According to a report by US media TodayUSA, the United States Mint will officially sell commemorative 1-dollar coins featuring the portrait of Trump at 12 noon on September 2nd, Eastern Time. This is the first time in centuries that the image of a living person has appeared on US currency.
Collectors can purchase 100 units for $154.50, or a roll of 25 units for $61.
The U.S. Treasury stated in a press release that out of the entire bag and roll of coins, there were 250,000 coins marked with the date "July 4th".
The coin features a portrait of Trump.
According to reports, the coin design features a portrait of Trump at his White House, with the intention of commemorating the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.
This is the first product among a series of currencies printed with Trump’s image announced by the U.S. Treasury Department. The Treasury also plans to introduce banknotes featuring the president’s image, as well as 24K pure gold commemorative coins.
Some Democratic lawmakers and numismatic collectors opposed this, citing federal laws that stipulate that U.S. currency and securities ‘may only bear the portrait of deceased individuals’.
But the Treasury Department cited a congressional act that authorized the Mint to produce one-dollar coins over a period of one year, as a commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.
George Washington refused to have his portrait printed on currency when he was alive, believing that this was a practice of monarchy.
President Calvin Coolidge was the only President in history whose portrait appeared on currency. In 1926, to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the founding of the United States, the Treasury Department issued commemorative half-dollars that featured both Coolidge and George Washington on them.
Both this 1-dollar commemorative coin and the 24K pure gold commemorative coin have not received approval from the Citizens’ Coin Advisory Committee. This committee is a nonpartisan agency established by Congress, whose role is to provide advice to the Treasury Department regarding coin design. The committee refused to consider these two coins, arguing that imprinting the image of the current president on currency violates the principles upon which the United States was founded.
Although it is called "coin," this $1 token contains no precious metals.
