President Donald Trump won Wyoming in November by a larger margin than any other state in the nation. But three months into his second administration, opposition to his actions has become more visible here.
On Saturday, demonstrators gathered in several Wyoming communities to protest Trump and his ally Elon Musk as part of the national “Hands Off!” movement. Here are dispatches from Cheyenne, Casper and Jackson.
More than 300 protest against Trump at Wyoming Capitol
By Cy Neff
For the Wyoming Tribune Eagle, via Wyoming News Exchange
CHEYENNE—Cheyenne resident April Clarke stood in the thick of a 300-person crowd at the state Capitol on Saturday, holding a sign that read “My kids will know I did not sit quietly.”
Clarke said she’s worried about the direction the Trump administration is steering the country in — the “ostracization” of communities, particularly LGBTQ+ Americans, and massive governmental cuts.
“I know all the work that the Department of Ed does for special education,” Clarke said. “I’ve got two little kids and I’d like them to live in a positive place.”
Clarke, and the hundreds with her in front of the Capitol, made up one of hundreds of anti-Trump protests that took place across the country Saturday.
The demonstrations have been dubbed the “Hands Off!” protests, and on their official website, they are described as a “nationwide mobilization to stop the most brazen power grab in modern history.” The website declares that President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk “want to strip America for parts.”
This sentiment was prominently on display in downtown Cheyenne. Protesters carried a spread of signs, including “Orange lies matter,” “Deport Musk,” “Fire Trump” and “No human is illegal on stolen land.”
Protest organizer Joe Ramirez led the crowd in call-and-response chants, with “This is what Democracy looks like” being the most common. Ramirez, a local veteran, has held protests at the Wyoming Capitol throughout 2025. Saturday’s turnout had Ramirez in high spirits.
“This makes me feel stoked — that change is coming, that people are ready for it,” Ramirez said.
Barbara Vasquez, a Laramie resident, was concerned enough by the administration to make the drive east on Interstate 80, even though her own community also hosted a demonstration. Vasquez, who used to work at the NIH, said she saw the “devastation” of the CDC and medical research as “unconscionable.”
“This administration is making changes to the executive function that are going to kill our democracy,” Vasquez said.
Cheyenne resident John Sheffield was decked out in red, white and blue and wore a stars and stripes baseball cap. Sheffield said he’s worried about the direction the Trump administration is steering the country.
“I support our Constitution above all else,” Sheffield said. “A lot of the executive orders should have gone through Congress legally, and they did not.”
James Hunter, who arrived with his family to protest, said he was especially motivated to show up because of the lack of due process in the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign.
“Our country is going down and ignoring history. I think we’re in danger of going into fascism, and seeing rights taken away every day is disheartening,” Hunter said. “America’s losing our status in the world because of what’s going on in this administration.”
No speeches were given. Some protestors brought their dogs, many mingled with cups of coffee in hand. A few pickup trucks cruised by with Make America Great Again flags and Trump paraphernalia. A group of around 20 counter-protesters stationed themselves across the street, many waving a variety of Trump flags, one holding up a sign that said “Do your research.”
Brian Pixley was one of the 20, and showed up to take a stand against “far radical left protesters.” Pixley said those protesting the administration had their facts wrong.
“They just need to be reeducated,” Pixley said.
‘Hands off’: Hundreds protest Trump admin in Casper
By Tommy Culkin
Oil City News
CASPER—Hundreds of local residents took to the streets of Casper on Saturday afternoon to protest the Trump administration.
The activists joined protesters across Wyoming and beyond in standing against President Donald Trump and Elon Musk as part of the “Hands Off” movement that saw similar rallies in communities across all 50 states including several in Wyoming.
In Casper alone, organizers said roughly 500 people took part.
“I’m overwhelmed by this turnout,” said Sandy Bouchier, one of the local protest organizers. “I’m about in tears.”
Organizer Patricia Robinson said many hours were spent behind the scenes to make the protest a reality, making the strong turnout all the more welcome.
“We really just want people to know they’re not alone,” she said. “I never would’ve expected to find so much community and people coming together in a red state like Wyoming.”
Protesters in attendance voiced anger at the federal government for a plethora of reasons, from issues of civil liberties to economic stability.
