All About the Dons: House GOP Bill Would Put Trump's Face on $100 Note

A bold move from the GOP: A Republican lawmaker from Texas is pushing for a significant change in U.S. currency by proposing that former President Donald Trump’s face grace the $100 note. Yes, you read that right—Trump, on the same bill as Benjamin Franklin.

Rep. Brandon Gill, a first-term member of Congress and staunch Trump supporter, announced the legislation on Monday. If passed, this bill would direct the Treasury Secretary to release a "preliminary design" of the new $100 bill by the end of 2026, with plans to circulate the notes by 2029. The proposal is contingent upon Trump's current term ending, as current U.S. law prohibits living individuals from appearing on currency.

Gill explained his intentions in a statement, saying, "President Trump could be enjoying his golden years golfing and spending time with his family. Instead, he took a bullet for this country and is now working overtime to secure our border, fix our uneven trade relationship with the rest of the world, make America energy independent again and put America first by ending useless foreign aid." According to Gill, replacing Franklin with Trump would be "a small way to honor all he will accomplish these next four years." Small, indeed.

Interestingly, this isn't the only recent push to immortalize Trump in cold, hard cash. Last week, Rep. Joe Wilson of South Carolina proposed a $250 bill featuring Trump’s face, garnering support from three other House conservatives. It seems like there’s no shortage of creativity when it comes to these currency redesign ideas.

However, history suggests that changing the faces on U.S. currency is far easier said than done. The last successful redesign of this kind took place in 1929 when Andrew Jackson replaced Grover Cleveland on the $20 note. More recently, efforts to replace Jackson with Harriet Tubman during the Obama administration stalled under Trump’s presidency and have yet to come to fruition under Biden’s leadership.

One potential bump in the road? Current U.S. law, which would need to be amended to allow a living person—like Trump—to appear on any form of currency. So, while the vision of Trump’s face on a $100 bill might excite his supporters, it’s far from a done deal.