WASHINGTON — President Trump’s meme coin may be getting fresh competition.
Key administration officials are pushing the Treasury Department’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing to design a $250 banknote with Trump’s image, the Washington Post reported.
Should the Treasury Department move ahead with the plan, it would mark the first time a living person’s face was slapped on the greenback since 1866.
The $250 note would be a a nod to America’s 250th birthday this year.
Under the Thayer Amendment, which passed in 1866, it is illegal to put the likeness of a living person on official US currency, bonds, or other financial notes.
Nonetheless, US Treasurer Brandon Beach and his top adviser, Mike Brown, pushed for development of the new banknote, with Beach giving staff mock-up designs in August and September of last year, according to the report.
The mock-ups featured Trump’s face in the middle of the $250 note as well as the president’s and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s signature.
Director of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing Patricia Solimene reportedly protested to Beach and Brown that there are legal and other hurdles the agency needs to clear to make a new banknote.
“She had told them we’re not authorized to do this. We can’t progress any further, and all the stakeholders have not even met to discuss the next steps,” a source told the outlet. “Currency often takes six to eight years to produce a new bill, particularly one of such high value.”
The Post contacted the White House and Treasury Department for comment.
On April 27, Solimene was reassigned, telling her peers that she was departing the role with a “heavy heart” and that the change was “not my choice,” the WaPo claimed.
“The buck stopped here.”
Brown has since become the acting director of the agency.
In addition to the Thayer Amendment, there is another law limiting Uncle Sam to specific denominations, and $250 isn’t on that list.
Speculation about Trump eventually pursuing a banknote with his face on it has swirled on Capitol Hill. Multiple Democrats have introduced legislation to bar that from happening.
Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.) rolled out legislation in April barring Trump’s signature from appearing on the greenback. Last year, multiple senators unveiled a bill to block Trump from putting his face on a coin.
On the other side, freshman Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas) rolled out legislation last year to put Trump’s face on the $100 banknote, kicking off Benjamin Franklin. Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) has pushed for Trump’s face to appear on a $250 bill.
None of those pieces of legislation have gained traction in either chamber of Congress.
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