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Why Donald Trump Doesn’t Belong on the $100 Bill — A Historical Comparison to Benjamin Franklin

When conversations arise about redesigning U.S. currency, some of Donald Trump’s supporters have floated the idea of putting his face on the $100 bill, replacing Benjamin Franklin. This suggestion isn’t just historically absurd — it’s an insult to the Founding Fathers and the principles they risked their lives to establish. Comparing Trump’s government record to Franklin’s, with full context of both their achievements and failures, highlights exactly why Trump is unworthy of such an honor.



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Benjamin Franklin: Government Accomplishments and Legacy


Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) was not a president, yet his contributions to the formation and governance of the United States are monumental.


Key Government Roles


Delegate to the Continental Congress (1775-1776): Helped draft and later signed the Declaration of Independence.


Ambassador to France (1776-1785): His diplomatic skills secured crucial military and financial support from France, which directly contributed to the American victory in the Revolutionary War.


President of Pennsylvania (1785-1788): Held a leadership role akin to a modern-day governor.


Delegate to the Constitutional Convention (1787): Advocated for compromise, helping to shape the U.S. Constitution.



Institution Builder


Founded the first public library in America.


Reformed the colonial postal system, improving communication across the colonies.


Helped establish the University of Pennsylvania, which advanced higher education in the new republic.



Champion of Enlightenment Ideals


Franklin’s advocacy for free speech, a free press, and public education laid a philosophical foundation for the Bill of Rights and the concept of self-governance. Meanwhile, if your state is negatively vocal with Trump, he will threaten this state by withholding federal funding. As drastic historical contrast from Franklin.


Sources



Library of Congress (Franklin Papers): https://www.loc.gov/collections/benjamin-franklin-papers




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Benjamin Franklin’s Failures


No historical figure is perfect, and Franklin was no exception. While his contributions were vast, his failures reveal important context.


Slave Ownership: Franklin enslaved people for much of his life. However, in his later years, he became an abolitionist and served as president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society.


Miscalculations in British Relations: Before fully embracing independence, Franklin spent years trying to negotiate a compromise with Britain, underestimating how irreconcilable the two sides had become.


Complicity in Colonial Elitism: While Franklin supported more democratic governance, he also aligned himself with colonial elites, occasionally overlooking the interests of poorer colonists.



Sources




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Donald Trump: Government Accomplishments and Legacy


Donald Trump served as the 45th President of the United States from 2017 to 2021. His term was marked by controversy, but also included some notable policy actions.


Key Accomplishments


Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (2017): Reduced corporate tax rates, though critics argue the benefits disproportionately favored the wealthy.


First Step Act (2018): A bipartisan criminal justice reform law reducing some mandatory sentences and expanding early release programs.


Abraham Accords (2020): Brokered normalization agreements between Israel and several Arab states, a notable diplomatic breakthrough. However conflict soon arose as a result of these Accords, as Arab nations like Iran could never fully accept normalizing relations with Israel, thus Oct 7 was the breaking point. People across the world warned Trump it would inflame relations long-term. Trump ignored the warnings.



Sources


Congressional Research Service (First Step Act): https://crsreports.congress.gov


U.S. State Department (Abraham Accords): https://www.state.gov/abraham-accords




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Donald Trump’s Failures and Anti-Democratic Legacy


Attack on Democratic Norms


Trump was impeached twice: first for abuse of power (pressuring Ukraine to investigate political rivals), and second for inciting the January 6th insurrection aimed at overturning a free and fair election.


His refusal to accept the results of the 2020 election led to an assault on the U.S. Capitol, the most direct attack on the peaceful transfer of power in modern American history.



International Isolation


Withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement and the Iran Nuclear Deal, alienating key allies and diminishing U.S. global leadership.



COVID-19 Mismanagement


Downplayed the seriousness of COVID-19, spread misinformation, and undercut public health officials. By January 2021, over 400,000 Americans had died from the virus.



Sources


National Archives (Impeachment Records): https://www.archives.gov/research/impeachment


Centers for Disease Control (COVID-19 Data): https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-updates/burden.html




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Why Trump Does Not Deserve to Replace Franklin


1. Franklin Built Institutions, Trump Tried to Undermine Them


Franklin’s legacy includes building public libraries, a reliable postal system, and educational institutions. Trump’s legacy includes attacks on the press, the FBI, the judiciary, and even the electoral process itself.


2. Franklin Advanced Knowledge, Trump Spread Disinformation


Franklin embodied intellectual curiosity and scientific inquiry, while Trump is infamous for promoting conspiracy theories and undermining trust in basic facts — from climate change to election integrity.


3. Franklin Unified a Fragile Nation, Trump Divided an Established One


Franklin’s diplomacy helped fuse colonies into a republic, while Trump’s rhetoric deepened racial, ideological, and social divides.



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An Insult to the Founders’ Legacy


Replacing Franklin with Trump would be a direct insult to the Founding Fathers. Franklin and his contemporaries, while flawed, fought for self-governance, free speech, and institutional accountability. Trump, by comparison, attacked those very principles for personal gain.


To put Trump on the $100 bill would be to reward authoritarianism and misinformation, erasing the very values that Franklin helped enshrine in the American experiment.



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Final Thoughts


Donald Trump’s record — including his twice-impeached presidency and attacks on democracy — does not remotely meet the historical or ethical bar to replace Benjamin Franklin on the $100 bill. Franklin’s legacy, despite its flaws, represents enlightenment, innovation, and service to the common good. Trump’s legacy, by contrast, is one of self-interest, division, and a direct assault on the democratic norms that Franklin helped establish.



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Sources Summary







Congressional Research Service: https://crsreports.congress.gov


National Archives (Impeachment): https://www.archives.gov/research/impeachment








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