The US Treasury has revealed a draft design for a $1 coin featuring President Donald Trump to commemorate 250 years since the declaration of American independence, for release in 2026.<\/p>\n
The front of the potential design featured Mr Trump in profile, with the words “Liberty” above and “1776-2026” below, according to images shared by Treasurer Brandon Beach on X and subsequently released by the Treasury.<\/p>\n
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July 4, 2026, marks 250 years since the United States Declaration of Independence. (Reuters via US Treasury Department)<\/p>\n
The other side of the coin showed Mr Trump holding a raised clenched fist framed with the words “fight, fight, fight” \u2014 a reference to what he said immediately after surviving an assassination attempt last year \u2014 and a flag in the background.<\/p>\n
“While a final $1 coin design has not yet been selected to commemorate the United States’ semi-quincentennial, this first draft reflects well the enduring spirit of our country and democracy, even in the face of immense obstacles,” a Treasury spokesperson said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Debate on the design’s legality<\/p>\n
In 2020, Congress passed a law that allows the Treasury Secretary to mint $1 coins in 2026 “with designs emblematic of the US semi-quincentennial”.<\/p>\n
A debate quickly erupted on social media about the proposed coin, given that the law specifically says “no head and shoulders 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 any coin” created to mark the US anniversary.<\/p>\n
The proposed design features a wider illustration of Mr Trump on the reverse side, a move that legal experts said would fall outside the ban on a “head and shoulders portrait or bust”.<\/p>\n
An 1866 law mandates that no living person’s portrait can be used on US currency, but that refers to paper money produced by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.<\/p>\n
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Asked if President Donald Trump had seen the design, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said, “I’m not sure if he’s seen it, but I’m sure he’ll love it”. (Reuters: Ken Cedeno)<\/p>\n
One provision of an earlier law on coinage, first passed in 1792 and amended repeatedly by Congress, prohibits depiction of a living current or former president, but that passage applies to $1 coins minted specifically to honour each of the US presidents, not issued for other reasons, such as the country’s 250th anniversary.<\/p>\n
To mark the 1976 bicentennial celebrations, the Treasury sponsored a national competition and picked for the $1 coin a design by a sculpture student featuring the Liberty Bell, a symbol of American independence, and the moon.<\/p>\n
The other side of the coin featured former president Dwight D. Eisenhower, who died in 1969 and became the first president to appear on a $1 coin in 1971.<\/p>\n
Asked on Friday whether Mr Trump had seen the draft coin design, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said, “I’m not sure if he’s seen it, but I’m sure he’ll love it”.<\/p>\n
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