PRESIDENT TRUMP, who as a candidate in 2016 derided as “pure political correctness” the plan to honor Harriet Tubman by featuring the Underground Railroad’s most celebrated conductor’s image on the front of the $20 bill, can rest easy: Thanks to the intervention of his treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, only likenesses of white men will appear on U.S. paper money for the duration of his presidency.
Mr. Mnuchin’s far-fetched pretext for the delay — that eight more years of technical planning were required to prevent counterfeiting issues in the bill’s new design — is now exposed as risible. As the New York Times reported, the design of the new bill, featuring Tubman, was already quite advanced when Mr. Mnuchin announced the move, apparently fearing an even greater backlash should Mr. Trump cancel the project outright. The treasury secretary’s postponement means the new note will not be complete until after Mr. Trump leaves office, even if he serves a second term. Continue reading “The Mnuchin myth on Harriet Tubman, exposed”
WASHINGTON — Harriet Tubman — former slave, abolitionist, “conductor” on the Underground Railroad — will not become the face of the $20 bill until after President Trump leaves office, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Wednesday.