


President Trump on Tuesday issued a stark warning to protesters planning to disrupt the Army parade in Washington, saying anyone who causes trouble will be met with a “very big force.”
“If there’s any protesters that want to come out, they will be met with very big force,” Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House. “I haven’t heard about a protest, but you know, these are people that hate our country. But they will be met with very heavy force.”
A huge military parade and festival are scheduled for Saturday in Washington to celebrate the Army’s 250th birthday, which also happens to be Mr. Trump’s birthday. Officials say they expect the events will bring “hundreds of thousands” of people to the capital and plan to deploy thousands of police officers and federal agents.
Matt McCool, special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Washington Field Office, said at a news conference Monday that the police are tracking nine planned protests against the Army parade. The “No Kings” movement has organized protests in cities across the country to demonstrate against what it’s calling Mr. Trump’s “self-aggrandizing” birthday celebration.
“No Kings is a nationwide day of defiance. From city blocks to small towns, from courthouse steps to community parks, we’re taking action to reject authoritarianism,” organizers wrote.
More than 100 anti-Trump advocacy groups are partnering with the “No Kings.”
Organizers estimate the protests will take place in 1,500 cities across all 50 states.
The parade is scheduled as tensions continued for a fourth day in Los Angeles as protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s sweeps of illegal immigrants gripped the city, with demonstrators clashing with law enforcement, setting vehicles on fire and vandalizing buildings.
The president has deployed 4,000 California National Guard troops to quell the violence.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta is suing the Trump administration, saying it unlawfully “trampled over” the state’s sovereignty when it federalized the National Guard.
Mr. McCool said officials in Washington are paying attention to the protests over the ICE raids, but he didn’t know of any plan to deploy troops for security in Washington.
Mr. Trump said the parade is going to be “an amazing day.”
“We are going to celebrate our country for a change,” he said.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.