What to Make of All the 'Third Term' Talk

President Trump told NBC News over the weekend he was "not joking" about considering a third term because a lot of people want him to do it. And when asked about the issue later aboard Air Force One, Trump added, "We have a long way to go before we even think about that, but I've had a lot of people (asking me)." So how serious is all this? A few takes:

• "When Trump entertained questions on his plane about a third term, he had a faint smirk on his face, indicating that the idea hasn't fully progressed from the joke phase into a plan of action," writes Jonathan Chait at the Atlantic. "Trump has always understood questions about his abuses of power as a kind of compliment," he adds. "The prospect of smashing imagined limits on his power gives him an obvious thrill. He is probing, exploring. And when he finds softness, as he so often does when he presses against a supposed boundary, he presses on."

• The right-wing site Twitchy is reveling in all this because of the widespread coverage of Trump's comments in the mainstream media. These outlets "clearly cannot see when President Trump is having fun at their expense," reads the post. "Because they are just that dumb."
• Pretty much every story takes note of the 22nd Amendment, which stipulates that "No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice." But Trump told NBC there might be ways around that, and entertained Meet the Press host Kristen Welker's idea of running as JD Vance's vice president, then having Vance resign. For the record, constitutional scholars say that's a no-go, per the BBC. "I don't think there's any 'one weird trick' to getting around presidential term limits," says Derek Muller, an election law professor at the University of Notre Dame, referencing the 22nd Amendment as well.
• As the debate continues on how serious Trump is about all this, his allies are busy. GOP Rep. Andy Ogles has proposed a change to the Constitution to make Trump eligible because of his non-consecutive terms, notes the New York Times, and Steve Bannon continues to trumpet the idea. Asked by NewsNation's Chris Cuomo last month how they could get around the Constitution, Bannon said, "We're working on it," per Axios.

(More President Trump stories.)