When President Donald Trump's MAGA allies — including "War Room" host Steve Bannon — call for him to serve a third term, establishment Republicans and right-wing media figures often dismiss it as mere trolling designed to "own the liberals."
But former New York State prosecutor A. Scott Bolden, in an op-ed published by The Hill on November 5, stresses that talk of a third Trump term shouldn't be taken lightly — and if MAGA Republicans actually pursue it, the result could be a full-blown constitutional crisis in 2028.
"President Trump has often made contradictory statements about whether he will try to serve an unconstitutional third term," Bolden warns. "We shouldn't dismiss his threats as trolling or a joke. An attempt by Trump to stay in power illegally is a real possibility. It would pose a grave threat to the survival of our constitutional democracy."
The attorney continues, "Trump adviser Steve Bannon said, in a recent interview, that Trump is 'going to get a third term' and 'there is a plan' to achieve this, without specifying what the plan is. On his recent trip to Asia, the president refused to rule out the possibility of seeking an unconstitutional third term and said he would 'love to do it.' Then, a few days later, he said of the 22nd Amendment, which limits presidents to two terms: 'If you read it, it's pretty clear. I'm not allowed to run. It's too bad.'"
The last U.S. president to service more than two terms was Democrat Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), who was elected to a fourth term in 1944 and died in office in 1945 —causing Vice President Harry Truman to be sworn in as president. However, the 22nd Amendment was fully ratified in 1951, making FDR the last president to serve more than two terms in the White House.
Given all the "unconstitutional actions" Trump has taken during his second term, Bolden laments, there is no reason to believe that the 22nd Amendment would discourage him if he decided to pursue a third term in 2028.
"A key question is whether Trump could come up with an argument that would persuade at least five of the six Republican-appointed Supreme Court justices to allow him to serve beyond the end of his term," Bolden explains. "The High Court has already given Trump expansive new powers that many constitutional scholars argue are not authorized by our nation's founding document. We shouldn't assume the Court won't do as Trump wishes once again, even if it violates the Constitution."
The attorney adds, "On the day nearly 7 million protesters recently turned out to demonstrate against his rule in No Kings rallies across the nation, Trump posted a disgusting AI-generated video on the social media site he owns. It showed him as a king wearing a golden crown, piloting a jet adorned with the words 'KING TRUMP,' dumping excrement on the protesters. We must not allow this to become a symbol of our new reality."
Attorney A. Scott Bolden's full op-ed for The Hill is available at this link.