Trump Hints at Possible Successors in 2028 Presidential Race
President Donald Trump offered a glimpse into who he sees as future Republican leaders, naming Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio as potential successors during a recent interview — though he emphasized he’s not focused on the 2028 election just yet.
During a Sunday appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Trump declined to make any formal endorsements, keeping his remarks vague when asked who he’d support once his presidency concludes. He also reiterated that he’s not considering a third term.
“It’s far too early to say that. But you know, I do have a vice president … and JD’s doing a fantastic job. I don’t want to get involved in that. I think he’s a fantastic, brilliant guy. Marco is great. There’s a lot of them that are great,” he said. “We have a lot of good people in this party,” Trump added.
Although he has occasionally joked about running for a third term, Trump has clarified that such a move would be unconstitutional without either repealing the 22nd Amendment or finding a legal loophole.
“I will say this. So many people want me to do it. I have never had requests so strong as that. But it’s something that, to the best of my knowledge, you’re not allowed to do,” he admitted.
“I’ll be an eight-year president. I’ll be a two-term president. I always thought that was very important,” Trump continued. “This is not something I’m looking to do. I’m looking to have four great years and turn it over to somebody, ideally a great Republican.”
He also touched on the current state of the economy, touting its performance under his leadership while blaming his predecessor for the lingering issues.
“I think the good parts are the Trump economy and the bad parts are the Biden economy because he’s done a terrible job,” Trump said. “He did a terrible job on everything, from his autopen – which I’m sure he knew nothing about, some of the things he was supposedly signing.”
Trump expressed optimism for the future, saying, “anything can happen,” but predicted that “we’re going to have the greatest economy in the history of our country.”
As the conversation shifted to tariffs, Trump refused to commit to removing them, saying that doing so could discourage companies from investing in America.
“No, I wouldn’t do that because if somebody thought they were going to come off the table, why would they build in the United States?” he asked.
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Later in the interview, NBC anchor Kristen Welker pressed Trump about his past ambitions regarding Greenland and Canada — ideas he previously floated during his first term.
Addressing Greenland, Trump responded, “I think we’re not going to ever get to that point. It could happen. Something could happen with Greenland. I’ll be honest, we need that for national and international security.”
When asked if military action could be used to take Canada, he said, “It’s highly unlikely. I don’t see it with Canada. I just don’t see it.”
Welker then pivoted to Ukraine, referencing a newly signed minerals agreement and asking about the status of peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.
“I hope so. Uh I do believe we’re closer with one party and maybe not as close with the other, but we’ll have to see. I’d like to not say which one we’re closer to, but we did do a deal for the American people. That was good. We were able to get rare earth. You know, the Europeans are getting paid back. They have a loan. We didn’t. Biden just gave him $350 billion,” Trump said.
“He has no idea where the money is, what happened. And at least we’ll in one form or another get our— I don’t feel so foolish. And remember this, this is Biden’s war. This was a war that was never going to happen if I were president. This is a a horrible, horrible war. And I get to see shots of soldiers through, you know, satellite that are so just so terrible. 5,000 soldiers are being, look, 5,000 soldiers a week on average are dying. They’re not American soldiers, but I want to solve the problem. They’re Russian soldiers and they’re Ukrainian soldiers. And if I can save 5,000 souls, I just love doing it. How long do you give both countries before you’re going to walk away?” Trump concluded.