U.S. Congressman Todd Tiahrt of Kansas is among a group of Republicans wanting to take Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s face off the dime and replace it with the image of former President Ronald Reagan.

It’s not the first time Tiahrt, of Wichita, has been in the thick of removing a Democratic symbol to make room for a Republican.

He was instrumental earlier this year in removing a statue of George Washington Glick, the first Democratic governor of Kansas, from the U.S. Capitol. It was replaced with a statue of former President Dwight D. Eisenhower — a Republican.

State Sen. Anthony Hensley, D-Topeka, said he’s sick of Tiahrt’s actions.

“It’s outrageous we would revise history and start changing statues and coins. Tiahrt just doesn’t have enough to do. He should try to find ways to improve the economy of Wichita,” Hensley said.

Tiahrt’s spokesman, Chuck Knapp, denied the congressman was on a mission to eradicate Democrats from the history books.

“Basically, he thought it was time for a change and thinks that President Reagan was a great president,” Knapp said. “Periodically, we change images on our coinage, and he thought this was appropriate.”

Dime Act

The partisan fight over the smallest coin erupted earlier this month when U.S. Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind., introduced the Reagan Dime Act. It would remove Roosevelt, a Democratic icon who was elected president four times, pulled Americans out of the Great Depression, pushed through the New Deal and led the nation during World War II.

Fueled by anger over a television miniseries about Reagan, Souder rounded up 80 co-sponsors, including Tiahrt. One congressman, U.S. Rep. Elton Gallegly, R-Calif., used the opportunity to take a swipe at Roosevelt.

“FDR believed the federal government should spend your dimes. Ronald Reagan believed the people should spend their own dimes. I think it’s clear that the dimes in your pocket should bear Ronald Reagan’s image,” Gallegly said.

Soon, congressional Democrats responded with legislation that would prohibit the dime makeover. U.S. Rep. Dennis Moore, a Democrat whose district includes east Lawrence, has signed onto that one.

Reagan’s wife, Nancy, even issued a statement urging Republicans to back off the attempt to dump FDR from the dime. “I do not support this proposal,” she said, “and I am certain Ronnie would not.”

But that hasn’t stopped Souder. He issued a statement, saying, “The faces on all coinage have changed and will continue to change. Were that not the case, FDR would not be on the dime, and Eisenhower would still be on the dollar coin. When the dime is again changed — as all other coins will be some day — it is my belief that Ronald Reagan’s profile should be on it.”

State’s statue swap moves ex-governor into obscurity (6-9-03) Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Kan.

Before Roosevelt, the dime was graced with an image of Lady Liberty.

Inseparable?

But Democrats believe Roosevelt and the dime are inseparable.

“The dime is symbolic of little people who FDR championed, and it’s symbolic of the Great Depression, which Roosevelt pulled us out of,” Hensley said.

It also is linked to Roosevelt’s establishment of programs that led to the March of Dimes, an organization that was devoted to finding a vaccine for polio, from which Roosevelt had suffered.

Knapp, the spokesman for Tiahrt, said Tiahrt meant no disrespect to Roosevelt.

“Todd and his family liked President Roosevelt. His legacy will live long into the future whether he’s on the dime or not,” he said.

But, he said the Reagan Dime Act was a move by “a large group of the members of Congress who wanted to pay tribute to Reagan in a special way.”

Reagan is 92 and suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. Once a Democrat himself, Reagan was a staunch Roosevelt supporter.