'No Kings' protests planned to counter celebration of Army's 250th anniversary

On Saturday, the country will celebrate the nation's first military branch when the United States Army hits 250 years. Established during the American Revolution on June 14, 1775, the U.S. Army is actually a year older than the nation for which it has time and time again shed blood, sweat and tears.

Protests are planned across the country and now Walmart is facing a Bud Light-proportion backlash over a full-page ad in The New York Times supporting the protests, placed by Walmart heiress Christy Walton, one of the richest women in America. Walmart was quick to distance itself from her.

According to Forbes, Joe Pennington, director of Walmart’s global press office, said that “the advertisements from Christy Walton are in no way connected to or endorsed by Walmart.” Pennington added that "Walton does not serve on the board or play any role in decision-making at Walmart.”  

Walton's ad read in bold font, "NO KINGS - JUNE 14 - MOBILIZE." Underneath, the text included phrases like, "We defend against aggression by dictators," "We uphold and defend the Constitution," and "We are the world leader trusted to uphold the stability of rule of law."

The U.S. Army was instituted by the Second Continental Congress more than a year before the Declaration of Independence was signed and sent to King George III. Saturday's celebrations also land on Flag Day and President Donald Trump's birthday. 

Framing the event

Despite the repeated emphasis by the White House that these celebrations are to honor the United States Army and will be a display of patriotism and American might, many media outlets continue to frame the event as "Trump's parade," suggesting a personal motive to roll tanks through Washington, D.C. for his birthday.  

The protests set to take place in cities across the country have been dubbed the "No Kings" protests, details of which litter social media and are representative of opposition to what is claimed to be monarchical behavior by the 47th President. 

One such announcement for the event in West Hollywood, a municipality of Los Angeles, describes the protests this way: "In America, we don’t put up with would-be kings. NO KINGS is a national day of action and mass mobilization in response to increasing authoritarian excesses and corruption from Trump and his allies. We’ve watched as they’ve cracked down on free speech, detained people for their political views, threatened to deport American citizens, and defied the courts. They’ve done this all while continuing to serve and enrich their billionaire allies."

No transparency of protestors' support

The official No Kings website features a drop-down menu which shows "partners" including 50501 Events, whose stated goal since its inception late last year is to organize 50 protests in 50 states under one movement to defy Trump's agenda. 50501 claims to be a grassroots organization with no centralized funding or leadership. 

Because 50501 Events is not a charity, it operates in the shadow of "dark money" and is not required by law and does not disclose its funding sources. Nonetheless, partners listed on the No Kings website include the American Civil Liberties Union, Black Voters Matter, Center for Science in the Public Interest, Bernie Sanders, Move On, Planned Parenthood and several far-left-leaning unions, including the SEIU and several teacher's unions. 

The website does not provide links to those partners, or explain what roles they may have in the larger operation. Further concerning many is the fact that a proven Chinese Communist Party-linked organization called the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PLS) is in lockstep with No Kings, organizing and fueling protests nationwide. 

Charges of authoritarianism then and now

Like Trump, President Joe Biden was accused by opponents of being authoritarian through multiple methods and agencies. 

Perhaps the most impactful of such "authoritarian" acts, Biden launched in 2021 an aggressive campaign to force Americans to get the thinly-tested COVID-19 vaccine, issuing a sweeping mandate that demanded federal workers and contractors get the shot or face punishing consequences. His administration forced private businesses with more than 100 employees to require vaccines or weekly testing, a move targeting some 80 million workers. 

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was weaponized to enforce Biden's edict, but it met fierce resistance from red states, businesses, and Americans who saw it as unconstitutional. Lawsuits piled up, and in January 2022, in NFIB v. Department of Labor, the Supreme Court delivered a stinging rebuke, striking down the OSHA mandate as a gross overstep of federal power, though it allowed a narrower rule for healthcare workers in federally funded facilities. 

The Army's 250th birthday celebration and parade will begin with events including a fitness competition, concerts and food venues, with the parade to commence at 6:30 p.m. ET. The parade along the National Mall is set to feature thousands of police officers and security measures including metal detectors, anti-scale fencing, concrete barriers and drones overhead surveilling the crowd.

It also comes as Trump and California Gov. Gavin Newsom are locked in a standoff over the use of the National Guard and the U.S. military to stop or prevent often violent protests that have sprung up in Los Angeles against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement sweeps carried out at the president's direction.

When asked by a reporter about the "No Kings" actions planned, Trump quipped that he doesn’t “feel like a king.”