A new statue of President Donald Trump and the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has appeared outside the U.S. Capitol on the National Mall in Washington D.C.
Displayed by an unknown entity, the statue featured Trump and Epstein—who famously socialized together decades ago—holding hands. A plaque beneath the bronze figures reads: “In honor of friendship month, we celebrate the long-lasting bond between President Donald J. Trump and his ‘closest friend’ Jeffrey Epstein,” followed by a silhouette of two hands making a heart shape.
Unearthed recordings of Epstein reportedly showcased how the disgraced financier considered himself to be Trump’s “closest friend.” While Trump famously hosted Epstein at a soiree at his Mar-a-Lago estate in the 90s and spoke highly of him in a 2002 interview in New York magazine, he distanced himself in the later years.
After Epstein’s 2019 arrest on federal sex trafficking charges, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office: “I had a falling out with him [Epstein]. I haven’t spoken to him in 15 years. I was not a fan of his, that I can tell you.”
“Liberals are free to waste their money however they see fit—but it’s not news that Epstein knew Donald Trump, because Donald Trump kicked Epstein out of his club for being a creep,” the White House told TIME on Wednesday morning, when approached about the statue. “Democrats, the media, and the organization that’s wasting their money on this statue knew about Epstein and his victims for years and did nothing to help them while President Trump was calling for transparency, and is now delivering on it with thousands of pages of documents.”
Amid growing calls for Congress to release the full Epstein files, Trump’s former relationship with the offender remains a point of contention, particularly among protesters across the world.
Read More: Epstein Victims Call on Congress to Release Files
Ahead of Trump’s unprecedented second state visit to the United Kingdom last week, a giant banner showcasing an image of him and Epstein was unveiled on the lawn outside Windsor Castle, where the President was hosted by King Charles III and Queen Camilla. The banner was swiftly removed before Trump touched down in the U.K., but similar acts of protest followed. As Trump’s plane landed in London, protesters projected images of him and Epstein onto the walls of Windsor Castle. The royal family was also targeted as images of Prince Andrew and Epstein formed part of the protest.
Earlier in the summer, before Trump visited Scotland, a photo of him and Epstein was installed at a bus stop near the U.S. Embassy in London. The image, placed by the activist group Everyone Hates Elon, was later updated to include a quote of Trump speaking about Epstein.
“Terrific guy. He’s a lot of fun. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side,” read the sign, quoting the President from 2002.
Trump’s association with Epstein came to the forefront again recently upon the publication of several letters said to be written by high-profile figures for a book celebrating Epstein’s 50th birthday in 2003.
A birthday letter, alleged to have been signed by Trump and addressed to Epstein, was published, received a lot of attention. The note features a drawing of the outline of a woman’s body alongside the note: “Happy Birthday—and may every day be another wonderful secret.”
The White House denied that Trump wrote Epstein the birthday note, but stopped short of calling the documents fake.
When asked to comment on the note during an interview with NBC, Trump said: “I don’t comment on something that’s a dead issue.”
Meanwhile, Trump has been the target of other artworks installed in D.C. by way of protest.
In June, a sculpture titled “Dictator Approved” appeared on the National Mall. It featured a golden hand, giving a thumbs up, crushing the top of the Statue of Liberty. The crown is cracked and one of the spikes has fallen off.
Underneath the sculpture were various plaques featuring quotes from world leaders who support Trump. “President Trump is a very bright and talented man,” read one quote from Russian President Vladimir Putin. Another, from North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, read: “The extraordinary courage of Donald Trump.”
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