Trump's face-lift for America's money

Scott Bessent, US treasury secretary, displays an article on the proposed $250 banknote featuring an image of US President Donald Trump during a news conference in the White House on Thursday, May 28, 2026. (Bonnie Cash/UPI/Bloomberg via Getty Images).

President Donald Trump has devoted a lot of time and energy renovating Washington D.C. First he proceeded to demolish the East Wing of the White House to make way for a $400 million ballroom. The World War II memorial might be next in line for renovation, and plans are in motion for a triumphal 250-foot arch.

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The president acknowledged enthusiasm for the city's makeover at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday. “I love construction. It's very exciting," Trump said, adding that "D.C. is looking beautiful."

Now the administration is setting its sights on the next phase of its face-lift: America's money.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday said that political appointees at the Treasury Department had asked employees at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to start preparing designs for a new $250 banknote with Trump's face on it. It was first reported by the Washington Post.

In late March, the Treasury Department announced that Trump's signature would appear on paper currency, the first time for a sitting president. The endeavor aligns with the pending 250th anniversary of America's founding starting in July.

"I don’t think that there’s anything untoward about having the person who is president of the United States on the 250th anniversary bill," he said.

Bessent argued the proposals were simply part of Treasury's administrative procedure in case Congress gives a green light for Trump to appear on a $250 bill. He acknowledged, though, that current law bars living people from appearing on U.S. currency. The last living figure to have their likeness featured on American currency was a mid-level Treasury official in the 1860s.

"At Treasury we prepare things in advance. So we have prepared in advance that if the legislation is passed, but we will stick to the law," he said.

The legislation that Bessent mentioned was introduced in February 2025 by Rep. Joe Wilson, a South Carolina Republican. It would allow the Treasury to design and print a $250 bill with Trump’s face on it.

The bill has 15 co-sponsors in the lower chamber, and none of them are Democrats. The bill isn't popular among House Republicans either. Only two more GOP lawmakers signed onto it this year so far.

Designing a new note is fraught with logistical and security hurdles, and a Trump $250 note won't be used for financial splurges anytime soon. The $100 bill was last redesigned in 2013 after several years of coordination between Treasury, the Secret Service, the Federal Reserve and other agencies. Ensuring security features are in place so banknotes aren't counterfeited is a prime concern.

Many lawmakers in both parties won't be eager to bless a Trump-branded currency while gas prices soar and family budgets are stretched thin from the war against Iran. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote on social media he was a "hard no" on the $250 Trump bill and called the president a "wannabe king."

The Trump administration is unlikely to enlist Republican senators to its cause as well. In recent weeks, Trump backed primary opponents against Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. His endorsements proved fatal to their re-election bids, and both lost their seats since he deemed them insufficiently loyal.

Trump's face-lift for America's money

Treasury officials have begun preparing designs for a $250 bill featuring Donald Trump, a proposal that would require Congress to overturn a longstanding ban on living people appearing on U.S. currency.

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