South Carolina Republican Joe Wilson Wants Trump on the $250 Bill
By CoinWeek News Staff …..
On Tuesday, February 25, South Carolina Representative Joe Wilson (R-SC2) announced on X that he intended to introduce legislation to create a $250 bill featuring a portrait of 47th President Donald J. Trump. The post, which included an AI-generated mockup of a “Trump $250 note”, claims that “Bidenflation” destroyed the economy and is forcing Americans to carry more cash.
Statistics regarding the cash-carrying habits of Americans shows a downward trend in cash usage from pre-Pandemic levels. According to a report published in May 2024 by the Federal Reserve, the number of transactions involving cash payments had decreased to about 16%.
One aspect of the potential utility of a $250 bill (or $200 bill) is that the $100 Federal Reserve Note is the most heavily produced note in circulation. This did not happen under 46th President Joe Biden, however, as the $100 bill overtook the $1 in 2017. Most of these bills are held as a reserve currency and it makes sense for the Federal Government to consider the production of even higher denomination notes–so long as they can stay ahead of the increasingly sophisticated counterfeiting operations of state actors like North Korea.
Wilson doesn’t address any of these issues in his social media post – or in the rather barebones bill, for that matter, a screenshot of which he also posted on X.
If passed, the $250 bill would follow the reintroduced $2, which was released to mark the nation’s 200th birthday. The most recent effort to overhaul the nation’s currency, which included replacing seventh President Andrew Jackson with abolitionist Harriet Tubman, was shelved during Trump’s first term and not revisited (despite promises) during the Biden Administration.
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**Comment 1 (Image of Mock $250 Bill):** This mockup design certainly sparks a conversation about the intersection of politics and numismatics.
**Comment 2 (Wilson’s Announcement and “Bidenflation” Claim):** Connecting a new bill denomination to inflation seems like a politically charged argument, given the downward trend in cash usage.
**Comment 3 (Cash Usage Statistics):** The declining use of cash raises questions about the practicality of introducing a new, higher denomination bill.
**Comment 4 (Image of Wilson’s Legislation):** The simplicity of the bill text leaves much to be desired in terms of addressing potential logistical and economic implications.
**Comment 5 ($100 Bill and Counterfeiting):** The focus on the $100 bill’s prevalence and counterfeiting concerns adds an important layer to the discussion. A $250 bill could potentially exacerbate these issues.
**Comment 6 (Wilson’s Lack of Addressing Key Issues):** The omission of details regarding counterfeiting and the practical need for a $250 bill weakens the proposal’s credibility.
**Comment 7 ($2 Bill and Tubman Redesign):** The historical context of the $2 bill and the stalled Tubman redesign provides a relevant comparison for this proposed change.