Protesters stood at Kennedy Plaza in Providence on Saturday for an emergency rally to oppose Elon Musk’s new roles in the federal government and demand that Rhode Island senators stand up against his actions.
Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency is a revamped department put in place under President Barack Obama, previously named the “United States Digital Service,” according to a Jan. 20 White House executive order. DOGE’s main purpose is to cut government spending, including shutting down the U.S. Agency for International Development and modifying the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s payroll system.
“What [Musk] is doing is a takeover, it’s illegitimate,” Rhode Island State Sen. Tiara Mack said to the protestors.
Due to Musk’s seizure of the Treasury and its DOGE programs, $125 million in funding for Rhode Island loans, grants and energy programs have been cut, according to Mack.
Losing this money will affect all Rhode Islanders, according to Mack. Mack brought forward possible solutions to this, such as taxing the wealthiest people in the country.
“Because we are not taxing the rich, our communities suffer day in and day out,” Mack said. “We are all in this community here closer to homelessness than we are being a part of the billionaire class.”
Mack and other speakers called upon the U.S. Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse and Jack Reed to oppose Musk’s hostile takeover of the government.
“We must ensure that every Rhode Islander is taken care of,” Mack said. “We have your backs as long as you [the senators] have ours.”
The crowd echoed these thoughts; they held up signs reading “Flush out DOGE,” “Senators Reed & Whitehouse: use your powers for good,” and “Resist. Wake up. Rise up.”
Organizations attending the protest included Indivisible, Black Lives Matter RI, and Climate Action RI, according to an Instagram post by the University of Rhode Island’s Student Action for Sustainability club.
“In times like right now it’s pretty scary,” Ulla Klymlander, third-year student and SAS member, said. “It’s nice to go there and see people who care a lot and are taking action.”
Klymlander considers herself politically engaged and likes to attend protests and rallies when she can. She heard about this rally through a friend.
“Personally, my main reason [to attend] is to go there and hear people who know what they’re talking about have to say,” Klymlander said.
Klymlander said she was horrified but not surprised by the actions Musk and the Trump administration is taking toward government jobs and spending.
“It should not be allowed to happen,” Klymlander said. “I think that it’s not what the majority of people want and for that reason it’s not fair.”
Despite these actions, Klymlander is hopeful that the changes put in place by Musk can and will be challenged. Klymlander said her friends and peers expressed similar feelings about Musk’s actions in government and she hopes this will be a wake up call for those in and outside of Trump’s circle.
“I’m hopeful that no matter how many loyalists these people have, even people on their side might question things,” Klymlander said. “The [Republican Party] might be hesitant about passing some of this stuff and try to control it.”
