Trump–Epstein “Best Friends Forever” statue removed from National Mall, raising concerns about free speech

The group responsible for the statue says the U.S. National Park Service dismantled it after 24 hours due to a permit dispute.

A statue depicting President Donald Trump‘s friendship with convicted child trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, which was placed on the National Mall, was promptly removed by the U.S. National Park Service on Wednesday.

A group called ” The Secret Handshake” erected the life-size statue of Trump and Epstein, titled “Best Friends Forever.” The creators hoped to bring attention to a series of headlines about Epstein, including an outcry for the Trump administration to release FBI files related to his federal prosecution and years-long relationship with Trump.

“In honor of friendship month, we celebrate the long-standing bond between President Donald J. Trump and his closest friend Jeffrey Epstein,” read the statue, which also included a line from a birthday letter that Trump allegedly signed and gave to Epstein in 2003.

Despite the group responsible for the statue meeting the required permit, the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees NPS, removed and dismantled it. The federal agency under the Trump administration told CNN that the statue violated its permit.

A man named Patrick of “The Secret Handshake” told the outlet that the statue was supposed to stand at the National Mall for at least a week, but was removed because of a dispute over its height. He said the Trump administration raises a larger issue.

“It’s a great example of where we’re headed in this country when it comes to freedom of speech,” he told CNN. “Regardless, their permit clearly states that if they choose to revoke a permit, they are to provide 24 hours written notice. Instead, they showed up unannounced in the middle of the night, broke it, and hauled it away.”

Trump has faced several criticisms for actions that have been slammed as a violation of free speech, most recently his administration’s pressure campaign to remove Jimmy Kimmel from TV airwaves after he made remarks about Charlie Kirk that angered conservatives.

After ABC faced public backlash, Kimmel returned to his late-night show to address the controversy and raise the issue of free speech in America. The comedian recalled a member of the Federal Election Commission who wrote in 2022, “Political satire is one of the oldest and most important forms of free speech. It challenges those in power while using humor to draw more people into the discussion. That’s why people in influential positions have always targeted it for censorship.’”

Kimmel continued, “You know who wrote that? FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, who was later appointed chairman of the FCC by this former crusader for free speech.”

Carr, the current FCC chairman, was directly responsible for pressuring TV stations to remove Kimmel from the air for his remarks about Kirk. Kimmel also played an old clip of Trump defending free speech.

“If we don’t have free speech, then we just don’t have a free country. It’s as simple as that. If this most fundamental right is allowed to perish, then the rest of our rights and liberties will topple just like dominoes. One by one, they’ll go down,” Trump said.

Kimmel told the live audience on Tuesday night, “You almost have to feel sorry for him. He tried his best to cancel me. Instead, he forced millions of people to watch the show. That backfired bigly.”

He added, “He might have to release the Epstein files to distract us from this now.”