Trump Wants His Face On Your Money. Legacy Push Draws More Outrage. Plus: Keep Trump & Mamdani Away From The Knicks.

Trump wants his face on the money. Not on a coin after he's gone. Not on a statue some future generation can decide to keep or tear down. On a live, circulating $250 bill — while he's still in office and while it's still illegal under federal law to put a living person on US currency. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent went on television and called it nothing untoward. The Angry Middle is calling it what it actually is: a strongman vanity project at a moment when most Americans can't scrape $250 together for groceries, gas, and rent. In this conversation, Paul and the crew break down the legacy push — the commemorative coin, the Trump-branded passports out of DC, the National Park Pass swap, the Kennedy Center rebrand, the arch on the White House lawn — and why this is all gas, no brakes executive ego dressed up as patriotism. They get into the Republican holdouts (Tillis, Cassidy, Cornyn) who Trump has already purged and who are about to hand him an embarrassing no vote, the ten-year design timeline that makes the whole thing a fantasy anyway, and the cabinet-meeting sycophancy culture that produces ideas this absurd. Then a hard left turn to the Knicks Finals — and a non-partisan plea to keep both Trump and Mamdani out of Madison Square Garden before they jinx the whole run. -WATCH full video of this episode here. -Join IVA and stand up to Trump’s Forever Wars. -Learn more about Paul’s work to elect a new generation of independent leaders with Independent Veterans of America. -Learn more about American Veterans for Ukraine here. -Remember Independent is an Attitude. -Learn more about The Headstrong Project for Veterans, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), and Department of Veterans Affairs resources in your area. Seeking support is not a sign of weakness. It’s a show of strength. If you or a loved one are in immediate crisis, dial 988 and press 1, or text 838255. Connect with Independent Americans: Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all podcast platforms Read more at Substack Support ad-free episodes at Patreon  Connect: Instagram  • X/Twitter • BlueSky • Facebook  Follow on social: @PaulRieckhoff on X, Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky -Join the movement. Hook into our exclusive Patreon community of Independent Americans. Get extra content, connect with guests, meet other Independent Americans, attend events, get merch discounts, and support this show that speaks truth to power.  -And get cool IA and Righteous hats, t-shirts and other merch now in time for the new year.  Independent Americans is powered by veteran-owned and led Righteous Media.  And now part of the BLEAV network!  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.