Washington, D.C., is no stranger to monuments. But the installation that appeared this week near the U.S. Capitol isn’t meant to honor power — it’s meant to provoke questions about it.
In a city where official banners of President Donald Trump have been hung across federal buildings, a new monument has surfaced on the National Mall offering a very different kind of tribute.
A 12-foot statue depicting Trump embracing Jeffrey Epstein now stands within view of the Capitol, recreating one of the most recognizable scenes in pop culture: the moment in Titanic where Jack stands behind Rose at the bow of the ship with his arms stretched outward.
But this time, the figures are not fictional lovers.
The statue depicts Trump embracing the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein from behind in a pose made famous by the fictional lovers Jack and Rose in the film Titanic.
The monument’s plaque references the Titanic scene while drawing a comparison to Trump and Epstein.
“The tragic love story between Jack and Rose was built on luxurious travel, raucous parties, and secret nude sketches. This monument honors the bond between Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein, a friendship seemingly built on luxurious travel, raucous parties, and secret nude sketches.”
The latter is a reference to a racy birthday card for Epstein that seemingly bears Trump’s signature. (The card, with its sketch of what appeared to be a girl’s body, was the subject of a different installation by The Secret Handshake last year.) Trump has denied authoring the card.
Flanking the statue are several 10-foot banners featuring a photo of Trump and Epstein.
In a nod to the Justice Department’s heavy-handed redactions in its documents about Epstein, the banners also include an image resembling a federal agency logo — except part of the agency name is redacted.
Up close, the scale of the display becomes clearer — the statue centered, with banners stretching outward along the Mall.
Why the banners?
The Secret Handshake said it’s simple, really.
“Because 2026 has been a banner year for President Trump. Meaning… he’s added giant banners of his face to federal buildings all across DC. We want to help him on his mission by tossing a few of our own in the mix,” the group said.
Trump has not been able to kill the Epstein story and has claimed that the files that have been released about the dead financier have absolved him of any wrongdoing.
But the demand for transparency and accountability around the Epstein investigation has not disappeared. If anything, it has only intensified as more questions remain unanswered.
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Accountability has a way of showing up in public.
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Brilliant art. Its the stomach rolls on the statue that get me