A satirical gold statue depicting Donald Trump sitting and grasping his right foot appeared on the National Mall in Washington on Monday.
The art installation references one of five draft deferments Trump received during the Vietnam War. An anonymous artist collective named The Secret Handshake created the piece, titled The Foot Soldier.
A masked companion wearing a large toe costume with nine hairs and the word “TOEY” in capital letters accompanied the artwork on the National Mall.
“We honor a leader who knows that the word ‘sacrifice’ contains ‘I’, and a warrior who reminds us that sometimes, when you are called upon to stand up, it is best to just sit down and rest your feet,” the inscription reads.
The plaque on the base of the statue details the reasoning behind the artwork by citing Trump’s medical exemption from military service during the Vietnam conflict. “He is a soldier at heart, who charged toward the front line of draft dodging, armed with an impeccable diagnosis of bone spurs,” the inscription says, according to Impressio.bg.
During the Vietnam War, Trump received four college-related draft deferments and a medical deferment for bone spurs. The Secret Handshake collective stated on Monday that as Trump continues to threaten new conflicts, it is important to remember a time when he went to great lengths to avoid combat.
The Secret Handshake collective has produced several satirical art installations targeting Trump since 2024. Previous works include an eight-foot gilded hand crushing the green crown of the Statue of Liberty and a sculpture depicting Trump holding hands with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The collective also previously placed a pile of feces and a giant golden toilet near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. The Foot Soldier represents the group’s latest public intervention in the capital’s political art landscape.
A gilded statue mocking President Donald Trump appeared on Washington's National Mall this week, two days before Veterans Day on November 11. Titled "The Foot Soldier," the statue near the National Gallery of Art's Sculpture Garden shows Trump seated and rubbing his bare foot.… pic.twitter.com/c6R3V7sARp
“I’m the biggest toe. The most tremendous toe. Huge. The most tremendous toe. The biggest toe you’ve ever seen,” the masked mascot “Toey” said on Monday, repeating phrases such as “Draft dodger? Hardly know her.”
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