Donald Trump’s niece has expressed her views regarding her uncle’s future role as the leader of the United States.
Mary Trump, who is known for her outspoken criticism of her uncle, authored a memoir in 2020 about him and their family, titled ‘Too Much and Never Enough’.
Mary is the daughter of Trump’s late elder brother, Fred Trump Jr, who passed away due to a heart attack in 1981.
Upon Donald Trump’s return to The White House for a second term, Mary took to social media to label the situation as ‘uniquely dangerous times’. She emphasized that the US needed to ‘start showing up in different ways from what we might be used to’ (via Newsweek).
She also shared her concerns leading up to the 2020 election, where Trump was defeated by Joe Biden, expressing her worry: “What happens if Donald gets a second shot at the presidency?”
Now that this scenario has taken place, she argued in a recent interview with The Telegraph that people should be cautious of his intentions as President. The psychologist shared her belief that Trump will not only pursue another term in the White House but may aim to remain ‘for life’.
Trump has previously hinted at staying in power for a third term, contrary to the 22nd Amendment, which clearly restricts a president to two terms in office.
Earlier this year, he suggested there were ‘loopholes’ that might allow him to remain in office. When asked further by reporters, he stated: “I’d rather not discuss that now, but as you know, there are some loopholes that have been discussed that are well known.
“But I don’t believe in loopholes. I don’t believe in using loopholes.”
Regarding the prospect of her uncle seeking a third term, Mary commented: “That’s what Donald certainly has in mind. It’s not about whether or not he’ll run. It’s about whether or not he’ll leave. It’s more likely that he’ll just say, ‘I’m president for life and I’m not going anywhere’. And he’ll challenge people to get rid of him.
“What enforcement mechanism is there to drag the guy who just lost the election but is in the Oval Office? How do you get rid of him? We don’t know, because we’ve never had this problem. I think he’s willing to challenge that.”
She went on to say: “America is a deeply broken country and it has been for a long time. Donald is not an anomaly. He is, I think, the logical conclusion to the last 40 years of Republican degradation.”
In the same interview, Mary also critiqued the Democratic Party, suggesting that they should have been better prepared for the possibility of a second Trump presidency.
“The Democrats continue to not just fail to meet the moment, they fail to understand the moment… And one of my biggest criticisms of the Biden administration is that they didn’t see a second Trump term coming and they failed to prepare adequately.” she said.
“Part of it was complacency, part of it was just a failure of understanding where people in this country were. Part of it was honestly just failing to recognise what was happening globally.
“Incumbents in every single country, regardless of political affiliation, were losing by massive margins.”