Overview
- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed on Thursday that the department has made preparations for a $250 commemorative note but said any depiction of a living president depends on congressional approval.
- A prototype design exists, created by British artist Iain Alexander, who says he coordinated the image with President Trump and included a special '250' logo and red-white-blue coloring.
- Staff at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing resisted internal pressure to produce the note and the bureau’s director, Patricia Solimene, was reassigned in late April after raising legal concerns.
- U.S. law since 1866 bars living people from appearing on federal currency and experts note that secure banknote development normally takes years, while a 2025 bill to authorize a $250 note has stalled in Congress.
- The plan has provoked public ridicule and partisan criticism, and it sits alongside other symbolic moves such as adding the president’s signature to future $100 bills and portrait pages in some passports, which could deepen political fights over national symbols.