President Donald Trump has reportedly axed plans to mint new coins marking some of the most celebrated social changes in U.S. history, as he considers sticking his own face on one instead.
The Wall Street Journal reports that plans to mint a series of quarters honoring abolition, the civil rights movement, and women’s suffrage ahead have been scrapped.
The designs would have been part of celebrations for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence next year.
Plans for the new coins were never officially announced, but the Trump administration has now replaced the proposed quarter designs, WSJ said.
The new quarters will now display the faces of George Washington, who already features on the $1 note, Thomas Jefferson, who already features on the nickel, Abraham Lincoln, who already features on the penny, and James Madison, who already features on the 2007-2016 series $1 presidential coin.
“These designs on these historic coins depict the story of America’s journey toward a ‘more perfect union,’ and celebrate America’s defining ideals of liberty,” Kristie McNally, acting director of the U.S. Mint, said.
The announcement comes as Trump reportedly weighs joining the ranks of his predecessors by immortalizing himself in currency.
This would reportedly come in the form of a $1 coin featuring the current president’s face—presumably in silver or gold, the traditional materials used for that denomination, rather than the baser metals used for pennies.
U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach posted a first draft of what the coin might look like on social media earlier this year.
It features a left-hand profile of Trump on one side, and on the inverse a more evocative profile of the president from the attempt on his life at a Pennsylvania rally last year, accompanied by the motto, “FIGHT. FIGHT. FIGHT.”
