'Americans are suffering' Ted Lieu slams Scott Bessent for showing off $1 Trump coins

After Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday shared the first images of a $1 gold coin featuring President Donald Trump’s face, many questioned the legality of putting a living president's likeness on currency. While Bessent said it was to commemorate the nation's 250th anniversary, Democratic Sen. Ted Lieu slammed the move by pointing out that there were bigger issues to focus on than finding ways to imprint Trump's legacy. 

In a post on X, Bessent shared the image of a gold coin featuring Trump’s face on one side alongside the text, “In God we trust,” and “Liberty 1776-2026.” In the post, the Treasury Secretary added that the U.S. Mint will begin striking the new $1 coins to "honor the enduring legacy of liberty and a lasting symbol of patriotism.” While the law says the image of a living president can't be on currency, Bessent argued that the commemorative coin doesn't fall under the category of common currency and a 2020 law allows the designs for the 250th anniversary. 

Lieu chose not to question the legality of the coins, but instead, he chose to draw the Treasury Secretary's attention to the American economy. "Dear @SecScottBessent: When you pull your head out of Trump’s ass, can you please focus on the economy? The American people are suffering," he wrote in his post on X, signing off in the typical style of the president. 

The comments come after the data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on Tuesday showed that inflation in the U.S. eased last month as the cost of energy and gas fell. As per the report, prices rose 3.5% in the year to June, down from 4.2% recorded in May, marking a bigger drop than experts expected, as per PBS News. While energy prices fell 5.7% last month, food price inflation went up, pushing the cost of meat, poultry, fish and eggs, along with dairy products and cereals. Eating out remains more expensive, as per the report, with meals on average costing 3.7% more than they did last year. 

Meanwhile, core inflation, which strips out food and energy prices, remained unchanged in June at 2.6%, marking a moderate yearly rise but still above the Federal Reserve's target of 2%. On the positive side, economists observed that while the Iran war pushed energy prices, resulting in higher air fares and travel costs, it hasn't led to broader sustained inflation, the publication reported. Despite the mixed outlook of the economy, a new report from the Urban Institute found Americans to be struggling with the high costs of groceries.

In their survey of 10,000 consumers across the state, the institute found that over half of the low-moderate income respondents are using credit cards, buy now pay later services, and payday loans to buy groceries. "Low- and moderate-income adults who used credit cards to purchase groceries faced repayment challenges,” said Kassandra Martinchek, a co-author of the study. Furthermore, nearly one in 10 working-age adults used buy now, pay later services to buy, and about a third of them missed a payment last year.