The United States Mint in 2016 will strike and sell coins featuring portraits of Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States (1981-1989), and his wife Nancy.
Their commemoration breaks expectations as neither were included with original design candidates for 2016 Presidential $1 Coins and 2016 First Spouse Gold Coins.
The Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005, Public Law 109-145, is clear that living former or current Presidents cannot be honored on coins. It’s less concise about breaking the sequential order of Presidential service to honor a commander-in-chief.
President Carter, who served prior to Reagan, is alive and therefore cannot be depicted on U.S. coins. A legal interpretation of Public Law 109-145 was needed and made. Carter will get skipped over to honor Reagan. Paul Gilkes of Coin World writes about the decision, breaking the story on Feb. 12.
Next week, on Mar. 5, the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) will meet to review and consider designs candidates for several medals and coins. According to a U.S. Mint notice that is scheduled to appear tomorrow on the Federal Register, designs for review will include those for 2016 Ronald Reagan Presidential $1 Coins and 2016 $10 Nancy Reagan First Spouse Gold Coins.
Nancy Reagan would be the first living person to appear on a U.S. coin since commemorative 1995 Special Olympics Silver Dollars depicted Eunice Kennedy Shriver.
“Carter will get skipped over to honor Reagan”. That’s awesome! If only we could have done that for real in 1977.
Oh here we go. Personally I think Carter was the last moral and honest man we had as president. Reagan was a nasty and stupid fellow who started America down the road to ruining the middle class. Brought down the Berlin Wall? As much as the Big Bad Wolf blew it down. The Soviet Union beat us…in going bankrupt first.
FDR died in April, 1945 and the law had to be amended to mint the Roosevelt dime, replacing the “Mercury” dime. In 1963, the same law was used to have JFK’s face on a coin. Coins can not have a real person depicted unless they are dead, five years or more. Now, Carter falls into that special group of not being able to be depicted on a U.S. coin, because he’s still breathing. However, if he continues to travel to muslim countries, he may be depicted sooner, using the same law amendment that allowed FDR and JFK. But, there is… Read more »
Carter was not the greatest president, but he has more than made up for it in the work he has done since leaving office. The Soviet Union was bankrupted (at the time) by their invasion of Afghanistan, low oil prices and trying to keep up with Regan’s Star Wars program. Regan was bought and paid for by BIG business. They (i.e. the 0.1 % that is the top 1/10 of the 1%) now own the politicians (who change the laws in favor of the business they own) and the TV, radio and newspapers that keep public opinion in their favor.
Yes I am opposed. Too many fresh negative memories. Every time there is a two term republican president the banks or savings and loans fail. The budget deficit soars to record heights, and in particular this president did more to trash middle class retirement programs than anyone since Hoover.
25 years is not long enough of a waiting period for deceased presidents…I vote for stopping the program now. Truman should not have gotten a coin, and Ike already has too many.
What will the mint do next when this $1 program is finished? Will we just have the Sacagawea Dollar? Will they think of something else to “commemorate” in a long expensive series?
I thought wew were talking coins? Shut the F up
None of us care about your opinions!
Boy, those Dems are still a f—-up group with their jerk still in office.
Why not get Jimmy Carter on 2016 coin ? I care my Coin collection not political policy.
I’m hoping that after the 2016 presidential coins Congress will do something it seems it’s loathe to do lately – act, by eliminating the penny and $1 bill (and $2 bill?) and modernize the US monetary system. Show some guts, communicate across the aisle, join forces and come up with a law finally puts the US in the 21st century.
Everybody laughing now?
It’s a shame that such hopes have to be reduced to laughter but there it is.
I was surprised Republicans didn’t jump at the opportunity when the Mint first announced the cessation of the Presidential dollar coin program with Ford to create a new law authorizing a Reagan dollar in 2017 to replace the Sacagawea design (and maybe even nix the dollar bill to get it circulating). I know they wanted to do the dime in 2011, even replace Hamilton on the $10. I guess this third chance has slipped them by…
There are no politicals that fit the script for all.The true American leaders role is to take a position to benefit all.Take a look who is this man it sure as hell isn’t our current president Carter may have been moral but was totally lost Kennedy had courage Bush was strong in the first administration but should have stayed away from Iraq.Regan was the last President who represented moral character.We as a nation is no longer respected as a world power.Nancy and Ronald works for me.
(Insert politically charged comment.)
Politics not coins? Huh….Ronnie Raygunz was a loose cannon, Carter very book smart but a poor ‘boss’ Nixon, does his coin have him in a prisoner’s top? Ford, maybe a helmeted person nearby while he swings a golf club, GW Bush, a good guy, but too vanilla for most, Clinton, come one think of the designs that are possibile, Dubya Iraq mess, a fair leader, but Obama is the same type, someone ELSE is running the show….Obama cold be depicted with a rectal thermometer asking you to bend over for the USA…..
This is not about a separate, standalone commemorative issue – it’s about a series that from its outset was intended to feature _all_ former presidents who are no longer alive regardless of their political legacy. Just because the series is now into the modern era where people have personal views of a particular president shouldn’t change that criterion. I didn’t vote for Reagan, can’t forgive him for Iran-Contra or quadrupling the national debt and on and on but the fact is he was president and is no longer living. Those are the only requirements. Or maybe we should have skipped… Read more »
Let’s just put the Queen on the front of everything. Maybe a green frog on the back. Yuck!
Munzen, you hit it right on the head. Carter may just make it on the coin, he doesn’t look too spry, any more. However, if he does die, he will need the law to be amended for him, because either way, he won’t be dead long enough, before the series comes to an end. I agree, if you were a President of the United States of America, regardless of how well you did or how badly your performance of duty was, if you’re dead, and the series is still open, then by all means, stamp them out. Of course, although… Read more »
Victor I agree with you regarding our present “Fuhrer”, but the Queen?… I just don’t get the royals sucking up all that easy living off the Brits. Just doesn’t seem right to me. Don’t get me wrong, she’s probably a very nice Lady. How about a Reagan/ Thatcher coin?? Now, don’t get all uppity people. Just trying to keep this “politi-coin” thread going. 🙂 We could use some humor what with all that is going on this world.
Some U.S. Presidents have been honored by naming some aircraft carriers after them. Beginning with the USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) aircraft carriers are usually named after American admirals or politicians, usually presidents.