WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has frequently suggested he wants to seek a third term, posting about mounting another campaign, donning 2028 caps and discussing ways to make it happen — even as he’s acknowledged the Constitution prohibits it. But lately, Trump has begun showing signs that even he doesn’t really believe another run will happen.During recent speeches, the Republican president has begun describing life after the White House when his term ends in January 2029, predicting he’ll be at home and agonizing as his successor claims credit for his accomplishments.“Your next president is going to say, ‘What a great job I did,’” Trump told an event on Long Island, New York, this month. “He’ll be sitting around, watching television. A real stiff. Unless you vote Republican, of course.”A sitting president talking about becoming a former one is always politically fraught. But with midterm elections now just nine weeks away, Trump is approaching the point of his presidency where there will be more and more reminders that his power will soon wane.
Being willing to say he’s contemplating a White House without him marks a notable shift for Trump. Going back to his first term and from virtually the moment he won a second, he’s left the door open to staying put for more than eight years.“He is all over the place,” said Brian Kalt, a Michigan State University constitutional law professor. “And what that does is, it allows him to point to his own words to support any number of mutually exclusive things.” Trump can say, “’Oh yeah, I made it clear that I wasn’t gonna run,’” Kalt said. “Or, if he decides that he will, he could say, ’Well, you know, I never said I wouldn’t.’”
