Make America Great Again march returns to O.C. — this time without incident

The violence, pepper spray and arrests that marked the last Make America Great Again march in Huntington Beach were not factors when organizers returned to Orange County Saturday, this time to Mile Square Regional Park in neighboring Fountain Valley.

About 200 marchers showed up to listen to political speeches and march in opposition to the state’s recent gas tax hikes and “sanctuary states” that seek to fight the federal government’s clampdown on immigrants.

Southern California Silent Majority MAGA, an acronym for Make America Great Again, organized the event.

Darlene Savord, an organizer, said the gathering had similar goals as the Huntington Beach event: to promote patriotism.

Like the last march, the gathering lent support to the Trump administration and the military, with organizers asking that participants bring clothing, blankets, linens and toiletries to donate to Disabled American Veterans.

Attendees held signs that read “CNN is ISIS, fake news, no facts” and “Americans come first, not illegals, not refugees, not Islam.”

Many wore red MAGA hats and carried American flags. Some had red, white and blue streaked across their cheeks.

“We are proud Americans, and we are grateful we have a president watching out for our country,” Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) told the crowd. “Finally, we have a president who supports American principles.”

The crowd cheered when Rohrabacher said he was glad Trump turned down the “rotten” Paris Climate Agreement.

Assemblyman Travis Allen (R-Huntington Beach) stepped up to the podium to “Eye of the Tiger.”

He posed a series of rhetorical questions to the crowd.

“Have you had enough of the Democrats in California?”

“Yes!” the crowd answered.

“Do you want to have a high gas tax shoved down your throats?”

“No!”

The primary function of this march was to protest California Senate Bill 54, which would keep state and local law enforcement agencies from using resources to investigate, detain, report or arrest people for purposes of immigration enforcement. It has been dubbed the “sanctuary state” bill.

The bill, proposed by state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles), is in the Assembly after passing the Senate in April.

Ray Garcia, 82, of Fullerton said the presence of undocumented immigrants causes more “street crime.”

“If you don’t have borders, you don’t have a country,” said John Grant, 56, of Huntington Beach.

Further fueling Saturday’s protest was Senate Bill 1, which seeks to raise gas taxes and vehicle fees to raise $5.2 billion per year to fund efforts to rectify the state’s crumbling infrastructure.

Garcia said it’s a “superfluous” tax because the state already collects enough in taxes to fix roads.

“The gas tax is insanity because it hurts people,” said Steve Dahlberg, 60, who would only say he hails from Orange County.

There was no violence at the event, Orange County sheriff’s Lt. M. Kiernan said.

Only a handful of people showed up to protest the marchers.

Bill Brennan, 70, of Laguna Niguel held a sign that said, “Trump is a spray-tanned fart balloon.”

“Trump is doing everything wrong,” Brennan said.

Marchers traded a few barbs with Brennan and the protesters but it didn’t escalate.

This comes in stark contrast with a march at Bolsa Chica State Beach that was organized by the Silent Majority in March.

At that event, a brawl broke out between MAGA marchers and protesters opposed to President Trump.

About a dozen demonstrators showed up to protest, and several people were pepper-sprayed and a few were beaten during the altercation.

Three men were arrested on suspicion of illegal use of a Taser, and one woman was arrested on suspicion of assault and battery. All were part of the protest, Capt. Kevin Pearsall of California State Parks said at the time.

The Orange County district attorney’s office on Thursday filed two misdemeanor charges against Jessica Aguilar, a Sacramento, resident who authorities say protested at the march.

About 2,000 marchers attended the Huntington Beach event, Pearsall said.

benjamin.brazil@latimes.com

Twitter:@benbrazilpilot