News & Politics

The Latest Trump-Protest Tactic: Mariachi Music

A former Hillary aide is hiring bagpipers, opera singers, and more to make noise by the White House.

Photo by Evy Mages

If Donald Trump had trouble sleeping last night, it could have been due to the Mueller probe or outcry over his Helsinki performance. Or maybe it was the mariachi band. That was the idea, at least: Blaring guitarrón and trumpet filled the air Wednesday night near the White House residence, and it turned out the noisy performance was specifically intended to disturb the President’s rest.

Adam Parkhomenko, a political advisor to Hillary Clinton, tapped 18-piece DC band Gallos Negros to play up a storm for nearly 30 minutes. Crowds joined in singing “Cielito Lindo” as part of a collective effort to bug Trump after he returned from his overseas trip. And the protestors came armed with drums and guitars. “I am very pro weaponized Mariachi,” Elizabeth Spiers of the Insurrection tweeted in response.

Parkhomenko’s late-night musical bits aren’t stopping anytime soon. The stunt was part of a multi-day protest called Occupy Lafayette Park, partially organized by the Clinton aide, which invites speakers and performers to cause a scene at Trump’s doorstep. Just this week, Congressman Joaquin Castro, actor Alyssa Milano, and lawyer Michael Avenatti have joined in the efforts to keep spirits high and the volume higher. Opera singers and other loud performers are in the works for upcoming events.

Organizers are raising money to pay the performers through PartyMajority PAC via Act Blue, and Parkhomenko promises his followers that some of the funds will go toward the “most epic bagpipe performance you have ever seen.” Maybe Trump should start a GoFundMe for a white-noise machine.

Staff Writer

Brittany Shepherd covers the societal and cultural scene in political Washington. Before joining Washingtonian as a staff writer in 2018, Brittany was a White House Correspondent for Independent Journal Review. While she has lived in DC for a number of years now, she still yearns for the fresh Long Island bagels of home. Find her on Twitter, often prattling on about Frasier.