Putting woman on $10 bill spurs backlash over Hamilton demotion

Critics of the news a woman will be going on the $10 bill don't appear opposed to the idea. Rather, they say the choice to remove Alexander Hamilton from currency is a mistake.

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke joined in the condemnation on Monday in a blog post declaring that he was “appalled” Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew was demoting Hamilton, America’s first Treasury secretary, rather than evicting Andrew Jackson from the more widely circulated $20, according to Bloomberg.

Hamilton was “without doubt the best and most foresighted economic policy maker in U.S. history,” wrote Bernanke, whereas Jackson, who opposed a central bank, was “a man of many unattractive qualities and a poor president.”

Barbara Ortiz Howard, who founded the nonprofit group Women On 20s to convince President Barack Obama to put a woman's image on the $20 bill, said Lew "snatched defeat" from the jaws of victory.

“We have controversy where we needed to have a celebration,” she said.

Read more Bloomberg.[[In-content Ad]]