Now that Republican voters also feel the pain of his policy, Utah comes into resistance to Trump

Jason McDonalds has somewhat separated from the crowd that protests on the lawn and the stairs for the capitol of Utah against the Trump government. « I am an old-fashioned conservative, a real Reagan republican, » he says. He says. In his hand, he holds a sign that conservatives, according to him, should really stand for: the Constitution, counterpower, NATO, freedom for Ukraine and free trade. « This is for the first time that I go to a protest as this is not really at home. »

McDonald has been politically orphaned, since Trump took over his party in 2016. ,, I never voted for him, but could never have imagined that it would get so bad. Trump lets the economy crash, betrays our allies, makes us hated in the world. He doesn’t care at all anymore, except for the power and filling of his pockets and that of his oligarch friends. « 

He is disappointed that the extremes determine the debate in the US. « With the Trumpists on the one hand and on the other extreme left. » While someone is dressed in a pink-blue transvlag, he explains how stupid he thought of Democrats to embrace transgender rights.

The majority of the estimated six thousand demonstrators who have gathered for the parliament indeed looks progressive. There are more rainbow beans than national ‘stars and stripes’ – and also a few Palestinian and Canadian flags. At the same time, the turnout this Saturday is – simultaneously with others’Hands off!‘-Protests in around 1,200 American cities against Trump and Elon Musks « Hostile takeover »-considerably higher than with earlier anti-government protests this year. There are certainly not only extremely left-wing professional peasers show up.

The federal government is also in Utah

Like almost every big city, Salt Lake City itself votes predominantly democratic, but it is in a deep republican state, Utah. At the same time, this western mountain state is not a convinced Trump territory. In the Republican pre -elections, Trumps achieved more moderate rival Nikki Haley one of her better results. And even among Trumps voters, more than two months after his appointment, there appears to be dissatisfaction with his increasingly authoritarian government style.

That criticism now swells the president, together with his adjutant Elon Musk, has opened a blind as frontal attack on the federal government. And it not only sits in the distant Washington DC, but also in the immediate vicinity of Salt Lake City. For example, a half-hour drive is, at the foot of the snowy mountain tops of the Wasatch chain, the charming town of Ogden. The American tax authorities IRS has eight thousand employees here, with which they are the most important employer together with the Air Force Base.

Like more federal services, the IRS from Washington has also been intimidated for more than two months with an avalanche of decrees and intended cuts. Shortly after Trumps, everyone was ordered to come to the office again five days a week. While Musks pseudo-ministerie of government efficiency also briefly announced the rent on a few IRS buildings. Subsequently, civil servants were given their congé during their probationary period, after which they had to be temporarily assumed under pressure from the judge. And if the reports of 2024 are processed in mid-May, dismissal threatens for a fifth of the number of IRS employees in Ogden, including those in permanent employment.

All these chaos and uncertainty sow fear among tax staff. Only two people who NRC One afternoon before the concrete IRS building of the heart of Ogden appeals, are willing to tell their story. And for fear of job loss and because of a ban on talking to the press, only anonymous.

A woman who has been working at Fiscus for 25 years says that it was chaos for weeks earlier this year. This after Trump ordered to come to work full -time by decree – and Musk had said that it had to be over with Netflixen at home. ,, I work happiness with paper files, so I kept my own workplace. But the people who answer the phone had to sit on one desk with five of them. That didn’t work. « 

Pruning on the tax authorities is a stupid cut and will cost net money, she says. ,, If there are fewer checks, more will be avoided and income will fall. But that is precisely what the policy makers want at the moment. They often belong to the top 1 percent and want to pay as little as possible and deduct as much as possible. ”

It is what it is, she says. ,, They don’t get me away. But my biggest fear is that a colleague turns and uses violence. Then we are in the news for five days and that’s it. « 

It feels like ‘bullying behavior’, says another IRS employee, who walks to his car one afternoon. ,, It is currently confusing to express it softly. Maybe I have to leave, maybe they skip me. I just don’t know. « 

This is what Musk did with Twitter or X. But the government is not a tech company.

