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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed Monday (July 6) that the Trump administration is “not at present” planning to move forward with placing Tubman’s likeness on the $20, according to Spectrum News. Bessent did not elaborate.
Tubman would have been the first Black American — and the first woman in more than a century — on the face of U.S. paper currency. The plan originated under President Barack Obama in 2016, when then-Treasury Secretary Jack Lew announced that Tubman would replace Andrew Jackson on the front of the $20 bill, originally set to enter circulation in 2020 to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment.
Trump blocked the plan during his first term, calling it “pure political correctness” and suggesting Tubman be placed on the $2 bill instead.
When President Biden took office in 2021, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the administration was “taking steps to resume efforts” and exploring ways to “speed up the process.” Former Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen later estimated the bill would be ready by 2030, citing the need for sophisticated anti-counterfeiting technology.
In May 2025, during a tense exchange with Rep. Joyce Beatty, a Black Democrat from Ohio, Bessent was asked for an update on the Tubman bill’s status. His response: “I can’t, my staff will get back to you.”
The contrast between the administration’s handling of the Tubman redesign and its support for a proposed $250 bill featuring Trump drew immediate criticism.
Pressed on the discrepancy, Bessent told Spectrum News: “The 250 requires an act of Congress, because you can’t have a living person on U.S. currency.”
He added: “For us to change an existing bill, whether it’s $1 through $100, takes many years in advance.” No new person has been added to U.S. paper currency since 1928.
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat from New Hampshire who has been introducing legislation to put Tubman on the $20 since 2015, said she was “extremely disappointed” by Bessent’s announcement.
“Commemorating Harriet Tubman would have been the perfect way to honor the women who helped build this country and bravely stood up for freedom and equality throughout our nation’s remarkable 250-year history,” Shaheen said in a statement. “Though Secretary Bessent may be more interested in illegally plastering Donald Trump’s image on a $250 bill, putting a woman on a U.S. bill remains long overdue, and I will keep focusing on finding a path to honor Harriet Tubman’s patriotism and sacrifice.”
Tubman was born into slavery in the early 1820s and went on to conduct 13 missions on the Underground Railroad, helping approximately 70 people escape to freedom. She later served as a Union spy and nurse during the Civil War.
The $20 bill currently features Andrew Jackson, the seventh U.S. president and a slaveholder who signed the Indian Removal Act of 1830, which forcibly displaced tens of thousands of Native Americans.
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