PALM BEACH, Fla. — In a Tax Day groundswell of calls for President Trump to release his tax returns, hundreds of protesters marched to Mr. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago getaway on Saturday in Florida, and thousands more gathered in Washington and other cities across the country.

On a waterfront patch facing Mr. Trump’s resort, where he is spending the weekend, demonstrators chanted “Pay! Your! Taxes!” and held signs calling him “Chicken in Chief” — the chicken being a symbol at the rallies of how Mr. Trump was “scared” to follow decades of presidential practice in releasing the returns.

“This is the closest we have come to making sure he sees us and hears us,” said Debbie Wehking, 66, a school principal from Miami. “He needs to show us his tax returns so that we can tell who’s influencing his decisions, who he owes money to, who he’s doing business with — really so we can figure out whether he needs to be impeached.”

Mr. Trump avoided the protest, taking a more circuitous route in his motorcade as he returned from a morning outing to his golf club in West Palm Beach. But while the president was spared the sight of chanting, sign-waving crowds, the demonstrations were heard around the country, in some cases snaking past properties bearing the Trump name.</s>Hundreds of pro-Trump demonstrators and counter-protesters clashed Saturday at a “Patriots Day” rally in Berkeley, the third time the groups engaged in violent confrontations on city streets in recent months.

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.



For the record: An article in the April 16 California section quoted Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes as saying, “I don’t mind hitting” counter-protesters. Rhodes said he was referring not to anti-fascist demonstrators but to “the actual white nationalists who showed up and tried to co-opt the event.” Also, it said Rhodes came from Montana with others. He met the others at the event and was the only Montanan.

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. One bank boarded up its ATMs before the rally as a precaution.

About 250 police officers were deployed to the scene by mid-afternoon after officials sought assistance from the neighboring Oakland Police Department.

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Twenty-one people were arrested, including some on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, according to Officer Byron White of the Berkeley Police Department. Eleven people were injured with at least six taken to a hospital for treatment, including one stabbing victim.

Police confiscated knives, stun guns and poles, White said.

1 / 7 Pepper spray is used as supporters of President Trump clash with protesters Saturday during Berkeley rally organized by the Trump supporters. (David Butow / For The Times) 2 / 7 Fights break out between Trump supporters and protesters during a rally Saturday in Berkeley. At least 21 were arrested as punches, tear gas and rocks were thrown in the sporadic violence. (JOSH EDELSON / AFP/Getty Images) 3 / 7 Supporters of President Trump clash with protesters during a Saturday rally in Berkeley. (David Butow/for the Times) 4 / 7 Supporters of President Trump clash with protesters at a Civic Center Park rally organized by the Trump supporters. () 5 / 7 A protester kicks trash removed from a can and set on fire during a pro-Trump rally Saturday in Berkeley. (David Butow/for the Times) 6 / 7 A Trump supporter bloodied in clashes yells during a pro-Trump rally Saturday in Berkeley. (David Butow/for the Times) 7 / 7 Supporters of President Trump clash with protesters during a rally Saturday in Berkeley. (David)

Stewart Rhodes, founder of the citizen militia group known as the Oath Keepers, said he came from Montana with about 50 others to protect Trump supporters. They were joined by bikers and others who vowed to fight members of an anti-fascist group if they crossed police barricades.

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“I don’t mind hitting” the counter-demonstrators, Rhodes said. “In fact, I would kind of enjoy it.”

But Rhodes credited Berkeley police for new tactics that mostly kept the two sides apart and “our side chilled and relaxed,” though sporadic fights broke out among both groups throughout the morning and afternoon.

“It’s getting sporty,” said Oath Keeper John Karriman, 59, who is from Missouri and was among the group’s security leaders.

AJ Alegria, 31, of Sacramento said he also came to Berkeley to help defend Trump supporters. He said he pursued a counter-demonstrator down a side street and found himself surrounded by a dozen protesters in black masks who he said attacked him with sticks and pepper spray.

“These people create violence all the time... somebody has to stand up to them,” said Alegria, who was injured in the fight. He was treated by Trump supporters who bandaged his head, washed off the pepper spray and gave him encouragement, saying, “You’ve earned your stripes, bro.”

