More than a month after the election of Joe Biden, a tide of red caps “Make America Great Again” invaded, Saturday, December 12, the American capital to claim “Four more years” presidency and still denounce, without evidence, “Massive fraud” in the presidential election.
Despite a final scathing setback the day before at the Supreme Court, supporters of Donald Trump remain fiercely convinced of his victory in the November ballot.
In a festive atmosphere, several thousand of them gathered on Freedom Plaza, not far from the White House, a large crowd but nevertheless in retreat compared to the 10,000 demonstrators supporting the outgoing president a month ago.
At the start of the day, however, a few clashes between pro and anti-Trump, as the police tried to separate them. “We are not going to let go”, promises Luke Wilson, sixty-year-old from Idaho, waving a flag defending the carrying of arms in the United States.
“Massive frauds” castigated
A “Foreign interference”, an electoral software which would have erased millions of votes intended for the president… The militants enumerate the reasons why the election was to them “Stolen”.
“The American people are the victim of a great injustice”, assures Agence France Presse (AFP) Dell Quick, a regular at meetings of the Republican billionaire, for whom the election of Democrat Joe Biden appears “Completely impossible”.
Lack of tangible evidence to support the accusations of “Massive fraud”, the fifty or so complaints filed by Donald Trump’s allies across the United States have all – with one exception – been dismissed by the courts or dropped. All states have formally certified their results, giving the victory to Joe Biden, and the voters must register their vote Monday to validate it.
Darlene Denton, a “Trump 2024” badge on her sweatshirt, does not budge. “Nobody wants to listen to the evidence”, plague this 47-year-old woman, between two country hits. She came straight from Tennessee to express her love for this leader who she said gave ” a voice “ to the American people.
The president himself still refuses to concede defeat to Joe Biden. “Wow! Thousands of people gather in Washington to prevent the election from being stolen ”, he greeted on Twitter, before his helicopter flew over the crowd singing the American anthem.
Wow! Thousands of people forming in Washington (DC) for Stop the Steal. Didn’t know about this, but I’ll be seeing them! #MAGA
Modest counter-demonstrations
Among the various processions, the far-right Proud Boys militia, recognizable by the yellow and black outfits and bulletproof vests of its members, is regularly acclaimed by the crowd.
“The Nazis out! “ : a few streets away, activists of the Black Lives Matter movement (“black lives matter”) curse the pro-Trump.
Counter-demonstrations, much more modest, were organized in the capital, in particular on Black Lives Matter Plaza, the street overlooking the White House, towards which thousands of people had converged to celebrate the victory of Joe Biden in early November.
