President Donald Trump on Wednesday acknowledged the Constitution bars him from seeking a third term but didn't appear to completely close the door on running again.
"It's a very interesting thing. I have the best numbers for any president in many years - any president. And I would say if you read it [the Constitution], it's pretty clear. I'm not allowed to run. But we have a lot of great people," Trump told reporters Wednesday on Air Force One.
But the president hinted that the Constitution may not be the final word.
"We'll see what happens," he said.
Last week, Steve Bannon, the CEO of Trump's 2016 campaign and a former White House adviser, was adamant that Trump would get a third term.
"[H]e's gonna get a third term. So, Trump 2028. Trump is gonna be president in '28. And people just ought to get accommodated with that," Bannon said in an interview with The Economist released Thursday night.
"There's many different alternatives. At the appropriate time we'll lay out what he plan is. But there's a plan, and President Trump will be president in 2028," Bannon said.
Trump's comments on Wednesday appear to contradict his remarks from Monday, when he claimed he would be able to run as vice president and then assume the presidency if the president resigns.
While the president said he would be "allowed" to run on the 2028 GOP ticket as vice president and then ascend to the presidency when the head of the ticket resigns from office, Trump said he would not go down that path.
Nevertheless, Trump shot down that possible path to the White House in 2028.
"Yeah, I'd be allowed to do that. But I wouldn't do that. I think it's too cute. Yeah, I'd rule that out because it's too cute. I think people wouldn't like that. It's too cute. It wouldn't be right," he told reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday en route to Japan.
Despite Trump's claims, polling shows the president does not in fact "have the best numbers for any president in many years."
On Tuesday, Trump tied his lowest approval rating in his second term in the Reuters/Ipsos poll.
And in the Real Clear Politics polling average over the last two weeks, Trump is underwater by nearly 7 percentage points.
"You know, the sad thing is I have my highest numbers I've ever had, as I should," Trump said on Air Force One. "I ended eight wars and we have the greatest economy in history ... and, you know, based on what I read, I guess I'm not allowed to run."
On Monday, Trump suggested that Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio would dominate the 2028 election if they ran on the same ticket.
"Well, we have great people. I don't have to get into that. But we have one of them standing here. We have JD, obviously. The vice president is great. I think Marco's great. I'm not sure if anybody would run against those two. I think if they formed a group, they would be unstoppable," Trump said.