Alegria wasn’t the only one injured.

“Stand up, America! Stand up!” shouted a Trump supporter in the middle of Center Street with a bandage on his head and streaks of blood on a sign that read “Stop Liberal Intolerance.”

Brenna Lundy, 28, said she drove from San Francisco to attend what she thought was an organizing event against the alt-right. As the violence unfolded, she stayed and attempted to talk to some of the people shouting insults at her.

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“So I genuinely wanted to talk. I am trying to talk to you,” Lundy said to a woman screaming at her that “Obama hates blacks.”

Another woman from the pro-Trump side came up to Lundy and, putting a hand to her ear, said, “Ask her why she hates white people.”

Lundy looked confused. She gave up and turned away.

“This is more of a riot,” she said.

Meanwhile, giving a speech at a well-secured end of the park, alt-right blogger Lauren Southern railed against societal change, Kim Kardashian and the media. She called on members of her movement to “realize Trump is only a foot in the door.”

“We must become like them: subversive,” she said of her opponents.

The rally, one of many held across the country, was sponsored by the pro-Trump group Liberty Revival Alliance. A regularly scheduled farmer’s market, which is usually held adjacent to the park, was canceled as a precaution.

A single vendor showed up Saturday to sell organic produce. “Rain or shine or fascism, we will be here,” said a young woman operating the cash register.

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Berkeley Police Sgt. Andrew Frankel told CBS 5 that police would have extra patrols on duty in case things get out of hand. “We’ve staffed accordingly and are preparing for a number of different contingencies,” he said.

About two dozen police officers showed up at the park early Saturday and set up a narrow entrance to control access. Those entering the park were prohibited from bringing the following items: metal pipes, baseball bats, poles, bricks, Mace, knives, rocks, glass bottles, eggs and Tasers.

Dave Gottfried, 58, a self-employed Berkeley artist, passed “empathy kisses,” chocolate candy, out to both sides. He had hoped to “show empathy is the beginning of understanding.”

“I feel we are going down the rabbit hole,” he said.

Last month, 10 people were arrested and seven others injured at what was supposed to be a pro-Trump rally in the famously liberal community. In February, a scheduled appearance by conservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos was canceled amid a violent protest at UC Berkeley.

The unrest underscores the heightened political tensions that have taken hold since President Trump took office in January.

Meanwhile, several thousand anti-Trump protesters marched through downtown Los Angeles on Saturday to demand the president release his tax returns.

The peaceful demonstration was one of dozens of “tax marches,” held in cities around the country on the traditional deadline for filing federal income tax returns.

Marchers filled blocks of closed-off streets as they walked from Pershing Square to City Hall, waving signs and chanting “Donald Trump has got to go.”

Among their placard messages: “Prove you have nothing to hide,” “Donald Ducks his Fair Share,” “No 1040, no peace” and “I pay for your golf trips. Do you?”

paige.stjohn@latimes.com

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UPDATES:

6:35 p.m.: This story includes new information from police.

3:35 p.m.: This story was updated with new information from police about arrests.

2:55 p.m.: This story has been updated with more comments from demonstrators.

2:05 p.m.: This story has been updated with more details about clash between demonstrators.

12:30 p.m.: This article has been updated with comments from some demonstrators.

11:45 a.m. This story has been updated with new information from the scene.

11 a.m.: This story has been updated with new information from police and demonstrators.

This story was originally posted at 9:05 a.m.</s>MAR-A-LAGO, Fla. -- President Donald Trump arrived for another weekend at his languid Florida resort on Thursday, this time without the usual retinue of top aides who have accompanied him in the past, even as global tensions flare.

Trump's jaunt to Mar-a-Lago, his seventh since taking office in January, coincides with a closely watched anniversary in North Korea, where analysts have said the rogue regime may be preparing for a sixth nuclear test.

It wouldn't be the first time Trump confronted a global incident from the confines of his terra-cotta-roofed oceanfront mansion.

During a visit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe earlier this year, North Korea test fired ballistic missiles, prompting an impromptu strategy session on Mar-a-Lago's dining patio. Last weekend, as Trump was hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping, he announced US missile strikes from Mar-a-Lago after conferring with top aides in a specially designed conference room.

