Dear MoveOn member,
In the span of a few days, Donald Trump floated the idea that Americans would like to have a dictator. Twice.
First he told reporters, "A lot of people are saying: 'Maybe we'd like a dictator.'"1
Then the next day, he said in a Cabinet meeting, "The line is that I'm a dictator. But I stop crime. So a lot of people say: 'You know, if that's the case, I'd rather have a dictator.'"2
It's despicable—the idea that a nation built on democracy and inalienable freedoms is begging this man for authoritarian rule. The idea that his own power is absolute and that we actually want it that way.
We have news for him: America has no kings, and we will not back down. And it's time to send that message in the loudest way possible, at a critical time.
Which is why on October 18, Americans will rise up for our second No Kings day of nonviolent action.
MoveOn, hundreds of partners, and thousands of volunteers are planning a wave of protests that's even bigger than the first No Kings Day, with millions of Americans across the country taking to the streets.
But organizing a mobilization of this scale—bringing together millions of Americans in cities and towns nationwide—takes significant resources. We need to support thousands of local organizers, provide materials for protests, ensure safety and security, coordinate across all 50 states, and ensure the protests are covered everywhere in the media.
Will you donate $5 a month to help us organize the second No Kings on October 18, plus future days of action, and build the movement to stop Trump's march to dictatorship?
Yes, I'll chip in $5 a month. (If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately.)
No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
Of course, when Trump says "dictator," he always does what anyone testing the waters would do—he walks it back, saying, "I'm not a dictator."3
But let's take a look at his playbook right now:
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He has said outright he was "not joking" about seeking a third term, in direct violation of the Constitution.4
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He has deployed armed soldiers and military vehicles in the streets to patrol his own people in Los Angeles and the nation's capital, and he plans to do so in other cities run by his political opposition.5
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He has launched administrative witch-hunt investigations into all major media corporations that have been critical of his rule and has defunded independent media.6
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He has persecuted Democrats and bullied the legal system into submission.7
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He has targeted a vulnerable population in order to hide his own corruption—and has unleashed a rogue police to grab those people off the streets.8
Trump could not be acting more Orwellian if he were hanging gigantic banners of himself from government buildings. Except, he did that, too—displaying a three-story banner of his face with the words "American Workers First" on the Labor Department after cutting hundreds of thousands of those same American workers' jobs.9
Aspiring dictators understand only one thing: power. But it's us, we the people, who have that—when we come together as one voice to reject authoritarianism. On June 14, in partnership with hundreds of organizations, we peacefully mobilized more than 5 million people to take to the streets in every corner of the country and declared with one voice that America has no kings. That began a massive decline in Trump's popularity. We need to do it again, even bigger.
Please chip in $5, or whatever you can afford, to help MoveOn's efforts to mobilize millions to come together and say, in one voice, "No thrones. No crowns. No kings."
Yes, I'll chip in $5 a month. (If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately.)
No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
MoveOn's team is already working around the clock to make October 18 a success. Planning these mass events includes:
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Recruiting and training local volunteer hosts. There will be rallies, marches, and demonstrations in thousands of locations, attended by millions of people. And each will be led by a local volunteer stepping up to organize their community. We are organizing virtual trainings for volunteers, putting together detailed written guides, and providing on-demand one-on-one support to empower hundreds of grassroots hosts with the skills to lead safe, successful events.
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Providing materials and logistics. From providing rally signs and banners to stage and sound system rentals, we're helping events to be accessible and impactful.
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Spreading the word far and wide. We're running digital ads, sending tens of millions of emails and text messages, putting together social media campaigns, and assisting local organizers with reaching out to community leaders and local press, all to ensure huge turnout on October 18 and that our message reverberates nationwide.
Training and empowering volunteers, providing support to large events in key cities, and providing massive online infrastructure we need to turn out millions requires resources, and we can't do it without you.
So please, can you chip in $5 a month to fund MoveOn's organizing for this and future days of action to stop Trump's abuses and cruelty?
Yes, I'll chip in $5 a month. (If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately.)
No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.
Thanks for all you do.
–Emma, Amandah B., Tes, Eric, and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "'Maybe We Like a Dictator': Trump Suggests Many Americans Would Prefer Autocracy," Time, August 26, 2025
https://time.com/7312196/trump-americans-maybe-we-like-a-dictator/
2. "Donald Trump says he is not a dictator. Isn't he?" The Guardian, September 1, 2025
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2025/sep/01/trump-dictator-authoritarianism-politics
3. Ibid.
4. "Trump says he's 'not joking' about third term — and notes this apparent loophole: 'There are methods,'" New York Post, March 30, 2025
https://nypost.com/2025/03/30/us-news/trump-says-hes-not-joking-about-third-term-and-notes-an-apparent-loophole-to-limit-there-are-methods/
5. "Donald Trump says he is not a dictator. Isn't he?" The Guardian, September 1, 2025
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2025/sep/01/trump-dictator-authoritarianism-politics
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
8. "ICE agents detain people outside Virginia immigration court, strong-arm activists filming," NBC 4, June 12, 2025
https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/ice-agents-detain-people-outside-immigration-court-strong-arm-activists-filming/3934089/
9. Ibid.
Want to support MoveOn's work? Donald Trump's authoritarian takeover intensifies every day. But we must remember that authoritarian governments worldwide have not withstood a challenge by 3.5% or more of its people. MoveOn can reach, train, organize, and support at a scale unparalleled in the progressive movement—which we need now more than ever. Will you make a monthly donation today to power this urgent and critical organizing?
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