting Trump.
“We don’t see any ties between Abraham Lincoln, who is a hero of the union, to the MAGA movement,” he said.
“We believe that our Republican neighbors in this county are good, freedom-loving Americans. We just feel that they have been misled. In this case, we feel they’re on the wrong side of the street. We’re on the right side of the street.”
Marcott said the MAGA movement lacks respect for the law and people, is waging a war on science, and is erasing history.
He said the Trump administration is also alienating America‘s friends in the world.
“We feel this movement to go it alone, this America-only movement, is going to be destructive to the country,” Marcott said.
He said demonstrators also opposed the administration’s attacks on the rights of trans people and on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. He said DEI is about fairness and giving more Americans a chance at the American dream.
Marcott said he’s “perfectly happy” with battling waste and fraud in the government. But he thinks the administration’s approach is wrong.
“We don’t think it’s a good idea to throw the baby out with the bath water,” Marcott said. “This chaos for chaos’ sake.”
He said the Trump’s administration is engaging in a radical restructuring of democracy.
Shame and shrugs
Republicans showing up for the dinner were greeted with calls of “shame” from the demonstrators. Some people yelled back at the demonstrators. Others heading into the dinner took photos of them or simply shrugged them off.
Taylor Collins was one of the Republicans greeted by the protest. He was the dinner’s keynote speaker.
Collins grew up in Macomb, and is now an Iowa state representative from Mediapolis.
What would he say to the demonstrators?
“I would say three letters: TDS. Trump Derangement Syndrome is alive and well. I would direct them to many of the mental health services available to get over the fact that we have a president who will secure our border, we have a president who will make sure that those tax cuts are passed,” Collins said.
He believes the federal government is out of control and should be reduced in size by 50%.
“I’m really confused by the Democrats who are so afraid of Donald Trump and folks who are laser-focused on making sure we have an efficient federal government. I never thought I’d see folks who are against efficiency, lower taxes, and lower spending,” he said.
Collins said the only way to address a bureaucracy the size of the federal government is to move swiftly. He said that’s the approach taken by Trump and Elon Musk.
He said Congress needs to step up and be more engaged in the process, too.
And Collins said the U.S. Department of Agriculture should be based in the Midwest instead of Washington D.C. He said it makes more sense to have the agriculture department based in Iowa or Illinois and have it run by farmers instead of “unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats.”
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