Within the halls of the White House and courtrooms nationwide, a pressing question is gaining momentum and capturing the attention of many.

Is it possible for Donald Trump to pursue a third term?

The former president has been teasing the idea of a return to the political stage, and his devoted supporters are already donning new ‘Trump 2028’ merchandise in anticipation.

Renowned attorney and Trump confidant Alan Dershowitz has acknowledged that while the scenario remains unlikely, the chances of it happening are slowly increasing.

Dershowitz, known for defending high-profile figures like Mike Tyson, OJ Simpson, and Jeffrey Epstein, has authored a detailed book exploring potential legal pathways for Trump to reenter the presidency without violating the Constitution.

In a recent conversation with the Daily Mail, ahead of the book’s release on Tuesday, Dershowitz shared insights on the most feasible options and discussed how the current political landscape is setting the stage for a potential Trump 3.0.

He also named Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Elizabeth Warren, and Chris Murphy as surprising catalysts for a third MAGA movement, since any one of their nominations could prompt Republicans to double down on efforts to re-select Trump. 

The Democrats have even accidentally created a blueprint for Trump to reclaim the White House with ‘an idea they came up with’ 25 years ago in an effort to secure a third term for Bill Clinton, according to Dershowitz. 

Dershowitz’s book centers on 22nd Amendment

The veteran Harvard Law School professor’s book centers on the 22nd Amendment, which intended to impose an eight-year limit on total presidential terms.

Yet, Dershowitz writes, it left a ‘gaping hole’ allowing for a two-term president to serve again, as long as they are not ‘elected’ – meaning Trump could still run for another Cabinet position and succeed to the top of the hierarchy. 

Dershowitz shot down any aspersion that such an interpretation is a violation of the Constitution’s intentions.  

‘The only proof of what the framers intended is what they produced,’ he told the Mail. 

‘And they produced an amendment with a hole bigger than the new wing of the White House that can be used to allow a president to serve a third term.’

Hypothetically, Trump could become the running mate of a close ally like JD Vance or Marco Rubio, who would agree to troll the Democrats by ceding the role to him once elected.

Though Trump brushed off securing a third term like this as ‘too cute’ in November, he disclosed to NBC around the same time that he is ‘not joking’ about making a comeback in 2028. 

Former White House chief strategist and longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon has even gone as far as asserting that the president ‘is going to get a third term’.  

‘At the appropriate time, we’ll lay out what the plan is – but there is a plan,’ Bannon told the Economist in October. 

Dershowitz says third term ‘plausible’ under certain circumstances

Dershowitz’s book, ‘Could Trump Constitutionally Serve A Third Term?’ outlines exactly what such a plan would entail – and the tectonic plates beneath the current political terrain which could give way to a MAGA-red eruption in 2028. 

‘The scenario that would be the most likely is if the (Iran) war were to continue and really become a major factor in American foreign policy and domestic policy,’ Dershowitz told the Mail.  

‘That, and the Democrats nominating a radical leftist who would want to end the war on terms unfavorable to the country, and there was a movement within the Republican Party to allow President Trump to serve a third term.

‘That would be the circumstances under which it would be realistic.’ 

‘AOC, Elizabeth Warren, Chris Murphy from Connecticut – these are all extreme radicals that the Republicans would do anything to see defeated,’ he added. 

‘If any of them got nominated, or if even (Illinois Governor) JB Pritzker got nominated, I think there would be a tremendous movement within the Republican Party to say, let’s do anything we can to stop them.

‘They might think that nominating Vance or Rubio would be enough, but what if the polls show that neither of those could beat the Democrats unless Trump were seen as essentially the person that would serve? 

‘It wouldn’t surprise me if the Republicans would do that.

‘Is it likely? No. Is it plausible? Yes. Could it be stopped? Not under the current 22nd Amendment. 

Dershowitz says courts ‘couldn’t stop it’

‘The courts wouldn’t interfere with it, the Supreme Court couldn’t stop it, I’m confident about that. And so, it could happen.’

When asked whether both Trump and Democrat lawyers were preparing for this possibility, he said: ‘I know for a fact that’s true on both sides. 

‘I know for a fact that there is thought being given to how to make it happen, and thought being given on how to prevent it from happening.’

Dershowitz added that ‘likely’ Democrat victories in the upcoming midterm elections will also catalyze efforts being made by Republicans.   

He said such an outcome would provide ‘a predictive indicator of how the 2028 election will go’, spurring efforts to thwart the growing threat of a liberal takeover. 

‘If the Republicans lose the midterms, Trump will probably shorten his coat-tails and may not have the ability to name a successor, whether it be Vance or Rubio,’ he said. 

‘People on the extreme right want Vance, and the people more in the center want Rubio. 

‘But there are a lot of people out there who would like to see Trump do it again, only because they think he has a better chance of winning.’ 

Dershowitz said that efforts made by liberal lawmakers to secure a third term for Bill Clinton in 2000 may also have provided a blueprint for Trump to do the same. 

Dershowitz says third-term idea ‘not new’, cites 2000

He blasted Democrat insiders who are ‘very opposed’ to the premise of his book on the grounds that it paves the way for Trump to ‘exploit’ the 22nd Amendment, yet they previously said that Clinton could serve a third term using the same mechanism. 

‘They were all in favor of Clinton doing it,’ Dershowitz said. ‘This is not a new idea, this is an idea the Democrats came up with in 2000. 

‘Of course, they ended up losing the election in 2000 – a very contested election to be sure – but I think some of them regret that efforts weren’t made to give Clinton a third term, instead of giving Bush two terms.’

Dershowitz, a self-described ‘life-long Democrat’ who voted for every blue candidate since JFK until recent years, said he does not consider using the 22nd Amendment to serve a third term a misuse of the Constitution. 

‘My personal preference would be for a president not to get a third term, but I don’t allow my personal preference to in any way influence my constitutional analysis,’ he told the Mail. 

His book outlines how Trump could take up the Vice Presidency as the running mate of a close ally like JD Vance or Marco Rubio, who would agree to troll the Democrats by ceding the role to him once elected. 

He could also become Vice President via appointment using the 25th Amendment, then succeed to the presidency in the same way. 

‘The vice president is a bit like a child’s godparent,’ Dershowitz wrote. ‘The role is mostly ceremonial – until it suddenly isn’t.’

The same could be done with the role of Speaker of the House, which is third in line under the Presidential Succession Act, and would involve both the president and vice president ceding their roles. 

Dershowitz notes 1974 and Electoral College deadlock route

Dershowitz notes that this almost happened in 1974, when Richard Nixon and his vice president Spiro Agnew resigned amid the Watergate scandal. 

The resulting power vacuum would have been filled by the Speaker, if Congressman Gerald Ford had not rapidly become vice president during the interim between the resignations. 

Trump’s name has also been floated for Speaker by allies before, after a collection of House conservatives succeeded in toppling House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in October 2023.

Another, less likely, route would be in the event of an Electoral College deadlock, Trump could be chosen as the next president by the House of Representatives, following a path carved by Thomas Jefferson when he became president in 1801.  

Trump ‘could secure the third term if there is no majority of electors for any candidate, then the House of Representatives must “choose” rather than “elect” the president from the top three,’ Dershowitz wrote. 

The longtime lawyer, who has written 63 books over the course of his decades-long career, said his latest publication is not intended to support the idea of Trump 3.0. 

Dershowitz said it was written ‘in the spirit of non-partisanship and objectivity, as a teacher’. 

‘I’m proud to have written it,’ he told the Mail. 

‘I don’t think it’s going to influence necessarily who’s the next president of the United States, but I think it’s going to influence how people think about it, and that’s my job.’