Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett said the Constitution’s two-term limit for presidents is clear, undercutting suggestions by former President Donald Trump and some allies that he could return to the White House in 2028.
In an interview with Fox News host Bret Baier on Sept. 9, 2025, Barrett was asked whether the 22nd Amendment — which states, "No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice" — was "cut-and-dried." Barrett replied, "Well, you know, that's what the amendment says, right? ... after FDR had four terms, that's what that amendment says." She prefaced the exchange by praising the Constitution’s protections for individual liberties and the broad reach of free-speech guarantees.
Barrett’s remarks follow repeated public comments by Trump and some allies suggesting ways he might occupy the presidency again despite the explicit language of the 22nd Amendment. In March, Trump told NBC News that "there are methods which you could do it, as you know," while Stephen Bannon, a former adviser, has promoted a theory in which a candidate could run as vice president, win, and then cede the office to Trump.
Legal scholars widely view those proposals as inconsistent with the Constitution and longstanding legal interpretation. The 22nd Amendment, ratified by the states in 1951 after President Franklin D. Roosevelt won four elections, was written to prevent a president from being elected more than twice. Barrett reiterated the amendment’s plain text when she addressed similar questions in a prior interview with CBS News.
The White House has sought to play down Trump’s public musings about another run, saying his comments were made in jest or were not meant as serious plans. Trump has also repeatedly suggested that political supporters want him to seek the presidency again in 2028. Barrett was appointed to the Supreme Court by Trump in 2020 following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Barrett’s remarks add a clear statement from a current Supreme Court justice that the constitutional limit is unambiguous, though the court itself has not been asked to adjudicate a direct challenge to a hypothetical effort to bypass the amendment. Constitutional scholars say the text of the amendment and its ratification history provide a strong legal barrier to any scheme that would allow a person to serve as president after being elected twice.
The exchange comes amid continuing debate within Republican political circles about strategy and leadership heading into the 2026 midterms and the 2028 presidential contest. While some party figures discuss unconventional legal maneuvers, elected officials and legal experts emphasize that constitutional constraints would be central to any effort to alter or sidestep the two-term limit.