By: Carl Schwartzbaum

In a bold and controversial prediction that has reignited debates over the limits of presidential power, former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon declared that President Donald Trump “will run in 2028 — and win.” Speaking in a wide-ranging interview published Thursday by The Economist, Bannon said Trump was destined to secure what he described as a “third term,” asserting that it would happen “based on the will of the American people.”

“So Trump 28,” Bannon told the interviewer. “Trump is gonna be president in ’28, and people just ought to get accommodated with that.”

As nj.com reported on Thursday, Bannon’s remarks were quickly met with both intrigue and alarm from across the political spectrum, coming just months after Trump’s reelection and during an era in which the former president remains the central force in American political life. His comments, however, immediately collided with the reality of the 22nd Amendment, which explicitly bars any U.S. president from serving more than two terms.

When pressed about that constitutional limit, Bannon — who hosts the popular right-wing “War Room” podcast — sidestepped specifics, cryptically suggesting that there were “many different alternatives” available for Trump to remain in power. “At the appropriate time,” he said, “we’ll lay out what the plan is. But there’s a plan.”

Bannon insisted that Trump’s continued leadership was not merely a political ambition but a national necessity. “President Trump will be the president of the United States,” he said. “And the country needs him to be president of the United States. We have to finish what we started.”

Throughout the interview, Bannon framed Trump’s political journey in near-theological terms. He called the president “a vehicle of divine providence,” suggesting that his success reflected a higher purpose.

“He’s very imperfect. He’s not churchy, not particularly religious,” Bannon told The Economist, according to the nj.com report. “But he’s an instrument of divine will, and you could tell this by how he’s pulled this off.”

This religious imagery has long been a feature of Bannon’s rhetoric. A key architect of Trump’s 2016 victory and a central figure in the nationalist-populist movement, Bannon often describes Trump’s presidency as part of a spiritual struggle for the “soul of the nation.” His most recent comments, however, push those convictions to a new extreme — implying that constitutional restrictions could somehow yield to divine mandate.

Critics interviewed by nj.com dismissed the idea as both reckless and unconstitutional. “There is no ambiguity in the 22nd Amendment,” said one constitutional law professor at Rutgers University. “It’s one of the clearest provisions in the entire Constitution. No person can be elected president more than twice. Period.”

The 22nd Amendment, ratified in 1951 after Franklin D. Roosevelt’s unprecedented four-term presidency, sets a firm two-term limit on any U.S. president. Yet Bannon’s comments seemed to challenge that established order, suggesting a scenario in which the “will of the people” could somehow override constitutional boundaries.

“If the American people, with the mechanisms we have, put Trump back in office, are the American people tearing up the Constitution?” Bannon asked rhetorically.

According to the report at nj.com, Bannon did not specify what “mechanisms” he believed could allow such a return. Some legal scholars note that the Constitution provides no pathway — through reinterpretation or loophole — for a third presidential term. Yet others have speculated that Bannon’s comments could refer to Trump’s influence as a power broker or kingmaker, perhaps hinting at an alternative role in governance that stops short of the presidency but preserves his dominance over American politics.

Still, the phrasing — “Trump will be president again” — left little doubt that Bannon envisions a scenario in which Trump returns to the White House itself, defying legal precedent.

As the nj.com report observed, Trump himself has occasionally flirted with the idea of extending his presidency beyond the traditional limit. In an NBC News interview earlier this year, he did not rule out the possibility of running in 2028, and during an appearance on CNBC in August, he said he would “probably not” pursue a third term.

Despite those hedged comments, Trump’s silence following Bannon’s remarks fueled speculation. Some Republican insiders suggested that Bannon’s statement may be designed to test public reaction — both as a loyalty signal to Trump’s base and as a provocation to his critics.

“Steve Bannon has always operated as a provocateur,” said a GOP strategist quoted by nj.com. “He’s testing how far Trump’s supporters are willing to go in defending the idea that Trump is irreplaceable — even if that means bending the Constitution.”

That strategy, however, carries risks. Trump’s political opponents seized on Bannon’s comments as evidence that the former president’s movement remains fundamentally hostile to democratic norms.

Despite the uproar, polling data suggest that a substantial share of Americans already expect Trump to attempt a 2028 run. According to a Data for Progress survey cited by nj.com, 50% of Americans — including 59% of Democrats, 50% of independents, and 42% of Republicans — believe Trump will make another bid for the presidency in four years.

However, a commanding 69% of respondents said he should not run, reflecting fatigue with the perpetual political turmoil surrounding him. That opposition was strongest among independents, with 77% rejecting the idea outright.

Republicans, by contrast, were more divided: 53% of GOP respondents said they supported another Trump run, while 44% opposed it. Yet even within that group, more than half — 52% — said they still favored the two-term limit as a constitutional safeguard.

“These numbers tell a complicated story,” political analyst Jeff Brindle told nj.com. “There’s an emotional loyalty to Trump among Republicans, but that doesn’t necessarily translate to a willingness to rewrite the Constitution for him.”

To Bannon’s followers, however, Trump’s political future transcends the ordinary boundaries of law and politics. Throughout the “War Room” podcast and public appearances, Bannon has described Trump’s leadership as the centerpiece of a populist “realignment” — one that will, he claims, reshape not only Washington but Western civilization.

“President Trump is nothing but a series of negotiations,” Bannon said in the Economist interview, referencing what he called the president’s pragmatic instincts. “He’s always making tradeoffs, always trying to move the ball forward. He’s not a dictator — he’s a negotiator.”

According to the information provided in the nj.com report, Bannon also defended Trump’s past diplomacy, citing the “big, beautiful bill” — a sweeping tax and infrastructure initiative — and the president’s handling of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, claiming it reflected Trump’s commitment to negotiation rather than autocracy.

Yet while his allies celebrate Trump’s unpredictability, legal scholars and political commentators warned that normalizing talk of a “third term” blurs dangerous lines between democratic rhetoric and authoritarian impulse.

Even some conservative commentators who support Trump’s policies balked at Bannon’s language. “This is not about divine providence,” wrote one columnist for nj.com, “it’s about the plain text of the Constitution. The Founders limited executive power for a reason — and Trump himself has benefited from that balance of power.”

For constitutional lawyers, the issue is not merely theoretical. Allowing the notion of a third term to take root, they argue, risks eroding public trust in the rule of law. “What’s at stake isn’t whether Trump could run again — he can’t,” said another legal scholar. “It’s whether we begin to treat constitutional limits as optional.”

Still, Bannon’s words continue to resonate within the populist right, where Trump is seen less as a political figure and more as a symbol of national redemption. “He’s not just a man,” Bannon said. “He’s a movement.”

As the nj.com report noted, Bannon’s prediction calls attention to a larger truth about Trumpism: it has evolved from a campaign into a permanent cultural and political identity. Whether through his own candidacy, a handpicked successor, or a reimagined role in governance, Trump’s influence shows no signs of waning.

“People need to get used to it,” Bannon concluded. “We’re not going anywhere.”

While the Constitution remains unmoved, Bannon’s remarks serve as a reminder of the ongoing battle for America’s political future — a struggle not only over power but over principle.

And for all the constitutional certainty surrounding term limits, the nj.com report observed, the one thing less certain is the political imagination of the man who changed the rules once before — and whose allies are already plotting how he might do it again.