Trump wants his face on a US dollar coin. History, not law, stands in the way.
President Donald Trump appears poised to put his image on both sides of a commemorative $1 coin issued by the United States Mint.
On Oct. 3, the White House reshared an X post from U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach confirming reports that the Trump administration was seeking to put the president’s image on the front and back of a dollar coin commemorating the nation’s 250th anniversary.
U.S. currency typically does not feature living people — or sitting presidents — but it’s not unprecedented.
“There have been times in the past where commemorative coins have been printed with the faces of living people,” White House National Economic Council chair Kevin Hassett said on CNN’s “State of the Union” Oct. 5.
He’s right: Several living people have been featured on U.S. coins in both the recent and distant past, including one sitting president.
Although the concept of a Trump coin runs counter to a longstanding tradition, there are no unscalable legal obstacles to establishing a U.S. coin with Trump’s image on it.
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