Gilded statue on National Mall satirizes Trump's Vietnam draft history

A new satirical statue was installed on the National Mall in Washington on Monday, offering a gilded critique of President Donald Trump. The artwork, which appeared near the National Gallery of Art’s Sculpture Garden, specifically targets the medical diagnosis of bone spurs that Trump received, an injury that allowed him to defer his call to the Vietnam War draft. The timing of the installation is notable, arriving just two days before Veterans Day, a holiday dedicated to honoring military service.

The piece, titled The Foot Soldier, was created by the Secret Handshake, a collective of anonymous artists. The statue depicts the sitting president in a seated position, rubbing his bare foot in a gesture of discomfort. Accompanying the sculpture is a plaque that offers a wry tribute to the commander in chief. It states, “We honor the service and sacrifice of our commander in chief, Donald J Trump. He’s a soldier in spirit who marched to the front lines of dodging the draft, armed with a perfect diagnosis of bone spurs.”

The text on the plaque continues with further commentary on the political figure. It reads, “We salute a leader who knows you can’t spell sacrifice without ‘I,’ and a warrior who reminds us that sometimes when you’re called to stand up, it’s best to just sit down and rest your feet.” The installation also features an interactive element named Toey, a six-foot-tall mascot representing a toe suffering from the same condition. Toey stands beside the main statue, inviting engagement from visitors.

In a statement to the Washington Post, a person dressed in the Toey costume offered a playful defense of the character. The performer remarked, “Draft dodger? I hardly know her. I’m the biggest toe. The hugest toe. Huge. Hugest toe. Largest toe that anyone’s ever seen.” This lighthearted response contrasts with the serious political history surrounding the original diagnosis.

Allegations regarding Trump’s avoidance of the draft have persisted since his first term in office. In 2018, the New York Times published an investigation that accused a foot doctor in Queens of doing a favor for Trump’s father by diagnosing the then-president with bone spurs. The controversy was further amplified in 2019 when Michael Cohen, a former lawyer for Trump, told Congress that the president had deliberately avoided the draft.

The White House responded to the new installation through a statement from spokesperson David Ingle. He characterized the artistic intervention as a symptom of “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” describing it as a sick and incurable disease that has affected Democrat activists. Ingle asserted that President Trump remains steadfast in his mission to fight for and protect the American people, despite the artistic commentary.

The Secret Handshake is known for its provocative public art that comments on current events and political figures. Previously, the group created Best Friends Forever, a statue showing Trump holding hands with Jeffrey Epstein. In March of this year, they installed King of the World, which depicted Trump holding Epstein in a pose inspired by the film Titanic. The group also erected a statue mocking Trump’s remodeling of the Lincoln bathroom during a government shutdown.

According to the Secret Handshake, The Foot Soldier and the Toey mascot will remain on the National Mall through Veterans Day. The display serves as a focal point for public reflection and debate on the intersection of military service, political leadership, and historical medical records.