Kamala Harris has taken direct aim at what she calls the “unelected billionaires” pulling the strings in Washington, as Americans flood the streets in unprecedented numbers to protest President Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s growing influence over the federal government.
On Saturday, April 5, cities across all 50 states witnessed a wave of outrage, with massive crowds joining the nationwide Hands Off! protests—an organized pushback against sweeping policy changes from the Trump administration. Harris, who remained largely quiet after conceding the 2024 election to Trump, broke her silence with a bold message on Twitter that immediately grabbed headlines.
“Today in every state across our nation, Americans are standing up to the administration as they implement Project 2025 at full speed,” Harris wrote. “The voices of working people will always be louder than the unelected billionaires.”
Her remarks, a not-so-subtle shot at Trump and Musk—now the head of the controversial Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—landed just as images and videos of the protests began dominating social media feeds.
From New York and Washington D.C. to Boston and San Francisco, tens of thousands marched with signs calling out policies gutting climate initiatives, diversity programs, and basic public health protections. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) alone saw 10,000 essential workers laid off in recent weeks, fueling outrage among protestors who say the government is being run like a private enterprise.
And it’s not just federal cuts that have people fired up.
Trump’s latest economic blow—a 10% blanket tariff on all imported goods—has sparked global backlash and fears of an international trade war. Countries like Vietnam and Thailand are bracing for even steeper, targeted tariffs set to begin on April 9.
The protests have united a wide spectrum of voices, from everyday citizens to lawmakers. Florida Congressman Maxwell Frost joined one rally, declaring: “When you steal from the people, expect the people to rise up. At the ballot box and in the streets.”
Even Barack Obama weighed in earlier this week, questioning the silence of Trump’s supporters in the face of policies he called “unimaginable.” Speaking at Hamilton College, the former president warned that Trump’s “Liberation Day” reforms would be disastrous for the nation.
Meanwhile, Musk’s DOGE agency continues to drive controversial reforms, including the defunding of DEI initiatives and aggressive cost-cutting to reduce the $36.22 trillion federal debt. Critics argue it’s a billionaire-led restructuring that sacrifices human impact for economic optics.
As tensions rise and protests swell, Harris’s words are resonating with many who feel left behind in the new political landscape: “Thank you for using your voices and the power of protest… for clean air and water; for the right to make decisions about your own body without government interference.”
