Most presidents are content to appear on currency after their deaths, but Donald Trump is not most presidents. Trump administration officials, according to a Washington Post investigation published Thursday, have pressed the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to put the sitting president’s face on a $250 bill, and the administration has reassigned at least one person who pushed back.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters during a White House press briefing Thursday that the House has proposed legislation for the Senate to consider that would remove the ban on living people appearing on currency.
“We will stick to the law,” Bessent said, adding that the decision rests with lawmakers.
“I don’t think there’s anything untoward about having the president of the United States on the 250th anniversary bill.”
Trending
Breaking news: Trump administration officials have pressed the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to design a $250 bill featuring the president’s portrait, in what would be the first appearance of a living person on U.S. currency in more than 150 years. https://t.co/S8sqdKSB7i
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) May 28, 2026
U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach and his senior adviser, Mike Brown, both political appointees, began pushing Bureau of Engraving and Printing staff last year for prototypes of a $250 bill featuring Trump’s portrait. It would mark the first appearance of a living person on U.S. currency in more than 150 years, and doing so would require Congress to overturn an 1866 law passed after a portrait of a living Treasury official appeared on a note and sparked public outcry.
The currency push is the latest effort to place Trump’s likeness on currency, official documents and federal buildings.
Passports
The State Department unveiled a limited-edition passport in April that features a page with Trump’s portrait surrounded by text from the Declaration of Independence. The redesign was framed by the Trump administration as a semiquincentennial commemoration.
National park pass
The Interior Department announced its 2026 America the Beautiful pass — the annual all-access pass to federal lands — would feature Trump’s face alongside George Washington, displacing the traditional nature imagery selected through a public photo competition. A conservation group sued, arguing the move violates the 2004 Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act, which requires the pass to feature the winner of a National Park Foundation photo contest; the government responded by updating its policy to warn that placing stickers on passes — a popular form of protest — could void them.
Federal buildings
Giant banners bearing Trump’s portrait have been installed on the facades of at least three federal agency headquarters, including the Departments of Justice, Labor and Agriculture.
$1 coin
The U.S. Mint published draft designs in December of a $1 coin bearing Trump’s face, intended for general circulation as part of the nation’s 250th birthday. The nonpartisan Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee — created by Congress to advise the Treasury on coin design — declined to review the proposal.
24-karat gold commemorative coin
The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, made up of Trump’s own appointees, approved a design in March for a 24-karat gold commemorative coin depicting the president leaning over a desk with clenched fists. While the coin wouldn’t circulate as currency, federal law prohibits putting a living person on U.S. coinage.
Trump gold card
Trump signed an executive order establishing the “Trump Gold Card,” a visa program offering a path to U.S. residency for a $1 million contribution, with a “Trump Platinum Card” reportedly in the works for $5 million. The program essentially sells government-issued residency documents bearing the president’s name and likeness.
Signature on paper currency and COVID stimulus checks
In March, the Treasury Department announced that Trump’s signature would appear on future U.S. currency as part of the 250th anniversary celebration. It would be the first time in history that a sitting president’s signature has been printed on paper money. During his first term, when the IRS began mailing $1,200 relief payments to 70 million Americans under the CARES Act in April 2020, Trump’s name appeared on the memo line in the bottom-left corner of each check.
Trump’s Name Is Added to Programs and Buildings
- Kennedy Center: A Trump-appointed board of directors voted to add the president’s name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., now officially styled as the Trump-Kennedy Center.
- U.S. Institute of Peace: The Trump administration rebranded the congressionally chartered U.S. Institute of Peace, installing “Donald J. Trump” in silver lettering above the organization’s original engraved name on its Washington headquarters.
- Palm Beach International Airport: Florida’s legislature and governor approved renaming the airport nearest Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort the President Donald J. Trump International Airport, with the Transportation Department moving to change its three-letter designation from PBI to his initials, DJT.
- “Trump class” battleships: Trump announced the construction of two new Navy warships designated as “Trump-class” battleships, to be the first vessels in what the administration has called a “Golden Fleet.” NOTUS’ Joe Gould reported earlier this month that the administration has plans to order more of those battleships than previously disclosed.
- Trump accounts: The One Big Beautiful Bill that Trump signed into law last year created “Trump accounts,” tax-advantaged investment accounts for children that the federal government seeds with $1,000 for babies born between 2025 and 2029.
Author
