‘Best Friends Forever’ Statue of Trump and Epstein Briefly Appears on National Mall Before Removal
Written by b87fm on 09/24/2025
WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 23: A statue depicting U.S. President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein holding hands is seen near the U.S. Capitol on September 23, 2025 in Washington, DC. A plaque below the figures states “In Honor of Friendship Month.” (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
(AP) A controversial statue of Donald Trump holding hands with Jeffrey Epstein appeared on the National Mall in D.C. this week — but was gone less than 24 hours later.
The bronze-painted piece, titled Best Friends Forever, showed the two men smiling and frolicking together, with a plaque reading:
“In Honor of Friendship Month, we celebrate the long-lasting bond between President Donald J. Trump and his ‘closest friend,’ Jeffrey Epstein.”
The artwork was installed by activist art collective The Secret Handshake, which has placed several satirical anti-Trump statues around D.C. in recent years. While the group had a valid permit to keep the statue in place through Sunday, video shows U.S. Park Police removing it overnight Wednesday. Officials later claimed it was “not compliant” with the permit but did not explain how.
WASHINGTON – SEPTEMBER 23, 2025: A statue featuring President Donald Trump and deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein outside the U.S. Capitol on September 23, 2025 on the National Mall in Washington. The statue, which depicts the two dancing, was titled, “In Honor of Friendship Month”. (Photo by Tom Brenner For The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The group accused the Trump administration of silencing speech, saying they were promised 24 hours to remove it themselves — but instead, the statue was toppled and broken in the middle of the night.
Trump has long tried to downplay his ties to Epstein, the convicted sex offender who died in jail in 2019. Though the two once partied and traveled in the same circles, Trump claims their friendship ended in the early 2000s. Still, his name continues to appear in Epstein-related records, fueling public scrutiny and pressure to release the so-called “Epstein files.”
The Best Friends Forever statue is just the latest in a string of provocative installations mocking Trump’s presidency — including Pelosi’s desk topped with feces, a tiki torch “Unite the Right” tribute, and a golden thumbs-up crushing the Statue of Liberty’s crown.
