Steve Bannon, longtime adviser to President Donald Trump who served a prison term for refusing to cooperate with ex-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s partisan attacks on Trump, has trolled Democrats with the suggestion that Republicans will do it again with Trump in 2028.
“Donald John Trump is going to raise his hand on a King James Bible and take the oath of office. His third victory, his third victory and his second term. The viceroy, Mike Davis, tells me, since it doesn’t actually say consecutive, that, I don’t know, maybe we do it again in ’28. Are you guys down for that? Trump ’28? Come on, man!”
Trump 2028! shouts Steve Bannon.
The media will be reaching for their heavy medication.
pic.twitter.com/EWC8FIrP8B— Facts are Facts (@JMccartney89038) December 16, 2024
The comments came as Bannon was speaking over the weekend at the New York City Young Republican Club annual Christmas dinner.
Trump several times has trolled Democrats with the idea of another term.
The 22nd Amendment, adopted in 1951, states, “no person shall be elected to the office of President more than twice.”
It came after Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected to four terms from 1933 to 1945.
While the amendment can be parsed to point out that it doesn’t say consecutive, it also can be parsed to point out the word “elected,” suggesting the remote possibility a president could serve additional time if installed through the chain of succession. For instance, if Trump were to be House Speaker, and a sitting president and vice president would leave office.
Such arguments never have been the subject of any court ruling yet.
A much more likely scenario for Trump’s influence to continue unabated into subsequent years would be for Vice President-elect JD Vance to be elected in 2028, and for him to staff the government with the same personnel chosen by Trump.
That strategy already has been used, since Joe Biden staffed his administration with many of the same characters used by Barack Obama during his two terms, essentially giving Obama a third term in office, at least regarding policies and influence.
