\nProtest, Statue, Trump, Epstein, Appears<\/span>
\nProtest Statue of Trump and Epstein Appears on National Mall.<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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By Juba Global News Network | JubaGlobal.com<\/strong> WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 A provocative 12-foot satirical sculpture depicting President Donald Trump and the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein recreating the iconic \u201cI\u2019m flying\u201d bow scene from the 1997 film Titanic<\/em> materialized overnight on the National Mall, drawing crowds of tourists, photographers, and heated online debate just days after the administration\u2019s military campaign against Iran intensified.<\/p>\n Titled \u201cThe King of the World\u201d<\/strong> \u2014 a direct reference to Leonardo DiCaprio\u2019s famous line as Jack Dawson \u2014 the gold-spray-painted installation shows a figure resembling Trump standing behind one resembling Epstein, arms outstretched toward the Washington Monument as if commanding the bow of a miniature Titanic ship. Accompanying plaques, placed at the base, highlight past social ties between the two men, including quotes from old interviews and flight logs, with pointed commentary on power, friendship, and accountability.<\/p>\n The artwork appeared early Tuesday morning near the U.S. Capitol end of the Mall and was quickly attributed to the anonymous artist collective The Secret Handshake<\/strong>, the same shadowy group responsible for previous guerrilla installations targeting Trump\u2019s relationship with Epstein. This marks their third known piece in the series: the first, \u201cBest Friends Forever\u201d (later renamed \u201cWhy Can\u2019t We Be Friends?\u201d), depicted the pair holding hands and skipping; it was installed, removed by Park Police, briefly reinstalled, and later reappeared outside a D.C. caf\u00e9 in late 2025.<\/p>\n Rapid Public and Political Reaction<\/strong><\/p>\n Within hours of sunrise, hundreds of people gathered around the sculpture. Tourists snapped selfies, some laughing, others shaking their heads. Reactions ranged widely:<\/p>\n The White House issued a brief statement dismissing the installation as \u201canother cheap stunt by attention-seeking radicals\u201d and emphasizing that President Trump \u201chas repeatedly stated he had no involvement in Epstein\u2019s crimes and cut ties years before his death.\u201d<\/p>\n Capitol Police and U.S. Park Police arrived mid-morning to assess the situation. As of Wednesday afternoon, the statue remained standing \u2014 unlike its predecessors, which were dismantled within 24 hours \u2014 possibly because the artists secured a short-term demonstration permit or because authorities are weighing free-speech considerations amid heightened national tension.<\/p>\n Context: A Series of Provocations<\/strong><\/p>\n The Secret Handshake describes itself on anonymous channels as \u201ca small group of citizens using art, humor, and public space to prompt political discourse.\u201d Each installation has included detailed plaques citing publicly available information about Trump\u2019s documented social interactions with Epstein in the 1990s and early 2000s, including parties at Mar-a-Lago, shared flights on Epstein\u2019s plane (before Trump claims he banned Epstein from the property), and Trump\u2019s own past quotes calling Epstein a \u201cterrific guy\u201d who liked \u201cbeautiful women\u2026 on the younger side.\u201d<\/p>\n The timing of this third piece \u2014 coinciding with soaring oil prices, civilian casualty reports from Iran, and FBI alerts about potential Iranian retaliation \u2014 has fueled speculation that the collective is deliberately amplifying domestic political friction during an international crisis.<\/p>\n Art critics and political observers see the work as part of a broader wave of guerrilla protest art targeting powerful figures. \u201cIt\u2019s not subtle,\u201d said Smithsonian American Art Museum curator Dr. Elena Ramirez in a phone interview. \u201cBut subtlety isn\u2019t the goal. The goal is virality, memory, and forcing uncomfortable conversations into public view.\u201d<\/p>\n Legal and Logistical Questions<\/strong><\/p>\n Under National Park Service rules, unpermitted structures on the Mall are subject to immediate removal. Previous Secret Handshake pieces were taken down quickly, yet this one has lingered longer, prompting questions:<\/p>\n Park Police declined to comment on active enforcement decisions, citing policy.<\/p>\n Broader Cultural Impact<\/strong><\/p>\n Whatever its fate, \u201cThe King of the World\u201d has already achieved one clear objective: massive visibility. Photos and videos of the statue have racked up millions of views across platforms, with hashtags like #TitanicTrump, #KingOfTheWorldDC, and #SecretHandshake trending. Memes comparing the pair to Jack and Rose \u2014 some darkly humorous, others accusatory \u2014 continue to circulate.<\/p>\n For many passersby, the piece serves as an unexpected juxtaposition: amid reports of war abroad and economic strain at home, a golden reminder of domestic controversies that refuse to fade.<\/p>\n As one D.C. resident told Euronews while filming the crowd: \u201cIt\u2019s weird, it\u2019s bold, and right now it feels like everything is sinking anyway. Maybe that\u2019s the point.\u201d<\/p>\n Juba Global News Network will continue monitoring the statue\u2019s status and any official response. Live photos, video interviews with onlookers, and updates on possible removal efforts are available in real time at JubaGlobal.com<\/strong>.<\/p>\n This is a developing story. Check back for the latest on this unusual piece of protest art amid extraordinary times.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Juba Global News Network | JubaGlobal.com March 12, 2026 WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 A provocative 12-foot satirical sculpture depicting President Donald Trump a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1199,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[830,643,1,784,806],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6819","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-breaking-news","category-more-articles","category-news","category-northamerica","category-united-states"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6819","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1199"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6819"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6819\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22180,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6819\/revisions\/22180"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
March 12, 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1977\/2026\/03\/IMG_3727.jpeg\")
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