A White House official said aides from the National Security Council were accompanying Trump during his trip to Florida this weekend, and the secure facility -- kitted out with video-conferencing technology and other classified features -- stands at the ready.

But other top aides, including senior advisers and Trump's chief of staff, were spending the holiday weekend back in Washington.

On Thursday afternoon, Trump boarded Air Force One solo. Reince Priebus, his chief of staff, escorted the President to Joint Base Andrews in his armored limousine but didn't make the trip to Florida. Priebus said he had "things to go over with him for next week so I jumped in the motorcade," but wasn't scheduled to fly south for the weekend.

A White House official said the staffing footprint at Mar-a-Lago would be "very light" because it's a holiday weekend, suggesting Easter would be a chance for Trump to spend time with his wife and children and so that top staffers could spend time with their own families.

But even amid his restful stay in South Florida, Trump could find himself confronting another provocative move from North Korea. The birthday Saturday of the nation's founder could prompt the country to conduct its sixth nuclear test, according to experts.

It would be the first test under the Trump administration, and his response will be scrutinized in Pyongyang and Washington. Trump has spoken out aggressively against North Korea this week, saying that his recent meeting with China's Xi made him realize how complicated the problem was.

Speaking Thursday, Trump said he wasn't sure if his administration's decision to drop a "Mother of all Bombs" on an ISIS enclave in Afghanistan was meant as a display of American resolve to North Korea.

"I don't know if this sends a message," Trump said at the White House. "It doesn't make any difference if it does or not. North Korea is a problem. The problem will be taken care of."

Trump said he'd gained important cooperation from Xi during their talks last weekend and in subsequent phone calls.

"I will say this, I think China has really been working very hard and I have really gotten to like and respect, as you know, President Xi. He's a terrific person," Trump said. "We spent a lot of time together in Florida and he's a very special man so we'll see how it goes."

Administration officials maintain that Trump will be kept well informed of activity in North Korea by his team, should the need arise, and will continue to be updated through the weekend.

It was standard practice in the Bush and Obama administrations for a senior national security aide (often at the deputy national security adviser level or higher) to always travel with the president, including on vacations.

One former senior administration official said this was key advice that the Bush team offered the Obama team during that transition. Physical proximity to the President during a national security event was seen as critical for decision-making and keeping the president informed.

A senior White House foreign policy aide told reporters Thursday that, broadly, military options were already being assessed with regard to North Korea, and those options would arise during Vice President Mike Pence's trip to Asia this week.

Pence is due to arrive in Seoul on Sunday.</s>NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of people marched through midtown Manhattan and dozens of U.S. cities on Saturday to demand that President Donald Trump release his tax returns and to dispute his claim that the public does not care about the issue.

Organizers of “Tax March” in more than 150 cities across the country and beyond wanted to call attention to Trump’s refusal to disclose his tax history, as his White House predecessors have done for more than 40 years.

The marches coincide with the traditional April 15 deadline for U.S. federal tax returns, though the filing date was pushed backed two days this year.

There were no reports of violence or arrests, in contrast to a clash between Trump supporters and opponents that erupted at a rally in Berkeley, California, where nine people were arrested.

Two of the biggest tax marches took place in New York and Los Angeles, with each drawing about 5,000 people, according to estimates by Reuters reporters. No official estimates were immediately available.

In Manhattan, a good-natured crowd rallied at Bryant Park before marching up Sixth Avenue to Central Park.

Among the marchers was an oversized inflatable rooster, sporting an angry expression and a sweeping metallic orange hairdo meant to resemble Trump’s signature style.

“Thanks to Trump, I think that releasing your taxes when you run for president now has to be a law,” said New Yorker Marni Halasa, 51, who arrived in a tutu and leggings made of fake dollar bills and holding a sign that read “Show Me The Money!”

In Washington, more than 1,500 protesters gathered on the front lawn of the U.S. Capitol, where members of Congress addressed the crowd before it marched to the Lincoln Memorial.

“We are taking the gloves off to say knock off the secrecy Mr. President,” said Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, which would play a leading role in tax reform measures being considered in Congress.

