Roughly 100 protesters gathered just outside of Las Cruces City Hall, united by their displeasure with the Trump administration and the current direction of the United States. Among the demonstrators was Mary Brannon, an organizer and volunteer for Indivisible Las Cruces. Brannon said she sees consolidation of executive power in the federal government as a warning sign of what’s to come.
“What’s happening at the political level is dangerous to our democracy. This is not right versus left, or Democrat versus Republican, it truly is democracy versus dictatorship,” she said. “People have gotten off the couch to say no more. And I think that’s a huge piece of what [Indivisible Las Cruces] and the other organizations around this country want to do.”
Protesters denounced executive decisions made by the president, including the tariffs levied against trade partners, the efforts by billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency that include mass layoffs of the federal workforce, and the administration’s decision to halt aid to Ukraine. Gretchen Blais is a retired resident, and said that the protest is a way for the local community to flex their collective power.
“This demonstration is happening all over the country, and the more people that there are, we have a possibility of saving our democracy. And if people don’t get out and take some action, we could lose it.”
Fired federal employees were among the demonstrators. One protestor named Tanner, who declined to give his full name due to privacy concerns, said he would like to see more action taken by New Mexico’s federal delegation.
“Listen to what your constituents are saying. Don’t run and hide like a lot of Republicans are in other states when they’re doing town halls. Have town halls, talk to your people, coordinate with nonprofits and figure out what’s best to take action against this administration,” he said.
But the Republican Party of Doña Ana County sees the current administration in a different light. Zeke Rodriguez, the second vice chair of the county party, said he believes Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s decision to fire federal employees was justified, supports the U.S. withdrawing from NATO, and does not see tariffs on trading partners as a disruption to free markets.
“To me it's interesting because dictators are unelected, essentially. Trump was elected. He was duly elected,” he said. “The reality is that Donald Trump is our president and he got almost 80 million votes. So just like Republicans had to take it on the chin and go along with things peacefully and constitutionally, it’s their turn to do it now.”
As protests continue across the country, local demonstrators say they will keep organizing to show their displeasure with the current administration, while local Republicans continue to stand in support of President Trump’s agenda.
