President Donald Trump’s motorcade made its way to his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach on Friday afternoon, but its effects continued to be felt in the area for the next hour.
Air Force One touched down at Palm Beach International Airport about 4:30 p.m., shortly after First Lady Melania Trump arrived from New York City in a separate Air Force jet. Trump, on his first visit to Palm Beach since his inauguration, mingled with supporters for a few minutes before being ushered by the Secret Service into a waiting black SUV.
Interstate 95 and Southern Boulevard both were closed as the motorcade made its way directly east to Mar-a-Lago. Adjoining north-south streets, including Australian Avenue and Dixie Highway, still were experiencing delays up to a half-hour after the motorcade passed.
Rebecca Cohen and Susan Foley, two members of an Indivisibles group in North Palm Beach called Speaking Up For America, walked along Bingham Island a few hours earlier to survey the scene. The duo said about 200 members of their organization planed to hold signs in protest of Trump, but they don’t think many of their older members can participate in Saturday’s march.
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The march’s route originally was to take protesters from Trump Plaza to Mar-a-Lago during the Red Cross Ball. But now with two new organizers on board, the new route will end at the Southern Boulevard Bridge and will not enter the Town of Palm Beach.
About 2,000 people are expected to meet at 5 p.m. and participate in the march, according to the group’s Facebook page.
“We actually drove it as soon as we heard the route,” Cohen said. “And we were open-minded, but when we saw the narrow sidewalks, the number of people, we were concerned about safety for our group.”
Instead of marching from Trump Plaza, they said they “scoped out” a piece of grass across the Lake Worth Lagoon from Mar-a-Lago.
“It’s just our intention to be here and say ‘Please, pay attention. You do not have a mandate to stomp on immigrants, the environment, justice, every area, education, you name the area.’”
Foley said the group is made up of women from all walks of life who want to make a difference.
“We’re trying to channel our concerns, our fears, our upset into positive action,” Foley said.
Trump and his wife, Melania, are expected to attend the 60th annual Red Cross Ball on Saturday night at Mar-a-Lago. Protesters plan to march from downtown West Palm Beach to a spot just across the Intracoastal from the club.
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