WSJ:

Donald Trump’s attorney Boris Epshteyn made a bold assertion during a meeting in late 2023: Trump wouldn’t necessarily be limited to two terms in office.

Speaking to an associate in October 2023 in downtown Washington, Epshteyn pushed back on the notion that Trump would be a lame duck if he won the election in 2024. Epshteyn said he had studied the law—and he believed Trump could find a way to run again in 2028, according to the person Epshteyn met with.

At the time, the associate thought the comments were amusing, even if Epshteyn was serious. The person recounted them to others in Washington, joking that Epshteyn had already started planning a third term even before Trump had won the 2024 Republican primary. But 18 months later, the person looks back on the conversation with alarm, as Trump openly toys with remaining in office after his term ends….

The fact that Epshteyn has discussed the matter with others shows that some of Trump’s closest advisers have also explored the idea.

Trump is constitutionally barred from being elected to a third term. The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution says presidents can’t be elected to more than two terms.

Marc Short, who was the chief of staff to Trump’s first vice president, Mike Pence, said he isn’t convinced that Trump would seek a third term. But Short also said that he has dismissed other Trump ideas that have found their way into reality: “I’ve said before that ‘he couldn’t’—and he’s shown the ability to do these things,” Short said.

Short said Republicans won’t stand up to him while his approval ratings among Republican voters remain high. “If the president has policies that have economic consequences that soften his approval numbers, then more Republicans speak out, but not until then,” Short said….