Trump says it’s ‘pretty clear’ he can’t run for a third term

President Donald Trump acknowledged Wednesday that the Constitution makes him ineligible for election to a third term, seemingly closing the door on the possibility after months of stoking speculation that he might find a way to remain in the White House beyond January 2029, when his second term ends.

“I would say that if you read it, it’s pretty clear, I’m not allowed to run,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to South Korea. “It’s too bad. But we have a lot of great people.”

Trump’s acknowledgment followed comments by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) on Tuesday that he did not see “a path” for Trump to return to the White House for a third term.

At a news conference in Washington with House Republican leadership, Johnson said he had spoken with Trump about the matter, making a reference to the 22nd Amendment of the Constitution, which states that no person can be elected president more than twice.

“It’s been a great run, but I think the president knows, and he and I have talked about the constrictions of the Constitution — as much as so many of the American people lament that,” Johnson said.

Johnson also noted that it would take too long for a constitutional amendment to pass.

“I don’t see a way to amend the Constitution because it takes about 10 years to do that. … So I don’t, I don’t see the path for that,” Johnson said.

Stephen K. Bannon, a White House chief strategist during Trump’s first term, alleged in a recent interview with the Economist that there was a “plan” to have Trump serve a third term.

“Trump is going to be president in ’28, and people ought to just get accommodated with that,” said Bannon, without providing details. “At the appropriate time, we’ll lay out what the plan is.” Bannon hosts a podcast popular with Trump’s political base.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One earlier this week, Trump refused to rule out running for a third term, saying that he would “love to do it.”

“Am I not ruling it out? I mean, you’ll have to tell me,” Trump said then.

In the same conversation, Trump floated a scenario in which two of his Cabinet members — Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio — ran for president in 2028, potentially on the same ticket.

Trump did rule out a scenario in which he would run for vice president, then assume the presidency again after the head of the ticket resigned, a strategy suggested by some of his supporters.

“I’d be allowed to do that,” Trump claimed on Air Force One, even though such a plan would seemingly run afoul of the 12th Amendment of the Constitution, which states that “no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.”

“I wouldn’t do that. I think it’s too cute,” Trump added. “Yeah, I would rule that out because it’s too cute. I think the people wouldn’t like that. It’s too cute. It’s not — it wouldn’t be right.”

Trump’s official merchandise store has been selling “Trump 2028” hats, which the president has displayed at the White House. On Tuesday, Johnson suggested Trump was simply “trolling” his opponents with the caps.

“The Trump 2028 cap is one of the most popular that’s ever been produced, and he has a good time with that, trolling the Democrats, whose hair is on fire about the very prospect” of a third Trump term, Johnson said.

Johnson was also among the dozens of Republican lawmakers who voted against certifying Joe Biden’s electoral college win in two states on Jan. 6, 2021, even after pro-Trump rioters had overrun the U.S. Capitol in a violent attack earlier that day. Years later, Johnson still would not acknowledge that Biden won the 2020 election.