At this point, it seems fitting that The Secret Handshake be officially proclaimed Donald Trump's court jester.

The group, as the name implies, is secret. It is an artists' collective but nobody knows who is behind it or a member of it. They use intermediaries to file for National Park permits to display art installations on the National Mall without fanfare, and then they just silently appear. And they've outdone themselves, once again.

Here's how the Washington Post reported the story (with some great photos):

Restrooms are notoriously difficult to find on the National Mall, but a newly installed toilet has appeared in one of its most prominent locations.

Unfortunately for tourists looking for a place to go, the one that showed up Monday morning on the promenade in front of the Lincoln Memorial is inoperable.

This toilet, spray-painted gold and set on a faux-marble pedestal, is the latest in a series of protest artworks and installations taking aim at President Donald Trump and his administration. A plaque on each side of the structure reads: a Throne Fit for a King.

The message on the plaque continues: "In a time of unprecedented division, escalating conflict and economic turmoil, President Trump focused on what really mattered: Remodeling the Lincoln Bathroom in the White House. This, his crowning achievement is a bold reminder that the president isn't just a businessman, he's taking care of business. It stands as a tribute to an unwavering visionary who looked down, saw a problem, and painted it gold."

In October, Trump announced that he had renovated the Lincoln Bathroom, replacing its 1940s-era art deco style with gold fixtures and "black and white polished Statuary marble."

In the installation outside the Lincoln Memorial, a roll of toilet paper with the words Secret Handshake printed on each sheet rested on a holder next to the toilet. Secret Handshake is the guerrilla art group that has installed about a dozen statues or other works on the National Mall over the past 16 months that have criticized Trump and his followers.

. . .

The people behind the group, whose real identities are unknown to The Washington Post, use a go-between to obtain permits for the installations from the National Park Service. In a phone interview with The Post on Monday, one of the group's members said they don't want their identities revealed, "because it's not about us. It's about the kind of fun, intrigue and mystery of these things."

"Things are dark right now and feel hopeless in a lot of ways," he said. "There's a lightheartedness to this that could be a respite from the darkness. Of course, there's a lot of imagery around the idea that this guy is king and a supreme ruler that comes from him directly, so the idea of this throne does play into it."

They have a website... which is spectacularly unhelpful. At the very least, it should have a photo gallery of all of their installations to date, but it does not. So I tried to put together a full list, which I admit may not be complete or have other errors (The Secret Handshake doesn't even have a full Wikipedia page yet).

So far, these are the art installations that The Secret Handshake has created, or have been attributed to them. First, the ones that have appeared on or near the National Mall in Washington:

• A Throne Fit For A King (today's new installment, a golden toilet)
• The Resolute Desk (from just before the 2024 election, showing Nancy Pelosi's desk with a golden spiral of poop on top of it)
• Dictator Approved (a giant "thumbs-up" hand, crushing the crown of the Statue of Liberty)
• Ugly Art (not sure of this one's title -- it may even be untitled. It was created in response to the White House calling "Dictator Approved" ugly art, and featured a golden television set with a video loop of Trump "dancing" on it)
• The Birthday Note (a giant birthday card from Trump to Jeffrey Epstein, complete with his birthday note/drawing of a female body. Not completely sure of this one's title, it could also be: Happy Birthday to a "Terrific Guy!")
• Best Friends Forever (Trump holding hands and skipping along with Epstein)
• King of the World (Epstein and Trump in the "I'm the king of the world!" pose from Titanic)

And then three more that appeared elsewhere:

• The Donald J. Trump Enduring Flame (fist clutching a Tiki torch, appeared in Freedom Plaza on Pennsylvania Avenue, near the White House
• Jeffrey Epstein Walk Of Shame (a mockery of the Hollywood Walk Of Fame, stars pasted near the White House on the sidewalks of Washington's Farragut Square, featuring prominent names featured in the Epstein files)
• In Honor of a Lifetime of Sexual Assault (a gold statue of Trump that appeared in both Philadelphia and Portland, Oregon).

That's as exhaustive a list as I can put together, but it may not even be complete (or completely correct, for that matter). They take their secrecy very seriously (which is perfectly understandable in today's political and legal environment).

In any case, their new installation was a perfect coda to this week's record-breaking "No Kings!" rallies, which were held in over 3,000 towns and cities across all 50 states of the country. For after all, a king needs a throne, right?

A king also could use a court jester, too. Which is why I felt the urge -- with the power vested in me by absolutely nobody -- to proclaim The Secret Handshake Donald Trump's official court jester.

For anyone in or around D.C. in the next few days, go check out "A Throne Fit For A King" -- these installations are temporary, and don't last long. And go ahead and climb the three "marble" stairs and have a seat on the golden throne to have your picture taken! You are even invited to tear off one of the "Secret Handshake" squares of toilet paper as well... as one of the anonymous artists said: "We've got tons of rolls." So go ahead and take home your own souvenir, courtesy of Trump's official court jester.

-- Chris Weigant

Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant