US Attorney General Pam Bondi on Sunday said President Donald Trump is “probably finished” after his current term ends, even as he continues to float the idea of staying in office for a third term.
Speaking during an interview with Shannon Bream on Fox News Sunday, Bondi praised the president’s leadership, calling him a “very smart man” and expressing personal support for his continued leadership.
“I wish we could have him for 20 years as our president,” she said, before acknowledging the constitutional limitations. “But I think he’s going to be finished probably after this term,” she added.
When asked why she used the word “probably,” Bondi responded cautiously: “We’d have to look at the Constitution.”
Trump has regularly made remarks about remaining in office beyond the legal limit. During a House Republican retreat in Florida earlier this year, he asked, “Am I allowed to run again?” More recently, in an interview with NBC News, he claimed he was “not joking” about the possibility and hinted that some close aides were exploring “methods” to make it happen.
However, the US constitution leaves little room for doubt. The 22nd amendment, ratified in 1951, says: “No person shall be elected to the office of the president more than twice.” According to The Guardian, this rule was introduced after Franklin D Roosevelt served an unprecedented four terms, dying in office in 1945.
