He’s not the first to claim (or at least strongly suggest) they’re actual gold. These are made of the same stuff that $1 coins have been made of since about 2000 (or whenever the Sacagawea dollar was first issued). I believe the manganese modifies the copper to a golden color, rather than the usual red of the copper penny. But if you find one in circulation, it’s usually going to be brown, just like pennies that have circulated for a while. I assume that’s oxidation.
There used to be ads in newspapers trying to sell golden dollar coins for more than face value. One I remember in particular was a roll of 50 coins where the rolling material was clear plastic. They first sold those for $98, but later upped that to $120-something. The ad copy strongly hinted these were made of gold, but never came right out and said that.
Well, you can’t, can you?
And those tokens are not investment vehicles for savvy international investors anyway. They are just small change to fleece the usual rubes. Losers gotta lose, it’s what they were born for (ask the Orange Stain if you don’t believe me). I wouldn’t worry too much the stability of the currency in the context of the legality of spending those overpriced chips. The buyers didn’t buy them for 2.44$ each to spend them. They are worshipping collectors, let them keep the shiny toy tin disks.
There’s nothing illegal about defacing coins in the US as long as you’re not doing so fraudulently.
You can deface paper money too, as long as you’re not making it “unfit to be reissued”. So if he ever puts his mug on a dollar bill instead of a coin, you can draw dicks on his face all you want.
I’m wondering how many collectors actually bought them. I imagine a lot of them were sold to MAGA PACs (Political Action Committees). They also buy books in bulk by Republicans so they can get on a best seller list (and get some tax break I’m sure). These become give-a-ways for donors, until they end up in a Dollar Tree. I’ll bet the same thing is happening with these coins.
Yes. If something has some denomination stamped on it and is released by the US government, it is legal tender at that amount. (If it has some denomination stamped on it and is released by a third party, it is counterfeit money and very illegal.)
The coins may be legal tender, but they were minted in clear violation of federal law.
Federal law (31 USC 5114) unequivocally states: “Only the portrait of a deceased individual may appear on United States currency and securities.”
(And yes, coins are legal tender and are considered to be currency.)
This law has not been repealed and is still in effect. Trump is breaking the law yet again.
Scott Bessent has tried to obfuscate the issue by pointing to a commemorative coin issued over a century ago that featured Calvin Coolidge, but Congress passed a law then specifically allowing it (which was also controversial at the time). The current Congress has not authorized an exception for the Trump coin.
