Summary
Rep. Daniel Goldman plans to introduce a resolution clarifying that the Constitution’s two-term limit for presidents applies even if terms are non-consecutive, aiming to close any perceived loophole after Donald Trump joked about seeking a third term.
While unlikely to advance under Republican Speaker Mike Johnson, Goldman’s resolution underscores Democrats’ concerns over Trump’s repeated comments about serving beyond two terms, which some view as “anti-democratic and authoritarian.”
Goldman urges bipartisan support to uphold the 22nd Amendment, amid fears that some Republicans might not view Trump’s statements as mere jokes.
Actually, no.
This process started when the Supreme Court essentially ruled that the 14th amendment to the Constitution was unenforceable, allowing Trump to even run in the first place. Once you say that amendments can just be hand-waved away, then the Constitution itself stops being the Supreme law of the land, and just becomes a really old piece of paper with guidelines that can be ignored if they become inconvenient. The exact same rationale used to discard the 14th amendment could just as easily be used to discard the 22nd amendment. Or the 19th. Or the 13th. Or the first 10. Just write it off as “too vague and incompatible with modern society to be enforceable” and voila.