Cortez Masto, Merkley Introduce Bill to Block Trump from Putting His Face on Dollar Coin

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) introduced the Change Corruption Act to prevent any living or sitting U.S. President from being featured on any U.S. currency. This legislation follows a letter the Senators sent to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calling on him to reject the proposed designs for the Semiquincentennial dollar coin featuring the likeness of President Trump.

"While monarchs put their faces on coins, America has never had and never will have a king," said Senator Cortez Masto. "Our legislation would codify this country's long-standing tradition of not putting living Presidents on American coins. Congress must pass it without delay."

"President Trump's self-celebrating maneuvers are authoritarian actions worthy of dictators like North Korea's Kim Jong Un, not the United States of America," said Senator Merkley. "We must reject his efforts to dismantle our 'We, The People' republic and replace it with a strongman state by demanding strong accountability to prevent further abuse of taxpayer dollars. As we look ahead to America's 250th birthday, I'll keep fighting back against Trump's corruption and partisan propaganda."

The Change Corruption Act is particularly important as the U.S. Mint is considering featuring President Trump on an upcoming one-dollar coin in celebration of the Semiquincentennial, America's 250th birthday. Public reporting and draft designs suggest the U.S. Mint is considering a dollar coin featuring Trump, despite the historical precedent against featuring a living or sitting American President on a circulating coin. A final decision on the design could come as soon as tomorrow.

Read the bill here. Additional co-sponsors include Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).

Senator Cortez Masto has continually pushed to end public corruption, including supporting legislation that would prevent lawmakers from trading stocks and legislation to crack down on cryptocurrency-related corruption by elected officials at the highest levels of the federal government. Cortez Masto has long championed actions to crack down on dark money in politics. She has cosponsored legislation to require organizations spending money in federal elections to disclose their donors and help guard against hidden foreign influence in our democracy.

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