$5 Million in Taxpayer Funds Will Gold-Plate Washington Horse Statues for July 4th. Sources Confirm This Was Necessary.
The horses were already there.
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The Interior Department awarded a $5 million contract in April to a Maryland gilding company to cover four bronze equestrian statues near the Lincoln Memorial with a thick layer of nearly pure gold leaf, in time for America's 250th anniversary on July 4. The statues, known as the Arts of War and the Arts of Peace, were cast in bronze in Italy in 1950 and have stood at the Lincoln Memorial Circle since 1951. They were a gift from the Italian people. They were already there. They will now also be gold.
The contract was awarded to The Gilders' Studio of Maryland without a full competitive bidding process. National Park Service documents describe the timeline as urgent and characterize the selected firm as the only company in the country qualified to complete the work. The public notice inviting competing bids was posted online for six days before the contract was awarded. Agency records describe market research as limited to historical data. A gold-leaf supplier in New York, reached separately, said other qualified firms were not contacted and that he could name several capable of doing comparable work. An Interior Department spokesperson did not address this in response to a list of questions.
The contract is one part of a $95 million Interior Department beautification program covering projects initiated between December 2025 and this spring. That period overlapped with proposed cuts to Medicaid, significant reductions in federal workforce, and decreases to National Park Service staffing and operating budgets. The gold being applied to the statues is heavier and purer than what the same company used to refinish the Wyoming state capitol dome in 2019. At current market prices, which have roughly doubled in recent years, it represents more precious metal per square foot than most Americans earning under $50,000 will hold in their lifetimes. Twelve sources confirmed the horses will look significantly better. All twelve are at Mar-a-Lago. None of them found this noteworthy.
An Interior Department spokesperson said the administration is committed to making Washington "Safe and Beautiful" and offered that "Promises Made are Promises Kept." A restoration expert familiar with the statues told NOTUS the compressed timeline raises concerns, noting that rushing major work on structures of this type historically produces complications that only become clear later. The statues are currently enclosed in scaffolding. The National Park Service cited an executive order commemorating the 250th anniversary as the legal basis for bypassing a competitive bid. July 4 is the deadline. Officials described that as the plan.
Bronze = weak. Bronze = losing. Bronze is what other countries have.
While the Deep State is busy cutting your benefits, YOUR President is covering the horses in 23.75-KARAT GOLD LEAF. No-bid. No competition. No waiting around.
This is your capital. This is your gold. This is your 250th birthday.
PROMISES MADE. PROMISES KEPT.
Sources familiar with the matter confirmed that the gold leaf being applied is heavier than any previous application on a federal structure, a distinction that officials say reflects the historic nature of the occasion. The occasion is a birthday. Officials declined to say whose.
The Gilders' Studio did not respond to a request for comment. Several other gilding firms contacted by this reporter declined to speak on record, citing instructions from the National Park Service not to speak to the media.
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Subscription does not include access to the statues, the gold, or America's 250th birthday. The statues belong to the government. The gold belongs to the contractor. The government's current relationship with the concept of "the government" is under review.Satire. Parody. Protected Speech.
The grift described above is real. The Interior Department awarded a $5 million no-bid contract to The Gilders' Studio in Maryland to cover four bronze equestrian statues near the Lincoln Memorial with 23.75-karat gold leaf in time for the 250th anniversary of the United States on July 4, 2026. The contract was awarded without full competitive bidding. Market research was described in agency documents as "limited." The project is part of a broader $95 million beautification program initiated between December 2025 and April 2026. The statues were a gift from Italy in 1951. The gold is new. A gold-leaf supplier told NOTUS other qualified firms were not contacted. The publication is not real. The joke is that this is harder to tell apart than it should be.
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