President Donald Trump has once again thrown a constitutional hand grenade into the future of American politics, declining to definitively rule out seeking a third term in the White House in 2028, despite the clear prohibition of the 22nd Amendment.
The comments, made to reporters aboard Air Force One while en route to Tokyo, Japan, solidify the President’s continued teasing of an unprecedented run and inject fresh uncertainty into an already unsettled Republican field. The President, currently serving his second term, admitted, “I would love to do it. I have my best numbers ever,” before playfully deflecting the crucial constitutional question.
When pressed on whether he was ruling out a third term, the 79-year-old leader offered a coy response: “Am I not ruling it out? I mean, you’ll have to tell me.”
Dismissing the ‘Too Cute’ VP Gambit
While keeping the door ajar for an unconstitutional third election bid, the President did, however, shoot down one of the more unorthodox theories floated by his allies for circumventing the two-term limit: running as a Vice Presidential candidate.
The fringe idea suggested Trump could run as a VP on a ticket with another Republican, who would then resign, allowing Trump to ascend to the presidency. The President dismissed this scenario, calling it “too cute” and ultimately “not right.”
“Yeah, I’d be allowed to do that,” Trump said, referring to the theoretical possibility of serving as VP. “But I wouldn’t do that. I think it’s too cute. Yeah, I’d rule that out because it’s too cute. I think people wouldn’t like that. It’s too cute. It wouldn’t be right.”
The Constitutional Wall
The President’s persistent musings directly contradict the Twenty-second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1951 following Franklin D. Roosevelt’s four terms in office. The amendment explicitly states: “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice…”
Constitutional scholars are near-unanimous that the amendment firmly bars Trump from being elected president a third time. They also largely dismiss the Vice Presidential loophole, citing the 12th Amendment, which states that a person constitutionally ineligible for the presidency is also ineligible for the Vice Presidency.
Despite the legal consensus, prominent Trump allies, such as former White House strategist Steve Bannon, have continued to fuel the speculation, hinting last week that “There’s many different alternatives” to ensure a third Trump term, adding, “At the appropriate time, we’ll lay out what the plan is.”
A Shadow Over the GOP Field
Trump’s ambiguous posture on 2028 casts a long shadow over the Republican landscape, where potential successors, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio—both of whom Trump praised during the exchange as “great people”—are already maneuvering for the next cycle.
The President’s refusal to definitively close the door ensures that the debate over his constitutional eligibility and his ultimate intentions will persist well into the next election cycle, keeping his unique brand of political dominance firmly at the center of the Republican Party’s future.