Vivek Ramaswamy showed the backbone conservatives expect when he appeared on Jesse Watters Primetime and told Americans he welcomes peaceful protest but will not tolerate lawlessness or political violence. As a leading Ohio GOP gubernatorial candidate, Ramaswamy was careful to separate the American right to assemble from the reckless behavior we’ve seen from radical factions on the left. His stance — defend free speech, condemn violence — is the clear, common-sense position that true patriots should rally behind.
The “No Kings” demonstrations sweeping the country are being billed by organizers as a mass movement against alleged authoritarianism, with events planned in thousands of cities this year. Media outlets and organizers report massive turnout and a well-coordinated effort by progressive groups to frame every grievance as an existential threat to democracy. Whether you agree with their politics or not, this is not a small, organic protest — it is a national campaign driven by partisan groups and big-money networks.
We should not pretend the risks aren’t real: the June mobilization included confrontations in major cities and, in one tragic case, a fatal shooting that raised the stakes for anyone who cares about public safety. Left-wing organizers may mouth “nonviolence,” but local reports and footage showed chaotic scenes and clashes with police in multiple places, proving that good intentions on a website don’t always translate to peaceful results in the streets. Americans deserve to know who’s behind these demonstrations and whether their proclaimed peacefulness is just a public relations line.
That is why Ramaswamy’s warning about violence coming from the far-left was not only right but responsible. Conservatives shouldn’t reflexively demonize every protestor, but we also can’t normalize a political culture that excuses property destruction or intimidation as “passionate activism.” When elite Democrats and coastal media cheer these mobilizations while ignoring legit concerns about safety and order, they reveal their double standard.
The answer is straightforward: protect free expression while enforcing the law impartially. Governors and local officials must secure public spaces and punish violent behavior from any side — that’s how a free society survives vigorous disagreement without descending into mob rule. We’ve already seen state responses, including troop deployments and heightened security in some places, because responsible leaders are doing their duty to keep citizens safe.
Patriotic Americans should applaud leaders like Ramaswamy who defend both freedom and order, and should reject the performative outrage of activists who cloak disruption in righteous slogans. The left’s habit of co-opting historic language — even invoking July 4, 1776, as some kind of political stunt — cheapens our national heritage and distracts from real solutions. If Republicans want to win the argument for liberty, we must be the party that stands for dignity, law, and a peaceful, prosperous future for every hardworking American.