President Donald Trump has seriously floated the possibility of him running for a third term, despite the US Constitution stipulating that presidents are limited to two four-year terms.
‘I’m not joking,’ Trump said in a Sunday morning phone call with NBC News, a notable shift in rhetoric after he spent months quite literally joking about the prospect of mounting an unprecedented third campaign for the White House.
When he was asked how he would do so, Trump said, ‘There are methods which you could do it.’
When asked to elaborate, he declined to answer. However, he did say one possibility would be if Vice President JD Vance won the presidency and then handed him back the commander-in-chief role.
Trump further explained that many of his allies ‘want me to do it,’ though didn’t elaborate on who among his inner circle might be endorsing this plan.
‘But, I mean, I basically tell them we have a long way to go, you know, it’s very early in the administration,’ he said.
‘I’m focused on the current,’ he added. ‘It is far too early to think about it.’
Ever since the 22nd Amendment was ratified on February 27, 1951, presidents have only been able to run twice. And prior to that, presidents were limited to terms of four years.
The only known legal way for Trump to overcome the 22nd Amendment is for him to start a campaign arguably much more difficult than winning the presidency in the first place.
That, of course, would be amending the Constitution, a process made incredibly arduous on purpose by the founding fathers.
Amending the Constitution to allow a third presidential term would require a two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate, which the Republicans do not have.
If Trump does not approach Congress for the constitutional amendment, he would need to get support from two-thirds of the states to call a constitutional convention.
Whether he goes through Congress or the states, he would then need his amendment to be ratified by three-quarters of all states.
Trump’s comments Sunday represent a monumental change from what he was saying almost a year ago.
In April 2024, he told Time Magazine that he wouldn’t be in favor of changing the 22nd Amendment.
‘I wouldn’t be in favor of it at all. I intend to serve four years and do a great job. And I want to bring our country back. I want to put it back on the right track,’ he said.
Liberals have already capitalized on Trump’s willingness to run again, suggesting he is showing authoritarian tendencies
2020: Trump says he deserves third term during Wisconsin speech Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% 0:00 Previous Play Skip Mute Current Time0:00 / Duration Time1:12 Full Size Need Text
Liberals have already capitalized on Trump’s heel turn, suggesting he is showing authoritarian tendencies.
‘I have said since Trump starting laying the groundwork for the Big Lie in the first part of 2020 that he would not leave office willingly. I have been correct so far. And I’m telling you again he will not leave office willingly,’ wrote Aaron Rupar, a left-wing independent journalist.
‘I think we’re at the point where take him ‘seriously but not literally’ is null and void?’ said Jessica Tarlov, a Democratic strategist who co-hosts The Five on Fox News.
George Washington, the first president of the United States, started the convention of only serving two four-year terms.
Instead of continuing to lead the nation, something many of his contemporaries wanted, he retired to his home at Mount Vernon.
In 1797, Washington’s abdication was seen as a major distinguishing feature of the American political system at a time when most of Europe was still under the rule of monarchs.
Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first and last president to run for more than twice. He died roughly three months into his fourth term.