By John Fritze, CNN

(CNN) — Two Supreme Court justices – a conservative and the court’s senior liberal – appeared to shut down talk of a third term for President Donald Trump in separate appearances this week, with both suggesting that the two-term language included in the 22nd Amendment is clear.

The 22nd Amendment was ratified in 1951 after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, the only president to serve more than two terms. The amendment states that “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice.”

Justice Amy Coney Barrett, a conservative who Trump appointed to the high court during his first term, told Fox News in an interview that aired Monday that it was “true” that the 22nd Amendment appears to limit a president’s tenure – despite Trump’s yearslong flirtations with a third term.

“That’s what the amendment says, right?” Barrett told Fox News “Special Report” host Bret Baier. “After FDR had four terms, that’s what that amendment says.”

Baier initially noted that the amendment says a president can run only two times.

“True,” Barrett responded.

Trump has frequently teased the idea of running for a third term, and his company’s website encourages people to “rewrite the rules” by purchasing a “Trump 2028” baseball cap.

Whether the president is serious or just trying to enrage his critics, it’s notable that two Supreme Court justices have been asked about the legality of the idea in separate interviews this week.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the court’s senior liberal, was pressed Tuesday on the same question during an appearance on ABC’s “The View.”

“The Constitution is settled law. No one has tried to challenge that,” Sotomayor said. “But it is in the Constitution, and one should understand that there’s nothing that is the greater law in the United States than the Constitution of the United States.”

Though justices rarely speak to media, Barrett and Sotomayor are both promoting books and therefore appearing at public events and sitting for interviews. Even as they do so, the Supreme Court is handling a flood of emergency cases dealing with Trump’s efforts to consolidate power within the executive branch.

Barrett, for the most part, appears to have voted with Trump in those cases. Sotomayor, who was named to the court by former President Barack Obama, has regularly dissented.

Barrett’s careful language in response to Baier – she declined to say directly whether the matter was “cut and dried” – drew some criticism on social media.

But Sotomayor also suggested the matter was “not settled” because “we don’t have a court case about that issue.”

Justices virtually never discuss their thoughts on what’s legal (or not) in public, so the statements from both Barrett and Sotomayor were notable.

The-CNN-Wire
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