Demonstrators react as they march past Trump Tower as they protest through Manhattan demanding U.S. President Donald Trump release his tax returns, in New York, U.S., April 15, 2017. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

He described Trump’s refusal to release his taxes as being “like a teenager trying to hide a lousy report card.”

TAX REFORM

Among the marchers was Melinda Colwell, 34, a stay-at-home-mother from Ledyard, Connecticut. She said she was concerned that conflicts of interest in Trump’s tax returns might foreshadow selfish interests in his tax reform policies.

“I think it’s important to know how that could influence his decisions and how he could benefit from the decisions being made,” she said.

As a candidate and as president, Trump has refused to release his tax returns, citing an ongoing audit by the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS has said that Trump can release his tax returns even while under audit.

The White House could not be reached immediately for comment on the marches.

Events were also planned in cities in Europe, Japan and New Zealand.

The marches were launched by a single tweet, organizers said. A day after the massive Jan. 21 women’s march in Washington and other cities, comedy writer Frank Lesser tapped out on Twitter, “Trump claims no one cares about his taxes. The next mass protest should be on Tax Day to prove him wrong.” It has been retweeted more than 21,000 times.

In Los Angeles, television director Mike Stutz turned up at the march dressed in costume as a Russian general and said he was called General Bullshitski. He carried a sign that read: “What Tax Returns? Putin paid cash. Trust your oligarchs,” referring to allegations of contacts between Trump’s campaign and Russia, led by President Vladimir Putin.

Joe Dinkin, spokesman for the Working Families Party, one of the groups organizing the marches, said investigations into the Trump campaign’s alleged connections to Russia underscore the need to disclose his returns.

Slideshow (3 Images)

“Without seeing his taxes, we’ll never really know who he’s working for,” said Dinkin, who expects the marches to draw at least 100,000 protesters.

There have been some glimpses into Trump’s tax history. Last month, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow reported on two pages of Trump’s 2005 return that were obtained by investigative reporter David Cay Johnston and released by DCReport.org. They showed Trump paid $38 million in taxes on more than $150 million in income.

And in October, The New York Times reported that Trump had declared a $916 million loss on his 1995 federal tax return, citing three pages of documents from the return.</s>President Donald Trump is monitoring the emerging North Korea crisis from Mar-a-Lago, his luxurious country club he uses for weekend getaways – but without some of the top advisors he usually drags along.

And former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is warning him to tread carefully.

'The words from the administration are creating even higher volume in terms of the provocations that are going on. I think we have got to be careful here,' Panetta told NBC News. 'We should not engage in any precipitous action. There is a reason no U.S. president in recent history has pulled the trigger on North Korea.'

Trump flew to Mar-a-Lago late Thursday afternoon, but not before saying goodbye to Chief of Staff Reince Priebus on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.

Priebus was seen walking to the back of the presidential motorcade after Trump boarded Air Force One; no other top staffers spotted when Trump rolled into Mar-a-Lago hours later.

North Korea upped its warmongering with Trump on Friday in a series of menacing boasts threatening to 'ravage' U.S. troops amid fears of a coming war.

The secretive state vowed to 'pulverize' U.S. bases and the South Korean capital of Seoul if it is threatened by the U.S. forces carrying out drills on the Korean peninsula.

A U.S. aircraft carrier group is also en route towards the region.

Pyongyang claimed it would 'ruthlessly ravage' the U.S. if Trump attacks. China warned the region could go to war 'at any moment.'

Priebus isn't the only top adviser missing from Palm Beach, Florida as the president considers his options.

A White House aide said top assistant Hope Hicks didn't make the trip, opting for holiday time with family.

Daughter Ivanka Trump, who just started her new West Wing job as an advisor to her father, flew to Canada Monday to spend Passover at the Four Seasons in Whistler, British Columbia.

It's not known where Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner was spending the weekend. Kushner rushed out of his Washington D.C. home on Thursday morning, shortly before the U.S. military dropped the 'Mother of All Bombs' on an ISIS tunnel network in Afghanistan.

Trump was also at Mar-a-Lago last Friday, where he held a summit meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping and launched a missile strike against Syria.

