Dollar Bill's Days May Finally Be Numbered

I did some research on Americans for George, just for the heck of it, and was overjoyed when I found these articles:

-----------------------------------------------------------

LOBBY HOLLERING TO SAVE DOLLAR BILL: D.C.'s Metro Center subway station is looking awfully rich this week with massive displays of dollar bills plastering the walls, column supports and advertising boards. The five-figure showing is the work of Americans for George, a diverse coalition of corporations and special interests arguing for the preservation of the dollar bill - - " the note that an upstart and moneyed lobby in the Dollar Coin Alliance (http://politi.co/u58qGQ) wants to take an ax to like ... OK, we'll spare you a cherry tree joke. Randy DeCleene of Americans for George tells PI: "When you think of American symbols, there's the flag and the dollar bill. We want to fight for the dollar bill, and we're going to have a more aggressive public face as we continue." See an example of the dollar bill ads here: http://yfrog.com/fv16fmj

This comes as some members of Congress are supporting legislation to phase out the paper dollar, arguing it'll save the nation hundreds of millions of dollars over the long term. While Americans for George has not yet hired federal lobbyists, such a move is under consideration, DeCleene says, and in the meantime, member organization such as Crane and Co., which provides the paper for U.S. currency, has spent anywhere from $40,000 to $90,000 each year on federal lobbying efforts. DeCleene contends that in the short term, transitioning to a coin-only dollar would cost the country money.



-----------------------------------------------------------
PI SCOOP ... DOLLAR BILL LOBBY DISAPPEARS: For a month in March, the pro-dollar-bill advocacy group Americans for George plastered D.C.'s Metro Center station with massive advertisements (http://politi.co/KyIF9P) touting the virtues of paper over coinage. The group was largely funded by Crane & Co., the Massachusetts-based company that alone provides the material with which dollar bills are made. Crane & Co. has regularly lobbied the federal government to preserve its position as such and battled against metal companies and vendors that want the government to ditch the $1 greenbacks for the dollar coin. Bills supporting both the bill and coin are circulating in Congress.

But Americans for George, which until recently had a robust PR and outreach operation, has gone dark. Its website is down, its Twitter account shuttered. Reached by phone, Americans for George spokesman Randy DeCleene told PI: "I don't really have anything to say because I'm not the spokesman for Americans for George any longer." That stands in sharp contrast to his comments two months ago: "We want to fight for the dollar bill, and we're going to have a more aggressive public face as we continue."

A source close to the situation tells PI that Crane & Co. has pulled its funding for Americans for George as a cost-cutting measure - - " private equity company Goldberg Lindsay & Co. has a minority stake in Crane - - " effectively killing the organization. Representatives from Crane & Co. did not respond to several requests by phone and email for comment. Gephardt Government Affairs, which Crane & Co. has employed as its primary D.C. lobbying shop, also is mum. "As a general policy, we don't comment on our work on behalf of clients," said Catherine Goode, vice president of Gephardt Government Affairs.

Shawn Smeallie of the rival Dollar Coin Alliance (http://politi.co/KndRb2) was happy to crow about the development, telling PI, "I bet they're a little nervous that a high profile is going to reveal their weakness that they're a sole-source provider for the government. It's an interesting play for them ... we're happy to have them off the field."


-----------------------------------------------------------

http://www.politico.com/news/storie...1/70450.html

-----------------------------------------------------------

I emailed the Dollar Coin Alliance, and found out that, Americans for George is no more, and also, that the legislation to emliminate the $1 bill may come as soon as the end of the current Congress or the beginning of the next Congress, and now, without a pro-dollar bill lobby, I think the C.O.I.N.S. Act actually stands a chance, whicg means both the dollar coin, and the $2 bill may stand a chance at circulating (then we can get rid of the penny and nickel, make a U.S. $2 coin and resize and circulate the half ) Here's looking at you, jbuck!