Tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets across the United States on Saturday to protest the Trump administration’s sweeping cuts to federal programs and what they called an increasingly authoritarian approach to governance.

Despite rain in several cities, organizers reported over 1,200 rallies held nationwide under the banner of “Hands Off,” with crowds waving homemade signs and chanting slogans in opposition to recent policies.

In Washington, D.C., more than 100,000 people gathered on the National Mall, according to organizers. Among the speakers was Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who delivered a fiery critique of the administration’s actions, accusing President Donald Trump of overstepping constitutional bounds.

“Our founders wrote a Constitution that didn’t begin with ‘We the dictators,’” Raskin told the crowd. He slammed the administration’s tariff policies, which now affect nearly all U.S. trading partners, calling them “not only imbecilic—they’re illegal, they’re unconstitutional, and we’re going to turn this around.”

The rallies drew participation from a number of high-profile Democratic lawmakers, as well as thousands of concerned citizens like Stan and Cindy Prusik, who traveled to D.C. from Pennsylvania.

“I don’t sleep well. I’m scared,” Cindy told ABC News. “We’ve saved all our lives for retirement, and I’m afraid it’s slipping away. We’ve made enemies out of countries that used to be our allies. It’s just all so uncertain now.”

“We have daughters—we have to protect our daughters and our grandkids,” added her husband, Stan.

At the D.C. rally, Paul Osadebe, an attorney with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, shared his own experience under the administration. He revealed that he had been encouraged to accept a buyout as part of a restructuring plan led by the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, spearheaded by Elon Musk under Trump’s directive.

The mass mobilization reflects growing public backlash to what critics see as the Trump administration’s aggressive rollback of federal protections, economic instability fueled by global trade disputes, and erosion of democratic norms.

Organizers have pledged to continue demonstrations in the coming months, warning that Saturday’s protests were just the beginning of a larger resistance movement.