He has been working for the IRS, Income Tax department for more than twenty years. In the past, the workforce has been cut more often. ,, But not this way. This is what Musk did with Twitter or X, or whatever it is called. But the government is not a tech company. « 

For example, in February, with more than 2 million officials, he received an e-mail in February, with more than 2 million officials. Whether he could summarize in five points before Monday what he had achieved that week. He has to do that every week since then. « But my work is actually the same every day, so if I always fill in the same thing, is that enough? »

Of course, Luilakken also walk around at the IRS, he says. « But those don’t leave. » While some of the people who were fired in their probationary period.

Although their dissatisfaction is great, both were not going to demonstrate two days later that Thursday afternoon. Too afraid to be recognized in their already precarious situation.

Turnout bigger than before

Nate, another IRS employee,-dressed in a Che Guevara shirt and with a protest board with ‘Welcome to Russia 2.0’ on it-did come to the Hands Off! Protest. After earlier smaller demonstrations this year, he is happy to see that the turnout is on a point, he tells the stairs of the Capitol. « The penny is starting to fall with more and more people. »

At the same time, the turnout could have been more massively. ,, I am in an app group with twenty colleagues and everyone thinks the same as me. But when I shared the flyer for the protest, it remained silent. People said: if you go, cover your face. But this is America, you have the right to demonstrate.  » He only has sunglasses and cap on.

Deño Martinez (left) and Nate (r) did come to argue as IRS employees.

Photo Merijn de Waal

Musk and Trump prune in everything: from the national parks to development aid. « But there is a more sinister plan behind their attack on the IRS, » says Deño Martinez. He works for the tax authorities and is also active for the civil service union of the Ministry of Finance. For every extra dollar you put in the IRS, you get six back in extra yields, he explains.

The purpose of these cutbacks is therefore not to put the budget in order, he believes. ,, But to make it easier for the rich to avoid tax. While ordinary Americans are heavier burdened with the import duties that are coming now. They must apparently compensate for this. « 

Republicans will only pay attention as soon as they feel it in their wallets. ”

The fact that Trump’s trade war will hurt the US economy is reflected on more protest signs. Like that of Maria Marcotte, who carries a sign with the text ‘End Trumps Tariff Taxes. ‘ ,, There is so much going on at the moment. From the illegal expansions to El Salvador to our betrayal of Ukraine. But Republicans are not awake about that, they will only pay attention as soon as they feel it in their wallets. ”

Trump shoots a bit

In a corner of the landing are three of those invalid republicans. Nancy Plambaeck, Lisamarie Fillipazzo and Jeffrey Vancuren work for the Federal Office for Veteran Affairs, which is also on the Hakblok of Washington. They in themselves support that it is cut in the government, because they believe Musk when he says that there is a lot of wasting. Trumps Crusade against Trans women in women’s sports competitions and hard approach to illegal immigration also support.

Although they « agree with 80 to 90 percent of his policy, » they are here this Saturday anyway. « We think Trump should make adjustments. He is now shooting on some points, » says Plambaeck. And then she refers to, among other things, his cuts on veteran care and the trade union rights of officials like them. Vancuren: ,, The hard -working lower officials are now being punished, not the managers. While everyone knows that it works with the government so that those who fail, get higher. « 

Jeffrey Vancuren, Lisamarie Fillipazzo and Nancy Plambaeck work for the Federal Office for Veteran Affairs. They have come to demonstrate because Trump, which they still for 80 to 90 percent, are supporting on certain points.

Jason McDonald, the Reagan-Conservative that is separated somewhat, hopes that Trumps trade war will make a moderate republicans see that he is rising the country. But he also sees scenarios in which Trump uses the taxes to stretch his power even further. He already managed to intimidate his own party, universities, media companies and law firms that many went down for him. ,, By the Tariffs Now also starts to beg for his favor. And there are already so many people who lick his heels. « 

He can only hope that economic pain makes moderate Republican voters come to sentences. ,, The Maga Republicans will follow him down to the deepest gaps of hell. And perhaps he is also assuming that the economy collapses and then to be able to announce a state of emergency or the state of siege and to attract even more power. ”

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