President Xi Jingping of China is in the process of changing the Chinese constitution, CNN reports, to eliminate presidential term limits, which would leave him able to remain in the presidency indefinitely.
Currently, President Xi is scheduled to end his term in 2023. On Sunday, the Chinese Communist Party suggested a party vote which would end term limits, giving Xi long-term power over their economy and military. While many people are shocked at Xi’s power move, there is one man who thinks highly of it. During a fundraising lunch at Mar-a-Lago on Saturday, President Trump said he’d like to give endless term limits a try too, according to Vox.
“He’s now president for life. President for life. No, he’s great,” said Trump in a recording obtained by CNN. “And look, he was able to do that. I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll have to give that a shot someday.”
The comment was intended to be a joke, but the Internet took the president seriously, with Twitter exploding over the news:Â
No, we won’t entertain a “President for Life.” We won’t pull the license of TV stations we don’t like. We won’t jail our political opponents.
We are the United States of America, and we cherish our democracy. https://t.co/XRXHOnPKgA
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) March 4, 2018
Oh look, the guy who has explicitly praised Xi, Putin, Erdogan & Duterte—while attacking the press, scapegoating minorities, surrounding himself with generals and family members, and calling to jail his political rivals—publicly entertains his fantasy of being president for life. https://t.co/UV85CK1zuO
— Brian Klaas (@brianklaas) March 4, 2018
Donald Trump speaks warmly of dictators and muses on the benefits of being “president for life.” George Washington, for one, saw the wisdom of our republic following a different course, called democracy.
— Dan Rather (@DanRather) March 4, 2018
Trump wants to be President for life? He should try actually being one for a day.
— Richard Hine (@richardhine) March 4, 2018
The outrage isn’t surprising, as Xi isn’t the only authoritarian type has praised in recent years. Trump is also a huge fan of President Vladimir Putin of Russia and Turkish President Recap Tayyip Erdogan.
After a week of incendiary tweets against people like former opponent Hillary Clinton and former President George W. Bush, Trump’s had quite the week of press. In reference to Xi, Trump claims they have a “very good relationship,” with Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders telling the press that Trump supports Xi’s decision.
The official position of the White House is a little more neutral, saying it’s “a decision for China to make about what’s best for their country.”