Trump-Epstein 'friendship' statue removed from National Mall one day after it appeared

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: WUSA9

POLITICS
Trump-Epstein 'friendship' statue removed from National Mall one day after it appeared

A statue of Trump and Epstein was removed from the National Mall by U.S. Park Police, despite a permit allowing it to remain until Sept. 28.

Author: Sophie Rosenthal
Published: 8:07 AM EDT September 24, 2025
Updated: 8:20 AM EDT September 24, 2025

WASHINGTON -- As quickly as it appeared, it is gone. The statue of President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein has been hauled off of the National Mall.

Tuesday morning, the statue depicting the president and the late disgraced financier and sex offender holding hands and skipping showed up on the National Mall. The statue's plaque said, "In honor of friendship month, we celebrate the long-standing bond between President Donald J. Trump and his closest friend Jeffrey Epstein."

But Wednesday morning, U.S. Park Police removed the statue around 5:30 a.m. Reddit user Are-you-a-vegetable caught the act in a video posted to the Washington, D.C. subreddit.

A permit for the statue said it is allowed to remain on the mall until 8 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28. Park Police told WUSA9 that it was removed for not being in compliance with the permit, but they did not explain how it violated the permit.

The permit does include a clause that it can be revoked at any time as long as the permittee was notified of the reason at least 24 hours in advance.

{snip}

Read more: https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/politics/trump-epstein-statue-removed-national-mall/65-f509c666-6627-447e-9726-e8886b843123

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US Park Police Remove Statue of Donald Trump and Jeffery Epstein

https://www.reddit.com/r/washingtondc/comments/1np7z0z/us_park_police_remove_statue_of_donald_trump_and/

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Reposted by Aseeyeomanaseetomanoyo Hat
https://bsky.app/profile/kenwhite.bsky.social

A statue of Trump and Epstein was removed from the National Mall by U.S. Park Police, despite a permit allowing it to remain until Sept. 28

— Phil Lewis (@phillewis.bsky.social) 2025-09-24T13:08:47.732Z

******
Phil Lewis
‪@phillewis.bsky.social‬

A statue of Trump and Epstein was removed from the National Mall by U.S. Park Police, despite a permit allowing it to remain until Sept. 28

Trump-Epstein 'friendship' statue removed from National Mall one day after it appeared
A statue of Trump and Epstein was removed from the National Mall by U.S. Park Police, despite a permit allowing it to remain until Sept. 28.
www.wusa9.com
September 24, 2025 at 9:08 AM
******

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https://www.democraticunderground.com/104411781

DC News Now: Pop-up statue of Trump and Epstein appears on National Mall

[travelingthrulife]

1. Of course they did...

[Bengus81]

2. The most important part: A statue of Trump and Epstein was removed from the National Mall by

U.S. Park Police, despite a permit allowing it to remain until Sept. 28.

[wolfie001]

3. If and when we win back the WH, these bootlickers should be the first to be fired

Through executive action.

[Grins]

9. That caught my eye, too.

As well as the Park Service not providing an explanation why the permit was violated. (Yeah; we know why...)

[twodogsbarking]

4. It looked a bit on the gay side. Maybe that is why.

[slightlv]

5. Well, if the king's feelings are hurt I guess that's reason enough, right?

Permits be damned! It's only on the PEOPLE'S Parkland!

[Paladin]

6. It needs to be placed in front of trump's Miami "library." (nt)

[BidenRocks]

16. Put it on public access

At swamp a lago

[Rebl2]

7. What an

odd statue. Who commissioned that I wonder, and why in the world would they be skipping. Very odd in my opinion.

[twodogsbarking]

8. We do know now, however, that escalators will stop when the weight limit is exceeded.

[Kid Berwyn]

10. They should sell copies.

I'd buy one for my lawn.

