President Trump on Saturday praised a move by China’s Communist Party to abolish presidential term limits, and suggested that maybe the United States would “give that a shot someday.”
“He’s now president for life. President for life. No, he’s great,” Trump told Republican donors during a closed-door event in Florida. A recording of Trump’s remarks was obtained by CNN.
“And look, he was able to do that,” he added. “I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll give that a shot someday.”
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Trump made the comments in a speech that was, according to CNN, filled with jokes and told in a lighthearted manner. It appears the comments were likely made in jest.
China’s Communist Party announced Sunday that it intends to do away with presidential term limits, paving the way for the country’s president, Xi Jinping, to remain in power indefinitely.
The move was a major break from the precedent set in the decades since the death of Mao Zedong, the communist revolutionary who ruled China for more than 30 years until his death in 1976.
Trump has personally praised Xi, despite railing against unfair trade practices by China during his 2016 presidential campaign and first year in office.
Also in his remarks on Saturday, according to CNN, Trump decried a “rigged system,” a complaint that became a key theme of his 2016 presidential campaign, when he claimed that the electoral system was fixed against him.
“I’m telling you, it’s a rigged system folks,” he said. “I’ve been saying that for a long time. It’s a rigged system. And we don’t have the right people in there yet. We have a lot of great people, but certain things, we don’t have the right people.”