# The third-term workaround

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "The third-term workaround," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-third-term-workaround/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*John Kiriakou's constitutional argument that Donald Trump cannot reach a third term by running as vice president and having J.D. Vance resign — because a vice president barred from the presidency cannot assume it, so the speakership takes precedence.*

- **The proposed route:** Run as vice president; the president then resigns
- **Kiriakou's verdict:** "He cannot. It is written in stone in the Constitution. There's no wiggle room."
- **The mechanism he cites:** A vice president constitutionally barred from the presidency cannot assume it
- **Who succeeds instead:** The Speaker of the House
- **Where it would end up:** "It would definitely be in the courts"
- **Why Kiriakou thinks Trump talks about it:** To avoid being a lame duck and stay relevant

**The third-term workaround** is the constitutional manoeuvre John Kiriakou was asked about on the DeProgram programme in August 2025, and which he rejected as unavailable.[1]

## What was proposed

The occasion was a remark by [Donald Trump](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/donald-trump) that he *"probably won't"* seek a third term. The workaround under discussion was the familiar one: run as vice president, and have the sitting president resign after inauguration.[1]

## Kiriakou's answer

He rejected the premise before the mechanism. *"He cannot. It is written in stone in the Constitution. There's no wiggle room. There's no way around it where he runs for vice president and then Vance resigns. He can't do it."*[1]

Pressed, he set out the reasoning. A person constitutionally barred from the presidency may still be elected vice president in his account, but cannot succeed to the office — and the line of succession simply passes over him. *"He can run for vice president and be vice president, and if Vance resigns, the Speaker of the House becomes president."*[1]

Asked whether it would be litigated, Kiriakou allowed that it would: *"Oh, it would definitely be in the courts. But the Constitution's clear that if the vice president cannot assume the presidency — and in this case he could not assume the presidency because he's constitutionally barred — then the Speaker of the House becomes president."*[1][2]

## Why he thinks the talk continues

Kiriakou does not read the statements as a plan. Offered the explanation that Trump keeps the possibility alive only to avoid lame-duck status, he endorsed it: *"No, I think you've hit it on the head. He's trying to remain as relevant as he can for as long as he can."*[3]

He puts an expiry date on it. *"That's going to change after the midterm elections, because then that's it. It's done. There are no more elections. Nobody's going to have to owe him anything or kowtow to him. All bets are off."*[3]

## See also

- [Donald Trump](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/donald-trump)
- [The National Guard In Washington](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-national-guard-in-washington)
- [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou)

## Sources

1. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2025-08-12), at 10:24. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE-XS8gvwiM&t=624s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-08-12-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/
2. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2025-08-12), at 10:54. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE-XS8gvwiM&t=654s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-08-12-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/
3. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2025-08-12), at 11:25. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE-XS8gvwiM&t=685s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-08-12-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-third-term-workaround/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt