Carville predicts Trump 'couldn’t win' a third term: 'I wish they’d let him run'

Democratic strategist James Carville said Thursday that while he wishes President Trump could run a third term, he dismissed the Republican incumbent's electoral chances.

Speaking with Carville, "Politics War Room" co-host Al Hunt answered a listener's question with "No way, José," regarding former White House adviser Steve Bannon's claim in an interview with The Economist that there is a plan for Trump to seek and secure a third term despite term limits enshrined in the Constitution.

Carville said he gets "almost irritated" by being questioned about Trump's third term comments.

"Understand, Trump couldn’t win — I wish they’d let him run," Carville exclaimed. "I don’t think he’s anywhere close going to be sufficiently healthy in another three something — over three years to do anything.

"But he would lose so bad, and the Supreme Court, the language of the 22nd Amendment couldn’t be any clearer," he said, adding that the court and Chief Justice John Roberts wouldn't be interested in hearing a challenge to it.

Trump started to talk about a third term only a few months into his second term. In various interviews, the president has gone back and forth between suggesting he "probably" won't do it, like back in August, to saying he "would love to do it" as recently as Monday.

“I haven’t really thought about it. We have some very good people as you know … but I have the best poll numbers that I’ve ever had,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One during his trip to Asia this week. 

Trump has also suggested Vice President Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio could be possible successors in 2028. Speaking on "Pod Force One," Vance said that while he and Rubio are "best friends," any speculation on 2028 was "premature."

Republican lawmakers have had mixed reactions to the idea of Trump running for a third time. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told Fox News's Sean Hannity in September that he hopes "it never ends" and declared "Trump 2028."

On Tuesday, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) called a third term run "very unlikely, but don’t ever close the book on President Trump."

“You know, if you read the Constitution, it says it’s not, but if he says he has some, some different circumstances that might be able to go around the Constitution, but that’s up to him," Tuberville told a reporter. "We got a long way to go before that happens."

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) poured cold water over Trump's chances. Johnson told reporters Tuesday he does not see a path to change the 22nd Amendment, which requires two-thirds of the House of Representatives and the Senate or a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of the state legislatures.

“It’s been a great run, but I think the president knows — and he and I’ve talked about the constrictions of the Constitution, as much as so many of the American people lament that,” Johnson said. "I don't see a path for that."

The 22nd Amendment was ratified in 1951 to limit the president of the United States to two terms. Former President Washington set the standard after not running for a third term, but former President Franklin D. Roosevelt remains the only president to win a third and fourth term prior to 1951.