[OrwellwasRight]

11. Interesting.

This is definitely a free speech violation. I was once involved in some "protest art." When the powers we protested against decided they didn't like our messages, they painted over them. The ACLU helped us out and we got permission to repaint the protest art. All of which to say, if you have a permit, the permit must be viewpoint neutral. These people have no sense whatsoever that government is supposed to work for all of us--the rules have to apply the same way to everyone. Government is not a tool for revenge and must not be a tool for one person with extremely thin skin.

[Wiz Imp]

15. You apparently missed this part

The permit does include a clause that it can be revoked at any time as long as the permittee was notified of the reason at least 24 hours in advance.

It will probably get more attention by being removed than it did just for being there.

[OrwellwasRight]

20. No I saw that, but

It’s not clear the story whether they did the notice. And the notice has to be accompanied by a reason, and therefore the reason has to be legal. The park service would not be allowed to say “we’re removing it because the president is insulted,” because that would be a free speech violation. So it’s still a problem.

[Wiz Imp]

21. But you said it was DEINITELY a free speech violation before.

Now you say it's not clear whether they did the notice, and the notice has to be accompanied by a reason, and therefore the reason has to be legal. In other words, you're admitting they could have given the notice and it could have been legal. That means it wasn't definitely a free speech violation.

That was my point. No problem if you strongly suspect they removed it without cause (which would be a free speech violation), but since it could have been legally removed, we can't know that for sure.

[OrwellwasRight]

22. Yes, because

If they sent the notice, it would have been reported.
If the notice gave a real reason, it would have been reported.
So, because they didn't, it is definitely a free speech violation.
When you see reporting that proper notice was given and that said notice was not pre-textual, I will take it back. Until then, have a nice day.

[angryxyouth]

12. It wasn't a very good statue

The bodies themselves were stiff and not in the right position for skipping. It had no movement in the clothes and Trumps face was terrible. But give them an A for tenacity.

[Ray Bruns]

13. We all know the reason it wa removed.

“Police told WUSA9 that it was removed for not being in compliance with the permit, but they did not explain how it violated the permit”

[twodogsbarking]

14. Such a shame, it was so sweet.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

17. "Trump Admin destroyed Epstein Handshake statue this morning!"

r/washingtondc icon
Go to washingtondc
r/washingtondc
2 hr. ago
kkggooddiie55

Trump Admin destroyed Epstein Handshake statue this morning!
Page 1 (Current page)
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[IT'S HAPPENING!]


Item 1 of 3
Unbelievable!

[mahatmakanejeeves]

18. A statue of Trump and Epstein holding hands in D.C. is removed as fast as it appeared

POLITICS
A statue of Trump and Epstein holding hands in D.C. is removed as fast as it appeared

SEPTEMBER 24, 2025 2:14 PM ET
By Rachel Treisman


A statue depicting President Trump and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein holding hands popped up near the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

A statue of President Trump holding hands with Jeffrey Epstein appeared briefly on D.C.'s National Mall this week, only to be removed after less than a day. … The bronze-painted installation, titled Best Friends Forever, depicts the two men smiling at each other, each with an arm and leg raised as if in mid-frolic.

{snip}

A group called The Secret Handshake claimed responsibility for the statue after it arrived on the National Mall on Tuesday morning. And while a National Park Service permit issued for the statue — obtained by NPR — allowed it to remain there until Sunday evening, eyewitness video showed U.S. Park Police hauling it onto a truck before sunrise on Wednesday.

A spokesperson for the Department of the Interior told NPR that the statue was removed "because it was not compliant with the permit issued," though did not specify how. … The Secret Handshake is accusing the Trump administration of illegally removing the statue as part of its crackdown on speech it disagrees with, on the heels of ABC's temporary suspension of Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show under pressure from the Federal Communications Commission.

The White House did not respond to NPR's questions about the artwork's removal, but had previously criticized it.

{snip}

[Aussie105]

19. It's a joyous work of art!

Negative connotations are entirely in the minds of those who object.