of constitutional mechanisms from stopping him from doing whatever came into that salamander sized brain.

That is because a second term would have meant that the constitution was all but null and void. Specifically, a second term would have meant that a legal and spotless election had been overturned and in his favor. It would have meant that Congress was even more toothless. It would have meant that the considered decisions of all courts, up to and including the Supreme Court would have been neutered.

The only other institution that could have stood in the way to prevent this particular episode, and probably much worse, was the military. Chilling stuff, no matter how you slice it.
[Post edited by Chuck Taylor at 03/05/2022 11:52AM]