No soup for you, Donald
Donald Trump thinks he can have a third term even though the Constitution is clear that presidents can serve only two terms. Of course, Republicans have been bandying about the idea since Trump won the November election, but they will have to find a way to get around the Constitution. Of course, given Trump’s executive orders, it is quite clear that he is attempting to subvert the Constitution with virtually every move. The biggest problem for him is that we don’t want him now, let alone in the future, including those who voted for him.
Trump and his executive orders have done absolutely nothing for the American people. His continued quest to wipe out Black history is very disturbing. He recently signed an executive order aimed at the Smithsonian Institution, which reads in part: “Once widely respected as a symbol of American excellence and a global icon of cultural achievement, the Smithsonian Institution has, in recent years, come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology. This shift has promoted narratives that portray American and Western values as inherently harmful and oppressive.” Apparently, it is “harmful and oppressive” to share how Black people came to this country. They must think that God decided to open the sky and drop a few Black folks in just for good measure. Trump and his cronies-including Uncle Tom Scott, who attended the tour alongside Trump-want to change history. At the same time, Pete Hegseth has been removing anything that points to anyone Black from base names, tombstones, and whatever else he can get his drunken hands on. Perhaps one of you can tell me what is “oppressive and harmful” about acknowledging achievements made by Black people. No, Donald Trump is oppressive and harmful. Why in the world would we want him back for a third term?
NBC News spoke with Trump about the issue by phone. Trump responded: “A lot of people want me to do it. But, I mean, I basically tell them we have a long way to go, you know, it’s very early in the administration.” Early or late, Trump is not getting a third term. Trump claimed there are “methods which you could do it,” but those methods-whatever they are-will not fly. Legal experts say there is no constitutional path for Trump, but according to Newsweek, some have suggested that he could repeal the 22nd Amendment, which controls presidential terms. He can neither repeal nor add an amendment by himself. The National Archives outlines the process to amend the Constitution.
Amending the Constitution is quite the process. Congress must propose the amendment, which is then sent to the Archivist of the U.S., who administers the ratification process. The Archivist must then submit the amendment to the governor of each state for approval, who then submit it to their state legislatures. Once the amendment has been approved by 38 of 50 states, the amendment becomes valid. Now, I’m skipping a few steps here, but you get the idea. It doesn’t matter how much Trump wants to amend the Constitution, he cannot do it at all, let alone by himself.
Shirley is a former entertainment writer and has worked in the legal field for over 25 years