For that trip, he brought along top staff members, including feuding aides chief strategist Steve Bannon and Kushner, who got a prime seat near Trump during a dinner with the Chinese leader.

Bannon has been the subject of repeated reports since then that he could either get sidelined or even ousted from the White House staff.

Meanwhile, economic advisor Gary Cohn's star appears to have been brightening.

Asked who was staffing Trump over the long weekend, a White House official would say only that 'there are necessary staff with the President including an NSC staffer.'

Trump visited his Trump International golf course Friday morning, staying for about four hours. The Wall Street Journal reported that he golfed, citing sources.</s>Today is April 15th, better recognized as Tax Day. Not to worry, though — you’ve still got until April 18th to file your federal income taxes. A lot of people are using the extra time allocated to them by the government to fill out their 1040’s to demand someone else’s; President Donald Trump is that someone, of course.

People across the nation are participating in Saturday’s Tax Day March, calling on President Trump to release his personal tax returns in the name of transparency. Last year, Trump became the first person in 40 years to run for President without releasing their tax returns. During his campaign Trump assured voters once the IRS was done auditing his past taxes he would gladly release them, but nearing his 100th day in office he has still yet to do so. Trump has insisted, against all poll findings and eye-ball-and-ear-tests, that it’s only the media and far-left that care about his tax returns.

One of the reported 150-plus cities participating in the Tax Day March is Palm Beach, Florida, home of Trump’s Mar-A-Lago resort. The cleverly named March-A-Lago protest will move as close as possible to the resort, where Trump and his family are scheduled to spend the weekend. Fox News reports over 25,000 people are expected to attend the Tax Day March in Washington D.C. that has promised to include speeches from D.C. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Reps. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., and Jamie Raskin, D-Md.

As the Tax Day March protest made its way into this afternoon, protestors posted pictures and videos to social media:</s>CHICAGO (CBS News) — Protesters took to the streets in dozens of cities nationwide Saturday to call on President Trump to release his tax returns, saying Americans deserve to know about his business ties and potential conflicts of interest.

Organizers said the protests — dubbed the Tax March — were scheduled in nearly 150 cities, and stemmed from the women’s march that took place the day after Mr. Trump’s inauguration.

Nearly 10,000 people in Chicago indicated on Facebook they would attend demonstrations, CBS Chicago reports. Tuesday, April 18, is the deadline for taxpayers to file returns.

Mr. Trump, who spent the morning at his Florida golf course, avoided several hundred protesters when his motorcade took a circuitous route back to Mar-A-Lago, his Palm Beach, Florida, estate. Protesters marched across the bridge that divides West Palm Beach and Palm Beach, chanting and hoisting signs that read “Don the Con,” ‘’Go back to New York,” ‘’Show your taxes!” and “Show me the money!”

Two competing rallies in Berkeley, California, have prompted fears of possible violent confrontations, CBS San Francisco reports.

Mr. Trump is the first major party nominee in more than 40 years to not release his tax returns, saying it was because he was under audit. He later said that voters don’t care.

“We do care. We want to see his taxes,” said Ann Demerlis, who was among hundreds who marched in Philadelphia from City Hall to an area in front of historic Independence Hall, carrying signs and chanting “We want your taxes now!”

“It’s possible that he can now show his taxes, because his current taxes are not being audited,” said Demerlis, who carried a sign saying, “Follow the Money.”

Protest organizers say Americans deserve to know about Mr. Trump’s business ties and potential conflicts of interest.

Protesters in New York City gathered at Bryant Park in midtown and were scheduled to march to Trump Tower, according to CBS New York.

The Washington, D.C., march began with a rally at the U.S. Capitol, where Sen. Ron Wyden called on Trump to ‘knock off the secrecy.” The Oregon Democrat says the people have “a basic right to know whether the president pays his fair share.”

“We’re marching on Washington, D.C., and around the country to ask Donald Trump: WHAT ARE YOU HIDING?” the organizers’ website says. “We need a president who works for all Americans, and a tax system that does, too. Release your tax returns and commit to a fair tax system for the American people.

For four decades, presidents and major party nominees have released some of their tax returns, with the exception of Gerald Ford. Trump’s break with precedent has raised questions about possible conflicts of interest.

