Trump Unveils $1 Coin That Reportedly Violates Three Laws And One Law Of Taste
The U.S. Treasury has previewed a new $1 coin featuring Donald Trump, a design that legal experts say breaks several federal statutes, including the small matter of a 1866 law prohibiting living people from appearing on U.S. currency.
A Treasury spokesperson dismissed the concerns, noting that the coin is technically legal because Trump has redefined "living" to mean "winning." The reverse of the coin depicts Trump raising a fist next to the words FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT, which numismatists have identified as the first time a U.S. coin has come with stage directions.
Collectors are already lining up, less out of admiration than out of a suspicion that the coin may be recalled within six weeks and become worth roughly the GDP of Delaware on eBay. One Ohio dealer said he planned to buy a hundred and store them next to his Trump-branded Bible, Trump-branded sneakers, and Trump-branded cologne, which together form what he called "a diversified portfolio."
The U.S. Mint, which historically waited until presidents were both dead and universally admired before putting them on coins, has quietly updated its style guide to require only one of those conditions. Officials declined to say which one.
Canadians, who put the reigning monarch on their coins and are therefore in no position to lecture anyone about personality cults on currency, watched the announcement with the polite discomfort of a neighbour who has just heard something break through the wall and is deciding whether to knock.