Trump keeps 'joking' about staying in office longer than 8 years

Trump at a rally
(Image credit: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

One style of comedy involves repetition — you say something over and over again until people find it hilarious. President Trump has a running "joke" about staying in office for 12 years, or 16 years, or — given his advanced age — for life. He's just saying it to annoy the media, he says. He's seriously considering the idea only because comedian Bill Maher mentioned it once, he jokes. Really, folks, he's just kidding, he insists.

Aspiring comedian Mike Huckabee wanted in on Trump's "joke" Thursday. (He wasn't on Sean Hannity's Fox News show — maybe he was bumped by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell — comedy's a rough business, folks.)

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.