Donald Trump says he is “not joking” about the possibility of a third presidential term — despite the fact that it is illegal for a U.S. president to be elected to more than two terms.
Trump, 78, made the comment during a phone interview with NBC News on Sunday, March 30. “A lot of people want me to do it,” he said during the interview. “But, I mean, I basically tell them we have a long way to go, you know, it’s very early in the administration … I’m not joking. But I’m not — it is far too early to think about it.”
At another point in the conversation, the president — who will be 82-years-old at the end of his second term — noted that “there are methods” by which it could be done, though he did not elaborate.
The 22nd Amendment, which was added to the U.S. Constitution in 1951, states that a president cannot be elected to more than two terms.
According to NBC, amending the Constitution would require either a two-thirds vote in Congress or two-thirds of U.S. states agreeing to call a constitutional convention to propose the changes — both of which are considered highly unlikely.
A third method — which was mentioned by the NBC host during the Sunday morning conversation — would entail J.D. Vance winning the presidency on a Vance-Trump ticket and then resigning.
Several of Trump’s most vocal supporters have publicly discussed the possibility of Trump running for a third term. His former chief strategist and current conservative podcaster, Steve Bannon, has endorsed the president for a 2028 presidential run, per NPR. Additionally, Republican Congressman Andy Ogles of Tennessee previously proposed amending the Constitution to allow Trump to run again.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Trump previously mentioned the possibility of a third term in November 2024 while speaking at the House Republican Conference in Washington, D.C.
“I suspect I won’t be running again, unless you say, ‘He’s so good, we’ve got to figure something else,’ ” he said at the time — seemingly in jest — while eliciting a laugh from the crowd.
Read the full article here