Jennifer Taub, an organizer who kickstarted the movement, told CBS News ahead of the event that she wasn’t sure what to expect.

“I’m just a law professor who sent out a tweet,” said Taub, who teaches at Vermont Law School. “I’m psyched, and I think lots of people are psyched about this. We shall see.” Taub’s tweet about planning a protest stemmed from her general interest in financial matters. She has testified before Congress and wrote a book about the 2008 financial crisis. “I’m all about ‘follow the money,’” Taub said. “It tells us the story about people’s priorities.” Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, of Massachusetts, on Friday posted an online video urging Congress to force Trump to release the returns. “Donald Trump is hiding something,” she says. “And we know where he’s hiding it: not in a safe, not in a vault. Nope, he’s hiding it in his taxes.” Democrats are pushing for a vote on a bill from Rep. Anna Eshoo, a Democrat from California, which would require the president and all major-party nominees to publicly disclose their previous three years of tax returns with the Office of Government Ethics or the Federal Election Commission. Republicans also have rebuffed Democrats’ efforts to get the House Ways and Means Committee to act. It has legal authority to obtain confidential tax records, and could vote to make them public.

© 2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.</s>WASHINGTON - Thousands of protesters gathered Saturday in cities across the United States to pressure President Donald Trump to release his tax returns, a move of transparency he has refused to make.

“Until he does, we’ll never know what he’s hiding or who his policies are designed to benefit. We need a president who works for all Americans — and a tax system that does, too,” said the organizers of the “Tax March” demonstrations on its website.

The protests were timed to coincide with the traditional April 15 deadline for US tax filings (though this year the deadline falls on April 18).

In Washington, several thousand protesters of all ages gathered in front of the Capitol building housing Congress, holding up signs such as “What is he hiding?” and “Real men pay their taxes.”

A huge inflatable chicken, adorned to look like Trump, toured the area, apparently to suggest that the Republican president was afraid, or chicken, to publish his tax records. “If he’s got nothing to hide, he should release his tax returns,” said protester Liz Turner, 31.

Asked what she suspected was in them, Turner replied: “Maybe something to do with Russia?”

Ellen Lodwick, 67, a retired corporate researcher from Maryland who has participated in all the local anti-Trump demonstrations since his November 8 election, cast doubt on his business dealings.

“There are probably many illegal or questionable investments in things that could affect how he looks at government and legislation, because he’s too connected,” Lodwick said.

For decades, US presidents and presidential candidates have released their tax returns voluntarily — there is no legal requirement to do so. US law requires only the publication of a financial statement that estimates assets, including debt and revenue, but does not give details on the amount of taxes paid.

Trump, a billionaire property tycoon, released such a financial statement but has kept his tax returns private, both during the election campaign and since taking office in January. Trump has justified his refusal to publish his returns by noting they are being audited. Federal tax authorities say that does not bar him from releasing the returns.

“Disclosing tax returns is the very lowest ethical bar for a president, and we are going to insist that he clear it,” Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, told the crowd in Washington.

Trump was not in the city during the demonstration; he is again spending the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. “Tax March” protesters demonstrated outside the exclusive property Saturday.

And in New York, several thousand protesters assembled around Bryant Park in midtown Manhattan ahead of a march to the Trump International Hotel and Tower, where Trump lived before his election.</s>Protesters to take to streets to demand Trump release tax returns

US President Donald Trump delivers a statement about missile strikes on a Syrian airbase at his Mar-a-Lago estate in West Palm Beach, April 6, 2017. — Reuters pic NEW YORK, April 15 — Tens of thousands of people are expected to take to the streets across the United States and beyond today to press President Donald Trump to release his tax returns and to dispute his claim that the public does not care about the issue.

The demonstrations, organised by a loose coalition of labour and left-leaning groups with various economic agendas, are intended to focus on Trump’s refusal to disclose his tax-paying history, something his predecessors in the White House have done for more than 40 years.

“When we check in with our members, this is something they care about deeply,” said Ben Wikler, Washington director of MoveOn.org, a progressive political group.

Critics have raised questions about what Trump’s tax returns say about his net worth and about his various business ties.

