Donald Trump has put his name on steaks, buildings, casinos, and bibles. Now his image is on a $1 coin being sold to the public at an inflated price, with an inscription that appears to show the United States ending in 2026.
The U.S. Mint began selling rolls and bags of coins bearing Trump’s face on Wednesday, turning the president into something Americans can literally carry around in their wallets.
But critics immediately mocked the initiative as yet another grift, and others questioned its etchings.
“I like that this design appears to show the birth date of liberty as 1776, and its death as 2026,” observed The Bulwark’s economics commentator Catherine Rampell, noting the coin was marked with the dates “1776—2026.”
Collectors can now buy the coins in 25-coin rolls for $61, or in 100-coin bags for $154.50.
“Deal of the century right here folks,” noted Rampell’s Bulwark colleague Sam Stein. “You can purchase 25, $1 Trump coins for the price of… $61.”
The coin is being issued to mark the nation’s 250th anniversary, but its branding is unmistakably Trump, with his portrait alongside the words “Liberty” and “In God We Trust.”
The reverse features the presidential seal, with an eagle holding an olive branch and a bundle of arrows.
But the new coin has also raised questions about federal restrictions that are designed to prevent living presidents from appearing on U.S. currency.
Under the law, U.S. coins and currency must bear only the portrait of a deceased individual.
However, the administration worked around this because the coin was authorized as a commemorative tribute for an anniversary.
The coin is nonetheless the latest initiative centered around a president seeking to rebrand Washington in his own image.
The 80-year-old’s face now appears on giant banners on government buildings such as the Justice Department and the Department of the Interior, while the Treasury Department is considering a push to put his image and signature on a $250 bill.
The proposal stems from legislation by South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson, who introduced the “Donald J. Trump $250 Bill Act” last year, complete with an AI-generated mock-up of the new note plastered with Trump’s face.
But this is merely one of a growing pile of Trump-themed gestures from Republicans all seemingly competing in an increasingly crowded race to please the president.
Among the other contenders are Texas Rep. Brandon Gill, who introduced the Golden Age Act, which would replace Benjamin Franklin with Trump on the $100 bill, and Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who introduced a bill proposing putting Trump’s face on Mount Rushmore alongside George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.
There are also Trump-branded products such as a $60 bible designed to “Make America Pray Again”, as well as Trump sneakers, Trump watches and Trump cryptocurrency, all of which have boosted the fortunes of the president and his family by billions of dollars.
Nonetheless, Trump has made it clear he wants more. Last week, for instance, after praising the Artemis II crew for naming a moon crater after the late wife of Commander Reid Wiseman, who died of cancer, he told the crowd: “I wish they’d name something like that after me.”
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