Trump says there are ways to run for a third term, even though the Constitution prohibits it.

WashingtonAfter taking office, Donald Trump had veiledly hinted at the possibility of a third term, which is prohibited by the United States Constitution. At the far-right CPAC convention, where the US president was the star guest, he held signs for the "Third Term Project," similar to the Project 2025 that Trump is now pursuing. But yesterday, the tycoon openly said for the first time that he wanted to run for a third term and that "there are ways" to achieve it. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt added fuel to the fire on Monday by saying that the president spoke "honestiously and candidly," confirming Trump's intentions.

"You [journalists] keep asking the president about a third term, and then he answers honestly and candidly, with a smile, and everyone here is shocked by the answer," Leavitt told the press inside the White House. Taking advantage of the fact that the media focus is now shifting to the question of a third term, Leavitt also downplayed the Signalgate scandal –which promises to provoke the first government crisis– and said he considered the case closed. "The case has been closed here at the White House, as far as I know," he said, adding that Mike Waltz, the Homeland Security secretary whom the journalist accidentally added to the group, "remains an important part" of the team. Internally, government and Pentagon officials continue to suggest that Waltz should resign.

Trump said Sunday in an interview on the NBC network that "there are ways" to reform the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, which prohibits third terms, and emphasized that he wasn't joking. "A lot of people would like me to run, but we have a long way to go," he said, adding that he is "focused on the present." Journalist Kristen Welker asked him if there are strategies for renewing the mandate, such as having Vice President JD Vance lead the 2028 candidacy and, once elected, hand over the office to him. Trump didn't rule it out: "Well, this is one, but there are others as well," he said, declining to give further details. "I'm not joking," he reiterated, and clarified that it's "too soon to think about that."

Along the same lines, Leavitt also appeared on Fox this Monday and left the door open to a third term. "He's right. People are delighted with the job the president is doing," he asserted. Contrary to what the White House would have you believe, the latest polls on Trump's popularity during his first month in office pointed to growing concern and unpopularity. Polls conducted by CNN and SSRS, as well as the Washington Post and Ipsos, and Reuters Ipsos, all showed Trump's approval ratings declining.

The poll conducted by SSRS for CNN showed Trump with a 47% approval rating compared to a 52% disapproval rating. Similarly, the poll conducted by Washington Post and Ipsos noted that 57% of respondents believe Trump has exceeded his authority since taking office, while 57% Reuters-Ipsos It pointed out that 71% of Americans believe the wealthy have too much influence over the White House.

The reality is that since Trump returned to the White House, some members of the Republican Party in Congress have already gotten to work launching legislative initiatives to ensure the tycoon can re-elect his office. On January 23, while Trump shocked the country and the rest of the world with the avalanche of executive orders, Republican Congressman Andrew Ogles from Tennessee introduced a resolution proposing that "no person shall be elected president more than three times." In other words, he presented a proposal that under those terms, Trump could not repeat a third term. Even so, Ogles' proposal must go through the same processes required for any other constitutional amendment that wants to be included.

This is not the first time that Trump has hinted at the possibility of a third term. In January, at a rally in Nevada, he said, "It will be the greatest honor of my life to serve, not once, but twice, three times, or four times." He then added, "No, I will serve twice. For the next four years, I will not rest." One of his propagandists, Steve Bannon, has said that Trump is electable because he interprets the Constitution as limiting the presidency to only two consecutive terms. The slogan "four more years" is a frequent chant at Trump rallies.

Experts have made it clear that a third term for Trump would be unconstitutional. A motion is already underway in the House of Representatives to initiate the process of constitutional amendment to allow a president to run for a third term if the first two have not been consecutive. However, the text would still prohibit Barack Obama and all former presidents who have served two consecutive terms from serving a repeat presidency. To make this change to the 22nd Amendment, a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate would be required, as well as ratification by three-quarters of the states. Only Franklin Delano Roosevelt served three terms in American history, as the amendment dates back to 1951. When the current presidency ends in January 2029, Trump will be 82 years and 7 months old, the oldest president in the country's history after Joe Biden, who ended at 82.