Peggy Dangler, an independent, watches the beginnings of an anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. “The least I can do is come down,” she said. (Anya Magnuson/DD)
Just one day after President Trump asked Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign, hundreds of Arizonans gathered at Wesley Bolin State Park at the State Capitol on Thursday to voice their displeasure.
The Phoenix event, part of a national rapid response movement to support the integrity of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian meddling in U.S. elections, was dubbed “Nobody Is Above the Law: Mueller Rapid Response,” and many signs echoed that message.
The event’s first speaker, Attorney Adam Romney, questioned Trump’s “lack of integrity.”
“We don’t want to set this precedent,” he said. “We need to hold him accountable.”
The crowd listens to several speakers, two of whom were attorneys, during an anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. (Anya Magnuson/DD)Attorney Adam Romney speaks during an anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. “Everyone here cares about things that matter,” Romney said. (Anya Magnuson/DD)Kathy and Terry Davis, who have been married for 44 years, were in the front row during an anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. (Anya Magnuson/DD)The crowd brought a variety of homemade signs to the anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. The topic of the rally was the president’s recent appointment of Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, which rally leaders called unconstitutional. (Anya Magnuson/DD)The crowd brought cheers on the speakers at an anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. The topic of the rally was the president’s recent appointment of Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, which rally leaders called unconstitutional. (Anya Magnuson/DD)
“What’s going on doesn’t have integrity,” said Peggy Dangler, a rally attendee who identifies as a political independent. “[Trump] is not above the law.”
“I’m for restoring integrity to the office of the president of the United States,” she added.
The majority of those who attended the rally stayed after the official speeches and chanted slogans as a group. After several rounds of “Love! Not Hate! Makes America Great!” and “Show Me What Democracy Looks Like! This is What Democracy Looks Like!”, organizers began to pass the megaphone around.
One man began listing reasons that he believed the president ought to be impeached. After each reason, the crowd answered with a shout of “Impeach!”
PJ Morel, right, shouts phrases into a megaphone that are repeated by the crowd after their anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. The topic of the rally was the president’s recent appointment of Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, which rally leaders called unconstitutional. (Anya Magnuson/DD)A man lists reasons that President Trump should be impeached in front of the crowd after their anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. (Anya Magnuson/DD)A man is flashed in the face with bright television lights at the end of an anti-Trump rally at the Arizona State Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. (Anya Magnuson/DD)After their anti-Trump rally, members linger as dusk falls and take turns at the megaphone at the Arizona State Capitol, waving their signs in the air. (Anya Magnuson/DD)
