The Treasury announced a new $1 commemorative gold-toned coin featuring a front-facing portrait of Donald Trump.
US Treasury
Donald Trump wants to add another government-issued item to the growing list bearing his name or likeness: a $1 commemorative coin.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday unveiled the design for a new gold-hued $1 coin marking America's 250th anniversary. The coin features a forward-facing portrait of Trump alongside the words "In God We Trust" and the inscription "1776-2026." The initials "JFM" stand for Joseph F. Menna, chief engraver of the US Mint since 2019.Bessent said on X that the coin "celebrates the strength of American values, and the promise of a nation dedicated to preserving freedom for all."The design is likely to face legal scrutiny, according to committees overseeing coins and medals. A long-standing federal code on "engraving and printing currency and security documents" says that "only the portrait of a deceased individual may appear on United States currency and securities."Donald Scarinci, a member of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, a nonpartisan federal group created by Congress to advise the Treasury Secretary on US coin and medal designs, told Business Insider that the Committee has never been asked to review a coin design with Trump's portrait on it and that production of the coin would be illegal."No one other than Congress has the power to legislate or to enact coin designs in America," said Scarinci. "And Congress has not passed legislation authorizing this coin.""The law that Congress passed creating the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee requires that every coin that is produced by the United States Mint be reviewed by both the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee and the Commission on Fine Arts," Scarinci added.