Organisers of “Tax March” are planning events in more than 150 cities, including New York, Washington and Los Angeles, as well as cities in Europe, Japan and New Zealand.

As a candidate and as president, Trump has steadfastly refused to release his tax returns, citing an ongoing audit by the Internal Revenue Service. In September, he told ABC News, “I don’t think anybody cares, except some members of the press.”

The IRS has said that Trump can release his tax returns even while under audit.

The demonstrations are taking place on the traditional April 15 Tax Day, the deadline for filing federal tax returns, although the IRS this year pushed back the deadline by three days.

The Trump tax marches were launched by a single tweet, organisers said.

A day after the massive Jan. 21 women’s march in Washington and other cities, comedy writer Frank Lesser tapped out on Twitter, “Trump claims no one cares about his taxes. The next mass protest should be on Tax Day to prove him wrong.” It has been retweeted more than 21,000 times.

Organisers said they stuck with the traditional April 15 Tax Day for the marches because as a Saturday it would draw more attendance, even though this year’s income tax filing deadline was pushed back to Tuesday.

Joe Dinkin, spokesman for the Working Families Party, which is also planning the marches, said ongoing investigations into the Trump campaign’s connections with Russia underscore the need to disclose his returns.

“Without seeing his taxes we’ll never really know who he’s working for,” said Dinkin, who expects the marches to draw at least 100,000 protesters.

There have been some glimpses into Trump’s tax history. Last month, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow released two pages of Trump’s 2005 return that were obtained by investigative reporter David Cay Johnston. They showed Trump paid US$38 million (RM167 million) in taxes on more than US$150 million in income. And last October, The New York Times reported that Trump had declared a US$916 million loss on his 1995 federal tax return, citing three pages of documents from the return.

In a Quinnipiac University poll released on April 4, more than two-thirds of the respondents said Trump should publicly release his tax returns. Other recent polls had similar results. — Reuters</s>President Donald Trump headed back to his West Palm Beach golf course Friday morning to kick off his Easter weekend visit.

Trump left his Palm Beach estate about 9:44 a.m. and pulled into Trump International Golf Club 10 minutes later.

Across the street from the gates leading to Trump’s luxury golf course, a few supporters gathered next to the “Trump Mobile” — an extra-long silver limo festooned with Trump’s name, a Trump puppet and photos of the president.

“We are chasing the president down to show our love and support,” said Gene Huber, one of the Trump supporters who arrived in the vehicle, which was created from two Mercedes station wagons and parts from 41 other cars. “We want to ... be the foot soldiers and the ground forces for our president.”

This is Trump’s seventh visit to Palm Beach since his inauguration.

While Trump was at the golf course, Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputies on ATVs circled the grounds.

Other deputies, collaborating with the Secret Service, manned security checkpoints leading to Palm Beach near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate.

Soon after the president arrived at the golf course, a Sheriff’s Office bomb squad truck drove over the Southern Boulevard bridge and parked with other law enforcement vehicles stationed across from Mar-a-Lago.

Traffic restrictions on Palm Beach resumed in advance of the president’s arrival Thursday evening.

Once again, South Ocean Boulevard is closed between South County Road and Southern Boulevard. That’s intended to keep drivers, bikers and any other travelers off the road that passes in front of Mar-a-Lago. Those security restrictions reach across the beach to the ocean.

In addition, the Secret Service during Trump’s stay is again prohibiting commercial vehicles, including anything larger than a passenger van, from driving into Palm Beach over the Southern Boulevard bridge near Mar-a-Lago.

The Sheriff’s Office has estimated that Trump’s visits since being elected have cost South Florida law enforcement agencies about $3.5 million for helping provide beefed-up security.

The White House on Friday morning hadn’t released the president’s schedule for the weekend.

Last Easter, candidate Trump attended Easter services at The Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea in Palm Beach.

That’s the church where he and the First Lady were married in 2005.
Tens of thousands of people march in dozens of U.S. cities and at President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, to demand that Trump release his tax returns and to show the public cares about the issue. There were clashes between Trump supporters and protesters at some locations, with 11 people injured and 21 arrested at a riot in Berkeley, California.