Depiction Debate

The Treasury Department has defended its plan to mint a $1 coin depicting President Donald Trump following initial backlash to first drafts of the design revealed on October 3. The design features President Trump’s portrait on the obverse with LIBERTY above and IN GOD WE TRUST below, along with the years 1776•2026. The reverse depicts President Trump with the American flag in the background. The legend FIGHT•FIGHT•FIGHT appears above. 

Initial Controversy 

The United States has traditionally opted out of depicting living presidents on currency to avoid appearing as a monarchy, but this wasn’t expressly prohibited until an 1866 act of Congress. Critics of the design cited the act, which states that “no coin issued under this subsection may bear the image of a living former or current President, or of any deceased former President during the 2-year period following the date of the death of that President.” According to a now-removed page on the Treasury’s website, Congress enacted the law after Chief of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing Spencer Clark placed a portrait of himself on a 5-cent note.

Per the Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020, the Treasury Secretary may “mint for issuance during the one-year period beginning January 1, 2026, $1 coins with designs emblematic of the United States semiquincentennial.” However, the law places restrictions on the reverse designs, stating that “no head and shoulder portrait or bust of any person, living or dead, and no portrait of a living person may be included in the design on the reverse of specified coins.”  

The Treasury Department’s Response

In a post on X on October 6, the Treasury Department argued that featuring President Trump’s likeness was authorized under the 2020 act. The post stated that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has the authority to issue coinage “with designs emblematic of the United States semiquincentennial” and that the proposed images reflect President Trump and his vision for America. The illustration of President Trump’s side profile and upper body circumvents the act’s language of prohibiting the “head and shoulder portrait or bust” of any person.

“On this momentous anniversary, there is no profile more emblematic for the front of this coin than that of our serving President, Donald J. Trump,” stated the Treasury Department in its post.

The Commemorative $1

A spokesperson for the Treasury emphasized that, though the drafts are legitimate, a final design has not been chosen. Ultimately, the courts would determine the legality of the coin. If approved, President Trump would join President Calvin Coolidge as the only presidents depicted on a U.S. coin while still alive.  

The $1 coin would be considered legal tender and enter circulation in 2026. The cost of producing the coins is not clear and will be dependent on materials used and mintage.