Obama to Trump Protesters: Go Ahead and Keep it Up

WASHINGTON, DC — The nation's capital has endured protest after protest ever since the surprise election of Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton on Nov. 8, and President Barack Obama says it's alright with him if they continue, rejecting calls to ask protesters to stand down.

Obama, who was speaking at a press conference in Germany, declined to ask protesters to tone it down, saying they should not remain "silent" if they feel strongly about the future commander-in-chief.

"I suspect that there’s not a president in our history that hasn’t been subject to these protests," Obama said, according to numerous reports. "So, I would not advise people who feel strongly or who are concerned about some of the issues that have been raised during the course of the campaign, I wouldn’t advise them to be silent."

Protests have broken out all across the country after Trump's win, most of them peaceful but some resulting in violent incidents. D.C. has seen multiple protests already, including a large walkout by high school students and protesters storming the lobby of the GSA building where Trump's transition team is located. Many more protests are planned, particularly around Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.

Trump's team has called for Obama to speak out against the protests, however Obama has refused to do so.

Protesters have zeroed in not just on Trump's perceived sexist and racist rhetoric on the campaign trail but also the appointment of Stephen Bannon as White House chief strategist. Bannon, the chairman of Breitbart News, has been accused of being a white supremacist.

Image via Voice of America