“I’m here because I have a granddaughter,” Bouchier said. “My granddaughter is 11, and now doesn’t have the same rights I had 50 years ago.”
Organizer Sunny Phifer also spoke in support of women’s rights and marginalized communities.
“I have always stood for equal rights and the LGBT [community],” Phifer said. “That’s very near and dear to me.”
Throughout the protest that spanned roughly a block of Second Street, several chants and signs decried the tariffs imposed on imported goods from several countries.
“I hate the tariffs and think they’re terrible. They’re something that seems good until you actually think about it,” protester Brian Nolte said.
Ire was also directed at world’s richest man Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency, which have been making slashes to the national budget with wide-reaching effects.
Musk has been heavily involved in the DOGE cuts, which he says are reducing waste and fraud in the federal government.
“He wasn’t elected,” Nolte said. “We’re trillions of dollars in debt, but these cuts of $1 million here and $2 million there is just nickel-and-diming. All it’s doing is making people’s lives worse.”
“There are so many problems, and they’re all important,” attendee Beth Moxley said. “Education, immigration, the economy. This is about as bad as it can get.”
Bouchier and attendee Joey Patterson both said they felt overwhelmed by the sum total of the current administration’s policies.
“It feels like 1930s Germany. It’s ridiculous,” Patterson said.
Robinson said she believes the root problem is one of class.
“I just think our government is being led by the 1% right now and I don’t stand for that,” she said. “It’s not left vs. right or us vs. them; it’s rich vs. poor.”
Organizers agreed that more protests and events will likely be coming in the near future, though nothing is officially planned yet.
“This will continue, to be sure,” organizer Jane Ifland said, “because I don’t see that any change is coming from the Republican administration currently in control of the country and responsible for every negative thing that happens as a result of their policies.”
Hundreds of Jacksonites object to Trump
By Christina MacIntosh
Jackson Hole News&Guide, via Wyoming News Exchange
JACKSON—The Town Square wasn’t big enough to contain a Saturday protest of the Trump administration. With so many people impacted by and angry about President Trump’s deep cuts to the federal government, the vibe of the rally was hard to pin down.
There were veteran hats and pride flags; 20-somethings playing Chappell Roan from an oversized speaker and dads singing Pete Seeger while strumming acoustic guitars; protesters with cataract glasses leaning on canes; and a middle schooler whose mom had censored his sign for being inappropriate. There was earnest chanting and a guy on a Harley with a shredded flag doing laps of the square.
“It’s to represent that our country is being tattered,” said Lorrie Wells, wife of the protest’s motorcyclist, Jim Wells.
The Wells are pretty conservative and Lutheran, Lorrie Wells said, but they felt compelled to protest due to their fears about Social Security, public lands and veterans.
“The vets are being treated like dirt, when they gave their lives for our country,” Jim Wells said. “I had two grandfathers, three uncles and a cousin fight from World War I to the Korean War, trying to establish world peace.”
The Town Square rally was part of a wave of “Hands Off!” rallies across the nation Saturday to protest Trump and billionaire Elon Musk’s actions on government downsizing, which the administration believes will benefit the nation in the long term.
Craig Logan, the organizer of the Jackson protest, was a lifelong Republican until Trump won the Republican nomination in 2016.
“I will never go back. My party left me,” Logan said. “What I’m seeing is un-American and undemocratic.”
The magnitude of Trump’s cuts even brought out some protesters who aren’t opposed to paring back on federal spending.
“I’m not averse to cutting back, but I’m averse to how he’s doing it,” said Karen Saner, who came up from Etna to demonstrate with her husband, Donald.
The Saners belong to Teton Backcountry Horsemen and help with Bridger-Teton National Forest trail maintenance by packing in supplies for trail crews.
“With Trump and his cronies, the possibility of losing what’s around us really scares me,” Donald Saner said.
The protest was at least double the size of the early March demonstration against the cuts to federal stewards of public lands and was the largest protest Lisa Robertson, a Town Square regular, has seen in her 30 years in Jackson.
“This is huge,” said Rebecca Woods Bloom, a 45-year resident of Jackson. “This is the first Saturday in April that you have a car-free day in Grand Teton National Park, and hundreds of people decided to show up for democracy.”
Thank you for posting/reporting Hands Off in Wyoming. No coverage on the Cowboy State News Daily. Yet, the organization claims they cover ALL Wyoming news.
