Pam Bell leaned on her walker and stood among hundreds of people lining Route 7 in historic Shelburne. Like those in the crowd who were waving signs to protest President Donald Trump, the 89-year-old woman was undeterred by pattering rain on Saturday afternoon. What brought her out?  "The t hreat to Social Security," she said. "The threat to the environment. The threat to the economy. Everything is wrong." A few hundred protesters lined the road holding American and Canadian flags and homemade signs, waving to passing drivers. Big-rig drivers blasted their horns in support and protesters whooped. Such scenes played out in 20 communities around Vermont on Saturday, as part of a national effort to show opposition to the Trump administration. Usual protest spots — outside Burlington City Hall and the Statehouse lawn in Montpelier — drew large crowds. Yet smaller gatherings in towns such as Barton also radiated energy and anger. "As people say, you've got to get off the couch," said Tim McGuill, who joined hundreds of people on Dorset Street in South Burlington. Accompanying him was his 89-year-old neighbor, Mary Griffin. Why was she out in the rain? "Oh my God, I don't know where to begin," she said. She's worried about Medicare and Social Security, and said the president "wants people to be penniless." She added, "You have to be rich or you're nobody." It's unknown how many people turned out. In Montpelier alone, where protesters filled the Statehouse lawn, the crowd numbered more than 10,000 — nearly double the anticipated turnout, said Geri Peterson, an organizer with the grassroots group 50501. “We’re ecstatic,” Peterson said. “Vermonters really, really turned up.” More than 150 people gathered on the town green in Barton at 11 a.m. to ensure they made their voices heard before the rain arrived. Susan Cooley, a farmer, said she was glad she didn’t have to trek to Montpelier to protest. “It’s got to work," she said, "or we’re going to watch democracy go down the tubes."… ...read more read less