A Republican group is hoping to rally support to change the Constitution to allow President Donald Trump to seek a third term.
The “Third Term Project” presented its proposals at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in Oxon Hill, Maryland, on Thursday.
Newsweek has contacted the Third Term Project for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Calls for Trump to be allowed to run for a third term follow warnings issued by Democrats during the 2024 campaign that Trump would rule as an authoritarian once in office.
What to Know
Republican Representative Andy Ogles of Tennessee introduced a House joint resolution in January to amend the part of the Constitution that prevents a president from being elected more than twice.
Ogles suggests that the 22nd Amendment be altered to state that no person shall be elected to the office of president more than three times, nor serve any additional term after serving two consecutive terms.
The Third Term Project held a press conference to show support for Ogles’ amendment proposal at CPAC, the annual conservative event.
Speaking to News2Share at CPAC, Shane Trejo, the campaign lead for the Third Term Project, said they are “pushing support in the grassroots” for Ogles’ long-shot effort to allow Trump to run again in 2028.
Trejo added that the group is currently focused on allowing Trump to run for a third term rather than pushing for him to run again in 2032.
Trump will be 82 by the end of his second term, which would make him the oldest sitting U.S. president in history.
Trejo also told the Washington Examiner that he hoped more Republican lawmakers, including members of the House Freedom Caucus, will express their support for allowing Trump to run for a third term.
Steve Bannon, host of the War Room podcast and a former White House chief strategist during Trump’s first term, reiterated his belief that Trump should be allowed to run for a third term during his CPAC speech on Thursday.
The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution was ratified in 1951 following the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was elected to four terms between 1933 and 1945. The two-term limit for presidents was introduced by Congress to prevent potential abuses of power.
The wording of Ogles’ amendment proposal would prevent previous consecutive two-term presidents, such as Barack Obama or George W. Bush, from running for a third term.
Trump has floated the idea of running for a third term, sometimes seemingly in jest. During a Black History Month event at the White House on Thursday, Trump asked, “Should I run again? You tell me.” The crowd responded with, “Four more years.”
Trump told Time in April that he “wouldn’t be in favor” of repealing the 22nd Amendment.
What People Are Saying
Shane Trejo, the campaign lead for the Third Term Project, told News2Share: “We’re pushing support in the grassroots for Representative Andy Ogles’ amendment, and we’re pushing the idea for Trump to get a rightful third term. We believe that he was robbed in 2020 of a term that he should have served. The country has suffered immeasurably because of that.”
Trejo, speaking to the Washington Examiner: “If you look at constitutional changes, the original intent of the Constitution was that there were no term limits for executives. That was added later in the 20th century. So if we’re talking about the original intent of the Constitution and what the Founding Fathers wanted—which is generally what conservatives support—then you know, presidential term limits were not part of it. So we reject the constitutional argument.”
Steve Bannon during his CPAC speech on Thursday: “The future of MAGA is Donald Trump. We want Trump in ’28. That’s what they can’t stand. A man like Trump comes along only once or twice in the country’s history. We want Trump.”
Josh Blackman, a constitutional law professor at the South Texas College of Law Houston, told Newsweek in December: “It is true that the text does not address whether a third term can be nonconsecutive. This amendment was ratified in the 20th century, and I am not aware of anything in drafting or ratification history suggesting a third, nonconsecutive term would be permitted.”
President Donald Trump in an April 2024 interview with Time: “I wouldn’t be in favor of a challenge. Not for me. I wouldn’t be in favor of it at all. I intend to serve four years and do a great job. And I want to bring our country back. I want to put it back on the right track.”
What Happens Next
Any proposed amendment to the Constitution must be passed by a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate and then ratified by at least 38 of the 50 U.S. states.
The post What Is the Third Term Project? Pro-Trump Group Bids to Change Constitution appeared first on Newsweek.
