Trump says ‘I am not a king’ after weekend protests

ISTANBUL

US President Donald Trump rejected accusations of authoritarianism following nationwide “No Kings” protests over the weekend, saying he works tirelessly to serve the country and not to rule over it.

“I’m not a king. I work my ass off to make our country great. That’s all it is,” he told reporters Sunday as he returned to Washington, stressing: “I’m not a king at all.”

He downplayed the demonstrations, describing them as “a joke” and claiming they were financed by billionaire philanthropist George Soros and “other radical left lunatics.”

“I looked at the people — they’re not representative of this country. The demonstrations were very small, very ineffective, and the people were whacked out,” he said.

Millions of demonstrators gathered across the US on Saturday to protest Trump and his administration, with many citing threats to democracy, free speech and the environment for taking to the streets.

One of the organizers, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), said 7 million people showed up to the more than 2,500 “No Kings” rallies organized in all 50 states.