Trump teases third term as president
Donald Trump has often stated that he would love to run for a third term if he could, but he has always appeared to be joking just to rub Democrats the wrong way.
Well, now he says he is not joking and ready to exploit what he believes is a loophole in the Constitution.
The 22nd Amendment
Section 1 of the 22nd Amendment of our Constitution states, “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.
“But this Article shall not apply to any person holding the office of President when this Article was proposed by the Congress, and shall not prevent any person who may be holding the office of President, or acting as President, during the term within which this Article becomes operative from holding the office of President or acting as President during the remainder of such term.”
The amendment was written with the intent of blocking anyone from running for president for a third term, but it does leave an apparent loophole that would enable Trump to hold a third term.
Trump seems like he is ready to exploit that loophole if need be to get a third term.
The loophole
If Trump is not elected, how can he possibly become president again?
Trump believes that if he ran as vice president, with JD Vance on the top of the ticket, he could get Vance to resign, thereby elevating Vice President Trump to president again, which would put him in office for a third term.
Scott E. Gant and Bruce G. Peabody have argued this point, writing, “We contend that the Twenty-Second Amendment proscribes only the reelection of an already twice-elected President.”
This would be something that would go before the Supreme Court for sure, so it would be a matter of the Court interpreting the spirit of the amendment or its direct wording.
Trump’s third term
I have always thought Trump was joking about this, but he made it quite clear he is not.
Trump, addressing this issue, recently stated, "A lot of people want me to do it. But, I mean, I basically tell them we have a long way to go, you know, it’s very early in the administration."
This is not something I would ever support, regardless of how successful Trump’s term is or is not. This was not an amendment put into place to provide a loophole for someone to abuse to hold power for more than two terms. If this is exploited, remember, it works for both sides, so someone like Barack Obama could so the same. Not to mention, it could open the door for someone to be president for limitless terms. As conservatives, we protect the Constitution; we don't look for loopholes to exploit it.
This is a dangerous statement by Trump, and at this stage of his presidency, he is putting the GOP in a very awkward position, as senators and congressmen are now going to be put on the spot to see if they support this or not. When you add the fact that Dems are already portraying Trump as someone who wants to be a king or dictator, it is a five-alarm fire. Again, I have no idea if Trump is serious or trolling Democrats, but it was a mistake to say this.
