Administration

Senate Democrats press Treasury Department on decision to add Trump name to currency

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by Sophie Brams - 04/03/26 5:59 PM ET

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by Sophie Brams - 04/03/26 5:59 PM ET

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Two Senate Democrats are seeking answers from the Treasury Department about a plan to add President Trump’s signature to newly minted U.S. paper currency.

Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) pressed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in a letter Thursday to explain how the decision “will in any way benefit the American public.”

Bessent announced on March 26 that Trump’s name would appear on future paper currency to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary.

Warren and Merkley cited that announcement, in which the secretary claimed the U.S. was “on a path toward unprecedented economic growth, lasting dollar dominance, and fiscal strength and stability” under Trump’s leadership.

“In reality, Americans are facing an affordability crisis, and America’s economy is on shaky ground,” they wrote, pointing to instability linked to the ongoing conflict with Iran, from higher mortgage rates to concerns about global inflation.

The lawmakers demanded information by April 15 on how the Treasury Department made its decision and how much the proposal is expected to cost taxpayers. They also sought answers on how the move would lower housing, grocery and energy costs or slow inflation.

“It is deeply unclear how, if at all, the Administration believes that emblazoning U.S. currency with President Trump’s signature will address any of the serious problems facing the American public,” they wrote.

“Yet President Trump does have a history of cashing in on his name to paper over abject business failures,” they added, citing a Washington Post report from 2017 that found Trump has made millions of dollars by licensing his last name to entities around the world.

Trump’s name on paper bills would mark a first, as federal law has historically barred living people from being depicted on U.S. currency.

But the Treasury Department has argued that a measure signed by Trump at the end of his first term — the Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020 — allows the administration to circumvent the law on an occasion such as the semiquincentennial.

The department is expected to roll out a commemorative $1 gold coin bearing Trump’s image in honor of the country’s founding after receiving approval from the Commission of Fine Arts last month.

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