Rise and Resist: America’s Fight to Save Itself

The March 14 protest outside the White House wasn’t just a rally — it was an emotional battlefield. Veterans, activists, and public figures gathered to demand accountability, voicing their anger, frustration, and resolve. The air was heavy with exhaustion, but the crowd's energy was undeniable.

The day opened with Cliff Cash, a comedian-turned-activist who launched straight into a verbal brawl with Trump’s legacy.

"This coward draft-dodging bone spurs orange-faced traitor in our White House demanded that Capitol Police remove the magnometers so that his mob could get inside with their guns. Don’t ever forget that."

Cash’s fury turned to mocking when he reminded the crowd that the so-called “elites” were nothing special.

"If you think that they are some other echelon of people, they’re not... Lauren Boebert is not smarter than you... Mitch McConnell is sure not more courageous than you... and if you didn’t have a spine, your neck would look like that too."

Next came Jessica Denson, a former Trump staffer-turned-activist, who delivered one of the rally’s most powerful calls to action.

"We are going to demand, starting right now and never letting it go until it happens, that every constitutional means be used immediately to remove Donald Trump, JD Vance, and Elon whoever-the-hell Musk from power."

Her tone shifted to defiant optimism.

"We are going to shine so freaking bright that they won’t know what to do with all the light that we bring to this country."

Denson also addressed the mounting controversy surrounding Trump’s rumored KGB codename, ‘Krasnov.’

"We’re not going to let this squatter in the White House — Mr. Krasnov Bone Spurs — overrule the sacrifices of all of you for our Constitution."

But it was Harry Dunn — the former Capitol Police officer who stood on the front lines of January 6 — who delivered the rawest, most gut-wrenching speech of the day. He opened with an admission that cut through the crowd like a blade.

"I had a PTSD attack on the way in... The last time I saw everybody like this, they were beating the shit out of me and my co-workers at the Capitol."

Dunn’s grief shifted to anger when he reflected on the failure of institutions — and voters — to stop Trump.

"We had an opportunity, and you know what? We fucked it up."

Yet Dunn’s closing remarks weren’t just about regret — they were a plea for action.

"What we need right now is a lot of people — a lot of somebodies — to do something to save our country."

The next speaker, Big Sarge, the Sons of Liberty leader, opened with a blunt admission that set the tone for his fiery speech.

"I said I wasn't gonna swear... fuck it."

Sarge didn’t hesitate to address Harry Dunn directly.

"We all look like the people from the January 6th insurrection."

It was a jarring acknowledgment of how extremist groups had twisted the image of veterans and soldiers. But Sarge made it clear who was really to blame.

"Nobody is coming to save you but you."

Next came a Navy veteran whose words detonated across the crowd.

"Donald Trump, this is a message for you: Quit kissing Putin’s ass."

He didn’t stop there.

"You're a pathetic disgraceful excuse for a president... JD Vance, you don't belong there either, you eyeliner-wearing little bitch... And as for you, Elon Musk, take a hike. You’re just a rich prick that came from South Africa — get out of my country."

The language was raw, but the fury behind it felt earned.

Later in the afternoon, Michael Ember, a former VA policy advisor, painted a grim picture of the damage unfolding at the VA.

"The VA announced last week they want to fire over 80,000 employees — which would essentially gut America’s only public healthcare system... 17 veterans die by suicide every single day. We've gone through pains to get that number down from 22 a day... And now they want to rip the rug out from under us. We won’t take it."

Ember’s frustration boiled over as he voiced his own exasperation.

"They're really fucking with my pursuit of happiness."

Susan Schnull, a Navy veteran and longtime peace activist, brought the rally back to its core message — the obligation America owes to those who served. Her words were a call to conscience.

"Anytime a country decides to send its people to war, it has the obligation to prepare for those who return from war."

She closed with a vow.

"We will not be erased."

A few days earlier, Richard Allan III, an 80-year-old Navy veteran from Charlottesville, Virginia, staged his protest outside the White House in stark and grim fashion. Wearing a faded blue jacket and gripping a steel pipe device fastened around his arm, Allan locked himself to a signpost and refused to leave. The message scrawled on the pipe was direct and chilling:

"KING TRUMP & PRES. MUSK ARE KILLING VETERANS."

There was no shouting, no dramatic declarations to the crowd — just the silent image of an aging veteran sitting alone in the cold, his arm secured tightly to the post with a bolted pipe. Police soon arrived, speaking calmly to Allan before cutting through the device. He was arrested without further incident.

His quiet defiance left a powerful impression. While other speakers raged on stage, Allan’s silent protest seemed to embody a different kind of fury — the kind that comes when words no longer feel enough. As he was led away by officers, the scrawled message on the pipe lingered as a haunting reminder of why they had all gathered in the first place.

The fury, grief, and desperation of the crowd fused into one singular message: America’s fight isn’t over.

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