Tax Day demonstrators demand that Trump release his returns
Thousands attend mostly peaceful protests; clashes turn violent in Berkeley
CHICAGO — Thousands of chanting, sign-carrying protesters took to the streets in cities across the nation Saturday, demanding that President Donald Trump release his tax returns, so Americans can scrutinize his business ties and potential conflicts of interest.
Violent clashes were the exception during the largely peaceful demonstrations, but in Berkeley, Calif., police arrested 16 people and confiscated knives and makeshift weapons after fistfights broke out.
Hundreds of pro-Trump demonstrators and counterprotesters clashed Saturday at a “Patriots Day” rally in Berkeley. It was the third time the two groups engaged in violent confrontations on city streets in recent months.
Mr. Trump was the first major-party nominee in more than 40 years not to release his tax returns, saying it was because he was under audit. He later said that voters don’t care.
But 71-year-old Ilene Singh said he’s wrong. She rode a bus from New Jersey to New York City with her friend Geraldine Markowitz, 83, to take part in protests. “We’re here to say we care,” said Ms. Singh.
Pushing her walker, Karin Arlin, 85, a Holocaust survivor who came to the U.S. from Germany when she was 9, said she’s also worried about the direction of the country.
“You don’t know which way the country goes,” said Ms. Arlin next to her 89-yearold husband, who fled Czechoslovakia during World War II. “I hope Republicans see it.”
Actress and producer Justine Bateman, who addressed several thousand people at a rally in downtown Los Angeles, said Americans need “financial statement proof” that Mr. Trump is not beholden to any business interests or country other than the U.S.
In Washington, D.C., one of Mr. Trump’s sharpest critics in the House spoke to protesters at the U.S. Capitol just before they set off on a march to the National Mall. Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters, of California, said there’s nothing to prevent Mr. Trump from releasing his income taxes and that “the simple truth is he’s got a lot to hide.”
In Berkeley, fistfights broke out near Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park, where Trump supporters had scheduled a rally. Fireworks and smoke bombs were thrown into the crowd, and a few demonstrators were doused with pepper spray.
Both groups threw rocks and sticks at each other and used a large trash bin as a battering ram as the crowd moved around the perimeter of the park. Sixteen people were arrested, said Officer Jennifer Coats of the Berkeley Police Department. Nine people were injured, with six taken to a hospital for treatment, including one stabbing victim, she said.
About 250 police officers were deployed to the scene by mid-afternoon after officials sought assistance from the neighboring Oakland Police Department.
In Las Vegas, police said a broadcast photojournalist for KLAS-TV was arrested and cited for trespassing and obstructing during a protest at Trump International Hotel near the Strip. Event organizer Laura Martin says at least three others were detained but released. Authorities said the protest was attended by about 250 people.
For four decades, presidents and major party nominees have released some of their tax returns, with the exception of Gerald Ford. Mr. Trump’ s break with precedent has raised questions about possible conflicts of interest.
Protesters in Raleigh, North Carolina, said they suspect that Mr. Trump’s returns might show he has paid little or nothing to the government he now heads, or that he was indebted to Russian, Chinese or other foreign interests.