Donald Trump’s name may already dominate politics, but some of his allies now reportedly want his face printed into American money.
Treasury Department officials appointed under Trump have pushed for a new $250 bill featuring the president’s portrait to mark America’s 250th anniversary, according to reporting cited by The Independent and The Washington Post. A mock-up obtained by the Post reportedly shows Trump centered on the note with the words “250 AMERICA.”
The idea tracks with a design Rep. Andy Barr shared earlier this year while posing with U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach. The Independent reported that Beach has “repeatedly urged staff” at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to move forward with the proposal. British artist Iain Alexander, who designed the version Barr displayed, told the Post that Trump “absolutely loved it.”
However, the plan has a major legal wall in front of it. Federal law says, “Only the portrait of a deceased individual may appear on United States currency and securities.” That rule is listed under 31 U.S.C. § 5114, meaning a living president cannot simply be placed on paper money without Congress changing the law.
A Treasury spokesperson told the newspaper the printing agency “is conducting appropriate planning and due diligence” around the $250 bill. The spokesperson added, “Should this legislative mandate be signed into law, the BEP is moving proactively to produce a $250 commemorative note which will appropriately recognize the 250th Anniversary of our great nation.”
Former Bureau of Engraving and Printing director Larry R. Felix pushed back on the idea, saying a $250 note is “not statutorily authorized” without congressional action and that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent “has to be given authority to do that.”
There is already a bill on the table. Rep. Joe Wilson introduced the “Donald J. Trump $250 Bill Act” in February 2025, saying it would direct the bureau to design and print a $250 legal tender note bearing Trump’s image while creating an exemption to the living-person currency ban.
Still, speed is another issue. The BEP says banknote development requires extensive testing that can take years. One employee put it bluntly: “These guys think you can just print something overnight and it’s going to work in an ATM. It’s just crazy.”
Another staffer said former bureau director Patricia “Patty Solimene” warned officials, “She had told them we’re not authorized to do this. We can’t progress any further, and all the stakeholders have not even met to discuss the next steps.” In a farewell message, Solimene said she “never sacrificed the values or character of myself or the organization” and that “the buck stopped here.”
