President Donald Trump on Wednesday appeared to concede that he cannot legally run for a third term in 2028 — one day after Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson again said the Constitution prohibits a third term.
“I have my highest poll numbers that I’ve ever had, and, you know, based on what I read, I guess I’m not allowed to run. So, we’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on his way to Gyeongju, South Korea, to continue his tour of East Asia.
“I would say that if you read it, it’s pretty clear: I'm not allowed to run,” Trump continued. “It’s too bad.”
The comments differed from what the president had said just 2 days prior, when he left the door open to seeking a third term, saying he would “love to do it.” In the same remarks, Trump dismissed running as a vice presidential candidate in 2028 as “too cute.” The VP run has been floated as part of a scheme for Trump to become president again if the winning presidential candidate resigned.
A day after Trump made those comments, Johnson shot down the prospect of a third Trump term:
“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,” the House Speaker told reporters at an unrelated news conference. “I don’t see a way to amend the Constitution. … I don’t see the path for that.”
Johnson’s pushback was notable, given that he is usually in complete lockstep with Trump, and he led an amicus brief that backed a Texas lawsuit that sought to invalidate Joe Biden’s win in four swing states in 2020. In April of this year, Johnson also poured cold water on a third Trump term.
A number of times over the last seven years, Trump has publicly talked about seeking more terms than the limit of two outlined in the 22nd Amendment:
After he won reelection in November 2024, Trump reportedly told House Republicans, “I suspect I won’t be running again unless you say he’s so good, we got to figure something else out.”
“It will be the greatest honor of my life to serve, not once, but twice — or three times or four times,” Trump said at a Las Vegas rally on January 25.
“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% sure because, I don’t know. I think I’m not allowed to run again. I’m not sure. Am I allowed to run again, Mike?” the president called out to Johnson during his address at the House GOP Issues Conference in Miami on January 27.
“And I do that despite the fact that they say I can’t run again,” Trump said at the National Prayer Breakfast on February 6. “Then somebody said, ‘I don’t think you can.’ Oh!”
At a White House event on February 20, Trump raised the prospect of running for an unconstitutional third term, asking the crowd, “Should I run again? You tell me.”
In March, Trump quipped to NBC News that there “are methods,” should he decide to seek another term.
In August, however, Trump told CNBC that he would "probably not" seek another term.
