(WatchDogReport.org) – On June 5, Republican Representative Paul Gosar of Arizona launched efforts to receive the long out-of-print $500 bill. His choice of who to put on the resurrected denomination has raised significant backlash.
Gosar filed legislation on June 5 to have the Federal Reserve include the 45th president, Donald Trump, on a new $500 note. The bill is dubbed the Treasury Reserve Unveiling Memorable Portrait Act. The lawmaker argued in a press release that by issuing $500, the GOP would help combat the devaluing of the U.S. dollar by “Bidenflation” and provide “practical advantages.”
The Treasury last printed the $500 bill in 1945, when it featured President William McKinley’s portrait and formally discontinued the denomination 24 years later. McKinley died in 1901, several days after he was shot by an anarchist. The note was first introduced in 1918 when it featured the face of Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall.
The plan to put the former president on the bill was met with mixed reactions on social media. A Black Lives Matter supporter on X posted a picture of the 500 Monopoly bill commenting that it was “fitting” that it is orange. Former Republican Ron Filopkowski shared the news on X of the plans to put a “convicted felon” on the bill in reference to the guilty verdict of Trump’s hush-money criminal trial in Manhattan, reflecting the diverse range of opinions on this issue.
Law Professor Jed Rubenfeld at the University of Yale argued that the GOP’s presumptive presidential nominee is not a convicted felon as several Democrats have claimed due to the likelihood that Trump will appeal the verdict, noting the possibility that, if the ruling is deemed unconstitutional, it would have an impact on the November election.
Gosar claims that bringing back the $500 bill would “empower Americans” with more options that would allow them to avoid digital banking. The lawmaker raised concerns about the vulnerability of digital banking to censorship and surveillance. Gosar also stated that the reintroduced bill would also serve as a collector’s item and generate revenue for the government, noting how much collectors value items with a “unique design” and “historical significance.”
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