Between U.S. President Donald Trump's crackdown on immigration, to his administration's targeting of federal workers, and the White House's attacks on the media, a casual news reader may have missed that Trump has mused on multiple occasions about running for a third term.
But the democracy watchdog group Stand Up America said Thursday that Trump's recent remarks about remaining in office are worth paying attention to.
This "isn't a joke or a slip of the tongue. It's a test to see how far he can go in his quest for unchecked power," said Stand Up America executive director Christina Harvey in a statement.
Trump has made cryptic comments about a third term in office, something the U.S. Constitution does not allow, on multiple occasions.
While speaking with House Republicans on November 13, Trump said: "I suspect I won't be running again unless you say, 'He's so good we've got to figure something else out.'"
"Am I allowed to run again?" Trump asked in late January at House Republicans' annual issues retreat at Trump National Doral, Trump's golf club and resort outside Miami. "[Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.)], I better not get you involved in that."
Harvey's statement comes on the 74th anniversary of the ratification of the 22nd Amendment, which limits a person to being elected only twice to the presidency.
"Today would be a good day for every elected official to reaffirm the oath they took to defend our Constitution, including the 22nd Amendment," Harvey said.
Shortly after Trump was inaugurated, Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) introduced a resolution on January 23 seeking to amend the Constitution so that Trump could serve a third term.