Eric Trump posted a 100-second video to X on Monday night with a message that left little room for ambiguity. The Donald J. Trump Presidential Library, he announced, “is officially here.”
The renderings, credited to Miami-based architecture firm Bermello Ajamil, depict a glass skyscraper that would tower over Biscayne Bay with “TRUMP” in gold lettering near the top and a red, white, and blue spire. Inside, the concept features a full-sized Air Force One in the lobby, gold escalators, a replica Oval Office, a ballroom mirroring the one currently under construction at the White House, rooftop gardens, and at least two oversized golden statues of the president — one with his fist raised, echoing the moment after he was shot at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024.
Eric Trump called the planned structure “a lasting testament to an amazing man, an amazing developer, and the greatest President our Nation has ever known.” Within hours, the post had racked up over 3 million views and 10,000 comments.
🚨 FIRST LOOK: The Donald J. Trump Presidential Library is officially here.
Over the past six months, I have poured my heart and soul into this project with my incredible team at @Trump.
This landmark on the water in Miami, Florida will stand as a lasting testament to an… pic.twitter.com/azV1hx0HG2
— Eric Trump (@EricTrump) March 31, 2026
The Critics Saw Something Familiar
The golden statues dominated the conversation. One X user, @libdunkmedia, posted a side-by-side comparison of the Trump library rendering and the Mansudae Grand Monument in Pyongyang, North Korea — the one featuring towering bronze statues of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il — and invited followers to “spot the difference.”
Another user, @MQniverse, went further back in history: “Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, also erected a golden image of himself.”
Barbie for Congress, a verified account representing a Florida congressional candidate, called the golden statue rendering “a modern day version of worshiping the golden calf in the desert,” adding: “How any Christian can still follow and support this is beyond my comprehension.” The post drew 234 comments and 16,000 views.
One user, @HoldenMicock, took a more direct approach — photoshopping “EPSTEIN” over the Trump name on the building’s facade. The image pulled 2,900 likes and 68,000 views. A parody account, @BoboBowe697, offered a different kind of observation: “Now to select which contractors you’re going to rip off by not paying them.”
Supporters Fired Back — at Obama
Trump’s supporters found an entirely different use for the renderings: a weapon against former President Barack Obama’s presidential center in Chicago, which has faced its own criticism over cost overruns and gentrification concerns.
@EricLDaugh, a conservative commentator, posted a side-by-side of the Obama center’s angular stone exterior next to Trump’s gleaming tower. “Everyone is comparing Donald Trump’s newly unveiled presidential library coming to Miami with Barack Hussein Obama’s TRASH CAN library,” the post read. “The comparison isn’t even close. What an embarrassment for Hussein.” The post pulled 531,000 views.
Another user, @ScrollofTruthIF, mocked Biden’s stalled library fundraising efforts by posting an image of an ice cream cone-shaped building with the words “Joe Biden Presidential Library” — a nod to the former president’s well-documented affinity for the treat.
What the Renderings Didn’t Show
Several observers noted what was absent from the 100-second video. CNN noted the renderings appear to be AI-generated, and no one has confirmed whether the designs are anything more than conceptual. Details shifted between frames — a golden escalator that sits on top of an aircraft wing in one scene is gone a few seconds later. And the lettering on the Air Force One fuselage, where “United States of America” should be, came out as illegible AI gibberish.
Then there’s the observation tech journalist Kara Swisher made on Threads, reposting the renderings with three words: “Will there be books?”
The proposed library would sit on 2.63 acres of downtown Miami real estate, adjacent to the Freedom Tower, on land formerly belonging to Miami Dade College. The parcel, valued at more than $67 million, was gifted to the state of Florida and subsequently transferred to the Trump library foundation — a process that survived a legal challenge after a judge dismissed a complaint alleging the college’s board violated transparency laws.
Whether the building that eventually rises on that lot looks anything like what Eric Trump posted Monday night is a question no one involved has answered yet. But the internet, as it tends to do, has already made up its mind — in at least two completely different directions.
