Despite the Constitution not allowing for any person to be elected to more than two terms as president of the United States, Donald Trump refuses to rule out a third term.
During an interview with NBC News over the weekend, Trump was asked about the possibility of seeking a third term, which is prohibited under the 22nd Amendment. He answered by saying there were methods for doing so, noting that he was “not joking” about the possibility.
“A lot of people want me to do it,” Trump said. “But, I mean, I basically tell them we have a long way to go, you know, it’s very early in the administration.”
Trump was asked what methods he was talking about, with interviewers suggesting a situation where Vice President JD Vance would run for office and then pass the role to Trump.
“That’s one,” Trump responded before refusing to offer any other methods.
Some believe the Constitution would allow for the situation laid out by NBC News in some respect, as no person can be elected to more than two terms, but a single person can serve as many as 10 years if they assume the responsibilities of a presidency that someone else was elected to.
However, even in this situation, there is debate among legal scholars. David Schultz, Professor of Political Science at Hamline University, shared with WWL News Radio that technically, the “vice presidential loophole” doesn’t really exist.
The only way Schultz says Trump will serve for more than eight years is if he somehow gets an amendment to the Constitution to pass.
“You’d need to get two-thirds of both houses of Congress to adopt a constitutional amendment, and then it would have to be ratified by three-quarters of the states,” Schultz said, adding that “It’s just not going to happen.”
When asked about Trump’s refusal to rule out attempting to return to the White House after his term ends in January 2029, Schultz said it’s simple: he doesn’t need to make the decision because it’s already been made for him.
“Well, he might not rule out the third term, but the 22nd Amendment to the constitution rules out a third term for him,” Schultz said.
Speaking sarcastically, Schultz said the only way Trump could return to office without successfully amending the Constitution would be a “military coup.”
“The Constitution says itself, it’s the highest law of the land, and that’s supposed to govern how we do everything else, and if you’re saying it’s okay to run around the Constitution, well, that’s a real major problem,” Schultz said.