Protest all they want. Everything will be a smoldering dumpster fire by the midterms and Wyoming would still vote R by 80-20 margin (if there even are midterms).
We are changed forever and this can’t be fixed . The world hates us now and the second Great Depression is coming. And I pray I’m wrong .
What’s interesting is that even here in “deep red” Wyoming, some Republicans are recognizing the party’s mistake in choosing Trump as a candidate (and allowing him to run roughshod over Congress, the courts, and our democracy). Some are even joining in these protests. Right now, it is mostly those whose jobs have been slashed even though they are vital… and also seniors concerned about cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. But as other folks are affected – particularly by the stock market crash – more will join in. Trump is no conservative; he’s showing his true colors as a manic, would-be despot.
It’s encouraging to see that not all Republicans have totally lost their minds in support of Trump and have joined Democrats and Independents in speaking out against the harm that this administration is doing to this country, and the rest of the world.
It should be obvious to more Wyomingites by now that the most overtly corrupt, incompetent, and deranged man who ever served as our President needs to be removed from office along with everyone who is currently supporting him. Unfortunately, this is going to take some time, especially in a state where most people consider anyone other than a ” fellow republican” a traitorous left wing lunatic. The mere fact that some Republicans joined in these protest is a great sign that maybe the MAGA spell is starting to break. Being a RINO, I welcome the day when we can all once again call ourselves “Wyomingites” and not Republicans or Democrats.
My congratulations to all of the organizers of these protests. I wish my wife and I would have known about them so that we could have been there. Hopefully, next time…
How do we do it?
Wyoming voted Trump to the highest office in the land. The protests across the state and America are apparent that he is no longer approved of wanted, or needed…how do we unite to have him, Musk, the Freedom Caucus, Maga and their mis-guided ideas removed their place in government and return to an America that could possibly be once respected on home land and abroad?
Has anyone considered that this period in time is karma for the country and the people of USA?
Good morning neighbors!
“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all”.
““This administration is making changes to the executive function that are going to kill our democracy,” Vasquez said.”
Hmmmmmmm 🤔, when these United States of America becomes a democracy there is a serious concern and situation(s)? Again good morning America! SEMPER FI!
The crowd in Jackson was loud, boisterous, committed, and peaceful. Cars honked in support and we saw the same cars over and over again as they circled the Square several times. There were so many people they couldn’t all fit on the Square sidewalk, so they filled the sidewalks across the street. There were the usual hecklers on Harleys sporting ragged American flags but they couldn’t compete for noise with the crowd. Most importantly, a lot of people met each other for the first time–one of the things that drives future organizing, future unity. I look forward to more rallies and more support for the common good of the country.
Actually the couple on the Harley with the ragged American flag weren’t hecklers—they were lovely, thoughtful people who were there out of concern for our democracy and what Trump and Musk and the Republicans are doing to our rights and freedoms. They had a small sign at the base of the flag saying “Democracy still waves”—despite the flag being in tatters. They get it!
Not sure if WyoFile shares links, nice picture of the Harley couple: https://photos.app.goo.gl/omQjY2ggXoL8W5es7
Recently the US lost four young and brave soldiers in Lithuania. Their 70 ton military vehicle sank in a bog and evidently they were trapped and died.
They were returned to the US on April 5. “Our” Commander-in Chief, Donald Trump chose instead of being at their arrival at Dover and supporting and comforting the deceased soldiers families, instead went to FL to play golf and rub elbows with his rich donors. How very disrespectful.
Is he your president?
Veterans,
Well said!!
We can expect nothing more from “our dear leader.” Not now, not ever. He wasn’t even present for the “not at all secret” Signal discussion to bomb what, when, and where. Those who were in attendance were not even sure that he understood just what was going down. He fired the man who saved his life, Dr. Peter Stein, who made the 2 monoclonal antibodies available for him…and countless others. https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/donald-trump-fired-the-man-who-likely-saved-his-life-former-medical-official-236335685814.
Tom: Nearly 300 active duty personnel die every year from accidents like this. Over 300 die from suicide.
No president can be expected to attend every funeral or arrival back to CONUS.
These particular soldiers probably shouldn’t have even been where they were.
Bring ALL our troops home from around the world!