Trump’s signature to appear on paper currency in a first for a sitting president
President Donald Trump is adding his name to U.S. dollar bills, the first time a sitting president’s signature will be placed on paper money, the Treasury Department announced Thursday.
Trump’s signature will appear on the notes in honor of the country’s 250th anniversary, the Treasury said. Historically, paper money bears the signatures of the Secretary of the Treasury and the Treasurer.
“The President’s mark on history as the architect of the economic renaissance of America’s Gilded Age is undeniable,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. “Pricing his signature on U.S. currency is not only appropriate, but well-deserved.”
U.S. paper money has featured the Treasurer as well as the Secretary of the Treasury or a record of the Treasurer’s signatures since its first printing in 1861.
The Treasury Department’s announcement comes as polls show voters are unhappy with the economy, citing rising inflation and a high cost of living. Oil prices have also risen since the start of the war in Iran, causing dismay among some voters.
Trump’s signature on dollar bills isn’t the only depiction of the president Americans can expect to see on U.S. currency this year.
A federal commission made up of members appointed by Trump recently approved a design that would include the president’s image on commemorative 24-karat gold coins, also in honor of the country’s 250th anniversary. The design of this coin still requires official approval from the Treasury.
In 2020, Trump put his name to Covid stimulus checks, which allowed direct cash payments to Americans during the pandemic.
Adding Trump’s name to U.S. currency is his latest attempt to leave his mark on the federal government in ways other presidents have not.
Trump’s name is now emblazoned on the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the American Institute of Peace in Washington. It is also associated with drug discount programs, savings accounts and warship projects.
