Throngs of peaceful protesters were expected to take to Bay Area streets on Saturday as part of nationwide “No Kings” rallies seeking to cast President Donald Trump as an authoritarian ruler.

In the Bay Area, Democratic-aligned groups had planned about 50 protests for Saturday afternoon in San Jose, Oakland, San Francisco, Palo Alto, Walnut Creek, Hayward, Pittsburg and a slew of other cities, according to the event’s website. Organizers include local chapters of the Democratic activist group Indivisible, the SEIU labor union, 50501 and a constellation of unions and progressive groups.

“The president thinks his rule is absolute,” web pages for the protests read. “But in America, we don’t have kings, and we won’t back down against chaos, corruption, and cruelty.”

Trump has pushed back ag

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