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Arlington-area residents traveled by Metro and car to downtown Washington to press members of Congress to resist actions by the Trump administration that protesters said were eroding democratic norms and threatening Americans’ privacy.

Demonstrators carried signs and called on elected officials to answer to their constituents—not President Donald Trump or Elon Musk. Speakers criticized the firing of government lawyers, the withdrawal of support from longtime allies and access by members of the Department of Government Efficiency team to sensitive federal data.

U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat, drew applause as he condemned DOGE access to Social Security, tax and other personal information. He encouraged Americans to file Freedom of Information Act requests to learn what information the team may have obtained about them.

Invoking Thomas Paine’s “The American Crisis,” Raskin urged the crowd to remain engaged through a difficult political struggle.

One speaker said federal workers needed the rest of the country to recognize that the administration’s actions affected everyone. The speaker expressed alarm that daily life appeared normal on Metro trains and in coffee shops despite the rapid changes underway.

Citing a family history of military service—including a father in the Navy, a grandfather in the Army and a son in the Marine Corps—the speaker also criticized the firing of senior judge advocates general. The military attorneys are sometimes described as the armed forces’ conscience because they advise leaders on legal limits.

Another speaker, identified as Mark, said he had lost his job with a USAID-affiliated humanitarian relief organization after 16 years in international development.

Mark told demonstrators that the sudden loss had left him worried about paying college tuition and keeping up with his mortgage. He urged the crowd to continue speaking out and fighting.