RANCHO MIRAGE — Hundreds of protesters are expected to greet President Donald Trump when he arrives in the Coachella Valley on Wednesday, Feb. 19 for a private campaign fundraising event at Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison’s California estate.

The protest is set from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m  on Highway 111 and Bob Hope Drive to coincide with Trump’s arrival and motorcade to the fundraiser.

A coalition of activists being organized by the Coachella Valley Grassroots Progressives under the name Coachchella Valley United are spearheading the protest.

One of the event organizers, Lynne O’Neill, a retired attorney and local activist, told Uken Report that “the cost of participating in the Republican-sponsored fundraising event ranges between $150,000 and $250,000, but participating in the community-based rally is free. This is our opportunity to gather together residents from throughout the Coachella Valley to express our concerns and voice our opinions regarding the actions that the Trump Administration is taking and the detrimental impact those actions are having on all our communities in the desert cities”

Coachella Valley United has reached out to various groups, organizations and individuals throughout the area to invite them to participate in this community action, O’Neill said.

Protesters to Welcome Trump to Coachella Valley“We are expecting people from Idyllwild to the Morongo Valley to join us in this exercise of our First Amendment rights because that is actually what makes America great,” said local organizers Bill Holzhauer and Yasmin Espinoza,

The fundraiser is set to take place at Ellison’s Porcupine Creek estate less than two weeks before the Super Tuesday primary election, which includes California’s primary, according to CNBC.

The event will include a golf outing at Ellison’s home, according to CNBC. Supporters will have to pay $100,000 for the golf outing and to have their photo taken with the president. Supporters can pay $250,000 for a photo, golf outing, plus participation in a round table with the president.

Long before Articles of Impeachment were ever drafted, local activists took to some of the busiest and most high-profile intersections in the Coachella Valley to call for Trump’s impeachment and removal from office.

A group of three protesters last year initially began calling for Trump’s impeachment. The group, led by Holzhauer and Espinoza, both of Cathedral City, has been rallying every Monday evening since and has grown exponenetially.

 

Image Sources

  • Dump the Trump: Shutterstock
  • Baby Trump: Shutterstock