Bruce Springsteen told concert attendees what he thought of President Donald Trump on a UK show earlier this week, revealing to the crowd in a fierce statement that the man in the oval office believed he was “unfit” for his role.
The legendary artist respected his socially conscious lyricism and his ability to reflect American experiences through music, he said Trump's America no longer represents a place he sings.
Bruce Springsteen (R) and Max Weinberg will perform on the first night of The Land of Hopes and Dreams Tour at the Cooperative, held in Manchester, England on May 14, 2025.
Shirlaine Forrest / Getty Images
While introducing him and the E Street Band's Song Hopes and Dreams, Springsteen, “In my home, in America I love, in America I wrote, was a beacon of hope and freedom for 250 years, but now in the hands of a corrupt, indifferent, discordant administration.”
“Tonight we ask all who believe in democracy and the best of our American experiments to stand up with us, raise your voice against authoritarianism and make your freedom ring out,” he continued.
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Springsteen's criticism continued as the evening progressed.
“The last check on power after government checks and balances fail is you and me. It is a coalition of people around a common value system, and is now all that exists between democracy and authoritarianism.
Before running the ruins of my city, he delivered a longer monologue.
“In America, they are persecuting people by using their right to free speech and voicing dissent. This is happening now… In America, the wealthiest men are happy to abandon the poorest children in the world to illness and death. This is happening now,” he said.
He appeared in the Trump administration to inflict pain on “loyal” American workers, trampling on established civil rights, and shaking hands with dictators to create enemies of their renowned allies.
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“They are abandoning our great allies and keeping an eye on those struggling for freedom, along with dictators. They are reimbursing American universities that do not succumb to their ideological demands,” he said to the packed auditorium.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will perform on the first night of The Land of Hopes and Dreams tour at Co-Op Live, held in Manchester, England on May 14, 2025.
Shirlaine Forrest / Getty Images
He also denounced Trump for eliminating foreigners and removing the general public for ignoring the law, and urged elected representatives to do more to stop the president's agenda.
“They are removing residents from the streets of America and they are banishing them to foreign detention centers and prisons without the legitimate process of law. All this is happening now,” the musician said.
“The majority of our elected representatives have failed to protect the American people from unfair presidents and unfair government abuse. They do not worry or think about the meaning of being deeply American,” he continues, returning to America, where he once sang, and saying that the country is “not true.”
“We'll survive this moment,” he said.
“Now I have hope, because I believe in the truth of what the great American writer James Baldwin said. He said, “In this world, there is no humanity as much as I would like, but it is sufficient.” Let us pray. ”
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