A congressman from Tennessee wants to alter the 22nd Amendment, which outlines presidential term limits, to allow U.S. President Donald Trump to serve a third term.
In late January, Congressman Andy Ogles proposed a change to the U.S. Constitution in a news release, saying that “it is imperative that we provide President Trump with every resource necessary to correct the disastrous course set by the Biden administration.”
“President Trump has shown time and time again that his loyalty lies with the American people and our great nation above all else. He is dedicated to restoring the republic and saving our country, and we, as legislators and as states, must do everything in our power to support him,” said Ogles in the news release.
The favourable action Trump has already taken, according to Ogles, included the president declaring a national emergency at the southern border, issuing an order to end birthright citizenship for children born in the U.S. to illegal immigrants, designating Mexican cartels as terrorist organizations, and declaring a national emergency to lift the Biden Administration’s oil and gas drilling restrictions. Ogles also applauded Trump’s efforts of “eliminating federal programs and reaffirming legally that there are only two genders, male and female.”
“He has also initiated the process to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization, a decision I am personally very excited about following the Biden Administration’s disastrous COVID pandemic response,” said Ogles.
If Trump were to run again, he would be 82 years old at the start of a potential third term in 2029.
What is the 22nd Amendment?
An amendment is a formal revision to the U.S. Constitution, the written charter of American government written in 1787.
“The U.S. Constitution is composed of the Preamble, seven articles, and 27 amendments. The first 10 amendments are known as the Bill of Rights,” according to the National Constitution Center.
Section 1 of the 22nd Amendment indicates that “no person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once.” It was ratified in 1951.
Ogles suggested a change to this amendment, which would read: “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than three times, nor be elected to any additional term after being elected to two consecutive terms, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice.”
This means that former presidents such as George Bush or Barack Obama, who have already served two consecutive terms, would not be eligible for “an additional term,” according to Ogles.
Have any U.S. presidents served more than two terms?
Franklin D. Roosevelt served four terms as an American president, per the White House Historical Association. He was the 32nd president of the United States.
He was elected in November 1932 and served from 1933 until his death in 1945. Roosevelt served three full terms and the beginning of a fourth. His presidency began in the depths of the Great Depression and lasted to the end of the Second World War. He is the only American president who served more than two terms.
What needs to happen for an Amendment to be changed?
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), amending the U.S. Constitution is not easy. The process is outlined in Article 5 of the Constitution.
“The Constitution provides that an amendment may be proposed either by the Congress with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate or by a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of the State legislatures,” per the U.S. National Archives. “After Congress proposes an amendment, the Archivist of the United States, who heads the National Archives and Records Administration, is charged with responsibility for administering the ratification process.”
After passing Congress, the governor of each state must be notified of the proposed amendment. It then must be ratified by three quarters of the States in order to take effect.
“When the requisite number of states ratify a proposed amendment, the archivist of the United States proclaims it as a new amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Actual certification is published immediately in the Federal Register and eventually in the United States Statutes-at-Large,” per the NCSL.
How likely is this to happen?
It is not impossible, but remains unlikely.
“To date, Congress has submitted 33 amendment proposals to the states, 27 of which were ratified,” according to the NCSL. “The 27th Amendment, which prevents members of Congress from granting themselves pay raises during a current session, was ratified in 1992 — 202 years after it was first submitted to the states.”
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