Challenging a century-old taboo! The U.S. Department of the Treasury launches a "$250 Trump portrait banknote," and the Director of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing is fired for attempting to block it.

The U.S. Treasury Department has erupted in a major personnel and currency dispute! According to foreign media disclosures, Trump administration officials are forcefully pushing for the issuance of a "new $250 bill" featuring Trump's portrait to celebrate the 250th anniversary of America's founding in 2026. However, this move not only directly violates the century-old U.S. law prohibiting living persons from appearing on currency, but has also triggered a massive internal upheaval — the first female Director of the Bureau of Engraving was ousted for opposing the plan. Republican lawmakers have now proposed legislation to provide cover, and this unprecedented deification campaign has drawn strong criticism from all sides. (Background: U.S. Treasury officially launches "Trump Accounts" official App: full launch on 7/4, getting all citizens into stock trading from a young age) (Background supplement: Trump sues The Wall Street Journal again for $10 billion! Accuses it of fabricating story using Epstein birthday card) A monetary tradition spanning over 150 years in American history may be completely shattered in 2026. According to in-depth reports by The Washington Post and The Daily Beast today (May 28, 2026), senior officials at the Trump administration's Treasury Department are actively pressuring for the design and issuance of a new $250 bill featuring a portrait of President Donald Trump centered on the note, to welcome the 2026 Semiquincentennial celebration of America's founding. The report indicates that this highly controversial plan is primarily being driven by U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach and his senior advisor Mike Brown. Between August and September 2025, the two repeatedly pressured the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP), which is responsible for printing U.S. currency, to produce a prototype of the bill. Reportedly, Beach personally provided the design draft. The $250 bill would feature Trump's portrait in the center and would rarely include the signatures of Trump himself and current Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. This also echoes the Treasury's recent announcement: future new bills will, for the first time, bear the signature of the incumbent president (Trump). The bill's design was crafted by British painter Iain Alexander, who proposed featuring American flag maker Betsy Ross on the reverse side, symbolizing "women's liberation" during the American Revolutionary War period. Alexander revealed that he had personally shown the design to Trump and not only received strong support, but Trump even praised him as "my favorite British artist." However, this proposal, filled with personality-cult overtones, encountered enormous pushback within the Treasury Department. The main reason is that, since the American Civil War in the 19th century, U.S. law has explicitly prohibited placing portraits of "living persons" on currency, in order to prevent any resurgence of monarchical overtones. The then-Director of the Bureau of Engraving, Patricia "Patty" Solimene (the bureau's first female director), had sternly warned that the plan was illegal without congressional legislative authorization, and that design and anti-counterfeiting procedures typically take years to complete. As a result, Solimene, who held firm to the bottom line, was suddenly "ousted" on April 27 this year and forcibly transferred to another unit within the Treasury Department, with her position directly taken over by Mike Brown, the plan's proponent. In her farewell email, Solimene quoted former U.S. President Truman's famous saying: "The buck stopped here," strongly implying that her departure was not voluntary. Many BEP employees, fearing retaliation, only dared to speak to the media anonymously. Due to current legal restrictions, this $250 bill remains at the proposal and prototype design stage and has not yet entered actual production. However, Republicans have already launched an offensive in Congress. South Carolina Representative Joe Wilson introduced the "Donald J. Trump $250 Bill Act" (H.R. 1761) in 2025, requiring the Treasury to print the bill within one year and explicitly exempting it from the restriction prohibiting incumbent or former presidents from appearing on currency. The bill is currently pending review in the House Financial Services Committee. In response, the Treasury Department gave a conservative reply, emphasizing that the BEP is conducting "appropriate planning and due diligence," and will actively cooperate with production if Congress passes legislation. Supporters argue that large-denomination bills help cope with inflation and constitute an appropriate tribute to Trump; however, critics and some media outlets have strongly blasted it, viewing it as Trump's unprecedented "vanity project" that seriously damages the political neutrality and historical tradition of American currency.