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A 10-foot-tall replica of the controversial birthday card that President Donald Trump reportedly sent to Jeffrey Epstein appeared on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on Monday, January 19, ahead of the late billionaire’s birthday.
The card first became public in July 2025, when The Wall Street Journal reported on a graphic message Trump allegedly sent to Epstein on his 50th birthday in 2003. The convicted sex offender, who would have turned 73 on Tuesday, January 20, died by suicide in prison while facing sex trafficking charges in 2019.
In a follow-up interview with The Wall Street Journal at the time, Trump denied writing the letter or drawing the picture.
“This is not me. This is fake. This is a fake article from the Wall Street Journal,” he told the outlet. “I have never painted in my life. I have never painted a picture of a woman…It’s not my language. It’s not my word.”
He later sued the publication and its owners, including Fox News co-founder Rupert Murdoch, for $10 billion, alleging defamation. Although the lawsuit is still ongoing, President Trump invited Murdoch to dinner at the White House in October.
The Wall Street Journal did not initially publish the image of the birthday message, but it was later released by lawyers for Epstein’s estate to the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating the government’s management of the Justice Department’s vast Epstein file.
The letter, which was reportedly part of a collection of wishes Ghislaine Maxwell collected from friends for Epstein’s milestone birthday, features a pen-drawn outline of a nude female body. The text within the summary features an imaginary conversation between Trump and Epstein.
In the hypothetical exchange, Trump said, “Jeffrey, we have something in common.” Mr. Epstein replied, “Yes, I do. Come to think of it.”
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“Enigma never ages, have you noticed that?” Trump then asks Epstein, to which Epstein responds, “Actually, it’s been clear to me since the last time I saw you.”
“The letter ends with this: ‘Happy birthday and may every day be another wonderful secret.'”
Local news station WUSA 9 in Washington, D.C., reported that the installation on the National Mall was the work of a protest group called The Secret Handshake. Next to the giant card is a box containing files and markers where visitors can leave “a personal message to the administration.”
Secret Handshake also claimed credit for a statue of Epstein and Trump titled “Best Friends Forever,” which appeared on the National Mall in September 2025 but was quickly removed.
After Trump’s initial denial, the internet quickly took notice of the president’s claim that he had “never painted a picture in his life.” Within minutes, online critics unearthed various well-documented doodles of Trump.
Former Congressman Adam Kinzinger compiled several sketches of Trump into a photo collage in X with the caption: “Trump loves to draw. Just saying.”
Other items found on auction sites included a 2004 cityscape skyline that was listed and auctioned at Sotheby’s, a sketch of the Empire State Building that sold for $16,000 at Julien’s Auctions, a 2005 reproduction of the Manhattan skyline that sold for $29,184 at Nate D. Sanders Auctions, and a painting of a tree with falling money that sold for $8,500 at Leland. a little bit.
All of the art pieces up for auction appeared to have the president’s distinctive signature.
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Trump even boasted of his prolific doodling skills in his 2010 book, “Trump Never Gives Up: How I Turned My Biggest Challenge into a Success.”
“Every year I donate an autographed Doodle to the ‘Doodles for Hunger’ auction at Tavern on the Green,” he wrote. “It’s a wonderful event.”
