Trump Hints at Third Term Despite Constitutional Ban

Samuel AkpanJanuary 28, 2025218

US President Donald Trump has once again sparked controversy by hinting at the possibility of serving a third term, despite the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution explicitly forbidding it.

Trump, who was inaugurated for his second non-consecutive term just a week ago, told an audience of Congressional Republicans in Miami: “I’ve raised a lot of money for the next race that I assume I can’t use for myself, but I’m not 100 percent sure, because I don’t know… I think I’m not allowed to run again.”

Trump’s comments were met with laughter, and he jokingly asked Republican House Leader Mike Johnson if he was allowed to run again.

However, the issue is far from humorous, as it raises concerns about Trump’s willingness to respect the Constitution’s term limits.

The 22nd Amendment, ratified in 1951, was specifically introduced to prevent presidents from serving more than two terms, following Franklin D. Roosevelt’s unprecedented four terms in office.

Franklin D. Roosevelt – the Thirty-second President of the United States – had been elected in 1932 in response to the Great Depression.

After serving two full terms, he ran for president again for the 1940 Presidential Election.

Persecondnews reports that The Twenty-second Amendment (Amendment XXII) to the United States Constitution, Section 1: No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once.

Congress approved the Twenty-second Amendment on March 21, 1947, and submitted it to the state legislatures for ratification.

That process was completed on February 27, 1951, when the requisite 36 of the 48 states had ratified the amendment (neither Alaska nor Hawaii had yet been admitted as a state), and its provisions came into force on that date.

Trump has repeatedly alluded to the possibility of extending his stay in office, despite the constitutional ban. In a rally in Nevada, he joked, “It will be the greatest honor my life to serve not once, but twice — or three times or four times.”

He also told an audience of conservative Christians, “Christians, get out and vote. Just this time… Four more years, it’ll be fixed, it’ll be fine, you won’t have to vote anymore.”

While Trump’s comments may be dismissed as jokes, they have sparked concerns among constitutional experts and lawmakers.

A Republican in the US House has introduced a resolution to change the Constitution to allow Trump to serve a third term, although this is considered a long shot.