Former Vice President Kamala Harris has released a sharply worded statement amidst protests across the nation targeting both President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
In the previous November, Harris, at 60 years of age, conceded to the 78-year-old Trump in the 2024 Presidential Election after failing to gather sufficient votes to win the presidency.
Having been confirmed as the Democratic presidential nominee shortly before the election following former President Joe Biden’s withdrawal, Harris has remained relatively silent since her defeat.
Earlier this week, at a summit in California, she addressed concerns about how the Trump administration’s actions might negatively impact American citizens.
Currently, as protests erupt across states against both Trump and Elon Musk—who leads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—Harris has criticized the influence of ‘unelected billionaires’ in governance.
On April 5, she took to Twitter expressing: “Today in every state across our nation, Americans are standing up to the administration as they implement Project 2025 at full speed.
“Thank you for using your voices and the power of protest to stand for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid; for the Department of Education and programs like Head Start; for clean air and water; for the right to make decisions about your own body without government interference.”
She further stated: “The voices of working people will always be louder than the unelected billionaires.”
Numerous organized demonstrations opposing Trump occurred across all 50 states yesterday.
The ‘Hands Off!’ protests witnessed citizens gathering in major cities like New York, Washington DC, and Boston to express discontent with the Republican-led government.
Protestors have voiced various concerns regarding the Trump administration, including the recent large-scale layoffs at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), affecting 10,000 scientists, doctors, and other essential personnel.
The BBC notes that protestors were also reacting to immigration raids affecting US university students and Musk’s influence.
Musk’s leadership of DOGE is associated with recent cutbacks to DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) initiatives, large numbers of federal workers losing their jobs, and decreased funding for climate change programs.
The 53-year-old has also been tasked with addressing the United States’ total federal debt, which currently stands at $36.22 trillion, according to US Treasury Fiscal Data.
Other participants in the ‘Hands Off!’ rallies focused their criticism on Trump’s new tariffs.
The tariffs impose a ‘baseline’ 10 percent tax on all goods imported into the US. Additionally, 60 countries, including Thailand and Vietnam, face higher, customized tariffs that are set to begin on April 9.
Florida Congressman Maxwell Frost supported Harris’ sentiments while attending a ‘Hands Off!’ protest in Florida.
He criticized the ‘billionaire takeover of our government’, stating (via the BBC): “When you steal from the people, expect the people to rise up. At the ballot box and in the streets.”
Earlier in the week, former President Barack Obama offered strong criticism of the current state of America.
During an interview at Hamilton College, Obama, at 63 years old, criticized Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ declarations, suggesting they wouldn’t benefit America.
“Imagine if I had done any of this,” Obama remarked, adding: “It’s unimaginable that the same parties that are silent now would have tolerated behavior like that from me, or a whole bunch of my predecessors.”