President Barack Obama said Tuesday he
"could win" a third term in the White House — but Sen. Mike Lee tells
Newsmax TV he can't agree or disagree with the commander in chief's boast.
"It may well be true. I don't know. The beauty of a statement like that from his standpoint is it can never be and will never be proven or disproven," Lee, a Utah Republican, said Tuesday on "The Steve Malzberg Show."
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In a speech before the African Union in Ethiopia, Obama said, "I actually think I’m pretty good president. I think if I ran, I could win. But I can’t."
Federal term limits — put into place after Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected four times — allow presidents only two terms.
"One of the reasons why we have a constitutional amendment limiting presidents to two terms, is that there is tremendous power in incumbency, especially with the president of the United States," Lee said.
"Some would say the leader of the free world, some would say the most powerful person on planet Earth — that's an additional reason to limit the terms to two."
Obama does not appear disappointed that he can't run again.
In the same speech,
ABC News reports, Obama said: "I'll be honest with you, I'm looking forward to life after being president. I won't have such a big security detail all the time. It means I can go take a walk, I can spend time with my family, I can find other ways to serve, I can visit Africa more often."
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