Mara Liasson

The committee trying to resist these coins that they believe are in violation of U.S.

code refused to put it on their agenda or actually actively removed consideration of these coins from their agenda.

And as a result, the administration is just moving forward without their consideration, saying that they have basically given up on their opportunity to review the coins.

The idea of a living president appearing on a coin that is in U.S.

circulation or even a commemorative coin is completely out of line with the principles of America's founding.

That the American president is different from the monarchy that we pushed away from.

And I talked to Donald Scorinci.

He is a member of that coinage advisory committee.

He has been for 20 years.

He says that for the past 20 years, the men's lawyers have told them you cannot put living people on coins.

There are laws that specifically say, yes, former presidents should be on dollar coins, but not until they're dead.

And and he goes all the way back, he says, to George Washington.

So he is deeply offended.

And he says that the other members of this committee that are really into coins and history are all offended by the idea of a living president's face being on a coin.

And just one fun note, there is one piece of historical precedent here.

Calvin Coolidge, 100 years ago, had his face on a coin to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the United States.

His face was sort of behind George Washington's in the shadow.

And according to Scorinci,

And it was so controversial that they actually ended up melting down most of those coins.

And now that coin is a rare coin because it was so controversial at the time.