Actor Robert De Niro speaks at SOTU counter event
Actor Robert De Niro gave a speech at the “State of the Swamp” event held in Washington, D.C., in response to the State of the Union address.
Robert De Niro has raised the bar in his criticism of President Donald Trump as No Kings protests sweep across the United States.
Speaking with the Rev. Al Sharpton, with whom he traveled to a No Kings Day event in New York in the early morning hours of March 28, the 82-year-old actor told MS Now that the massive turnout gave him hope that the midterm elections would not favor the president and his Republican allies.
De Niro said: “Our democracy is in danger, and this idiot is in danger just like all the idiots around him. It’s like an unrealistic dream and it’s crazy.” “We can’t relax until the midterm elections are resolved and rightfully resolved. We can’t let this guy go.”
He accused President Trump of trying to “detract” from the Epstein files, adding: “If I know anything, I know this guy is going to try anything because he’s crazy. He’s not in good health. He’s a damaged man, well. He’s got to stand up.”
The Oscar-winning actor revealed that he feels “good now” after his third No Kings demonstration, saying: “I don’t want to say the word ‘hope’ again that things will get better and stronger, but that’s the only way we get out of this.”
“My country is in danger. I’m not going to be silent. Why should I be?” he told Sharpton. “Why shouldn’t I say anything, especially when I know I’m right?”
Organizers estimate that up to 8 million people attended 3,300 events held across the United States on Saturday, March 28, but that total has not yet been independently verified. This number exceeds the 7 million people who took part in the October protests and the 5 million who turned out for the first protest on June 24. The loosely organized group, united in its opposition to President Trump, cites several issues, including immigration enforcement, health care access, environmental protection, gun control and war spending.
When asked for comment, White House press secretary Abigail Jackson said, “The only people who care about Trump’s confusion therapy sessions are the reporters who are paid to cover them.”
De Niro was among a number of celebrities who spoke out at the protests, including Jane Fonda, Bruce Springsteen, Joan Baez and “M*A*S*H” star Mike Farrell.
“When the crowd is screaming ‘No Kings,’ what I hear is, as we all know, ‘No Trump,'” De Niro said from the stage at a press conference for the No Kings event in New York City.
“There have been other presidents who have occasionally tested the limits of their constitutional powers, but none have posed such an existential threat to our freedoms and security,” he continued. “Nobody but Trump. He has to be stopped and he has to stop now.”
De Niro called for “no needless wars that take away our resources, sacrifice our great servicemen and women, and slaughter innocent people,” and vowed to “take us from the streets to the polls.”
The war between the United States and Israel on Iran, which began on February 28, is now in its fifth week. In a March 28 post on X, US Central Command announced that 3,500 soldiers and the amphibious assault ship Tripoli had arrived in the Middle East. The contingent includes sailors, Marines and attack fighters.
According to the Pentagon, more than 300 U.S. military personnel have been injured in the Iran war. The death toll remains at 13 military personnel.
The United States has presented Iran with a 15-point ceasefire plan that includes reopening waterways and limiting Iran’s nuclear program. However, the Iranian government rejected this list and submitted its own proposal.
Contributor: Susan Page and Kathryn Palmer, USA TODAY
