With the increasing likelihood of former President Donald Trump’s return to the White House following the first presidential debate and the catastrophic performance of his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, before his withdrawal, several former Trump administration officials and Republican supporters proposed Project 2025. This project aims to radically reshape the federal government in case Trump wins the upcoming presidential election, scheduled for November 5, 2024.
Project Features
The Heritage Foundation, a prominent right-wing American think tank, drafted a comprehensive 1,000-page plan in collaboration with over 100 conservative organizations and 400 political researchers and experts from all segments of the American conservative movement. Among the contributors are former Trump administration officials and key right-wing figures, such as former Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller, former Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli, former Chief Trade Adviser to Trump Peter Navarro, and former Trump advisor Stephen Miller. The project outlines a series of policies to be implemented immediately after Trump’s inauguration in January, enabling the future Republican administration to take swift and radical actions. The project includes several key objectives:
Executive Dominance Over American Governance Institutions: The project advocates for the idea that the U.S. president should have absolute control over the executive branch, with expanded presidential powers. This would simplify the American decision-making process, allowing the president to directly implement policies in various fields.
Restructuring the Federal Government: The project aims to reduce the size of the federal government by eliminating certain agencies and departments, such as the Department of Education. It also proposes placing other independent U.S. agencies like the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Communications Commission, and the Department of Justice under direct presidential control. Additionally, it calls for removing protections for thousands of employees who could be replaced by political appointees.
Reducing Taxes and Funding for Climate and Health: The project calls for lowering corporate and income taxes, returning to a gold-backed currency, and reducing environmental regulations to boost fossil fuel production. It also seeks to reshape the National Institutes of Health based on conservative principles, cut funding for climate research, and limit investment in renewable energy. The project urges the next Republican president to end the Democratic administration’s war on oil and natural gas.
Restricting Abortion Rights and Punishing Supporters: The project aims to restrict abortion rights, revoke approval for abortion pills, and punish women who undergo abortions. It also advocates for reinstating the Comstock Act to ban and track abortion-related materials sent by mail and for restoring the family as the cornerstone of American life and protecting American children.
Increasing Individual Liberties: The project seeks to dismantle the administrative state and return self-governance to the American people, reducing the influence of the federal government, which it claims has antagonized Americans and placed their freedoms under siege. The project also criticizes the imposition of Western liberal values on citizens.
Adopting New Interventionist Government Policies: The project aims for the new government to adopt interventionist policies across various areas, including the dismissal of up to 500,000 federal employees, expelling transgender individuals from the military, eliminating references to diversity and equity, deporting undocumented individuals, ending worker protection measures, and dropping prosecutions against far-right leaders. This led Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts to describe the project as a “second American revolution.”
Restricting Immigration from the Southern U.S. Border: The project proposes increased funding to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, unifying various immigration agencies, greatly expanding their powers, raising fees for immigrants, and allowing expedited applications for those who pay higher fees.
Trump’s Opposition
Although many of those involved in Project 2025 worked in the White House during Trump’s previous term and are loyal to him, and may likely help shape his administration should he win the November 2024 election, Trump has opposed and denied any connection to the project for several reasons:
Preserving His Electoral Base: Trump sought to distance himself from Project 2025 to maintain his electoral base and avoid losing it, especially after his success in the first presidential debate against current President Joe Biden and Biden’s poor performance. This led to a surge in Trump’s chances of returning to the White House, as polls showed his popularity increasing after the debate. A CBS News poll showed Trump leading Biden by 6 points (48% to 42%), prompting Trump to deny any association with Project 2025 to avoid alienating voters who oppose the project’s ideas.
Biden’s Campaign Exploiting the Project to Gain Votes: Biden’s reelection campaign exploited Project 2025 by intensifying efforts to link Trump’s campaign to it, describing the project as evidence of the extreme policies Trump aims to implement in his second term. This was done to frighten Americans about the threat Trump poses to the state and American democracy, in an attempt to recover Biden’s declining popularity after the first presidential debate, which revealed his inability to speak and engage energetically.
Reassuring His Base That He Is Not Extreme: Trump sought to reassure his electoral base by stating on his social media platform, Truth Social: “I know nothing about Project 2025, have no idea who is behind it, and I disagree with some of the things they say. Some of what they say is ridiculous. I wish them well, but I have no connection to them.” This was in response to accusations by Biden’s campaign, which tried to use Project 2025 as an electoral tool against Trump to scare Americans about his second presidency.
Trump’s Assurance That His Second Term Will Be Different: By rejecting Project 2025, even though many involved in it are loyal to him, Trump is signaling that his second term will be different and that his government will be filled with people who agree with his policies and ideas, not those who help him become more extreme. He also emphasized that his second term would differ from the first due to his increased experience, as evidenced by his approach during the 2024 primaries and the first presidential debate, suggesting he would be more adept at wielding power.
Preventing a Repeat of Riots by His Supporters: Trump sought to calm American voters by denying any connection to Project 2025, aiming to preserve the progress he has made in the primaries, as shown by many polls. He was also concerned by Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts’ warning that Trump’s acceptance of the project could lead to political violence and an American revolution. Democratic Congressman Jared Huffman also condemned the project, calling for it to be stopped and describing it as a “dastardly plot to dismantle American democratic institutions,” while some predicted that it could lead to a civil war in the United States and potentially divide the country.
Fears of Growing Demands for Trump to Withdraw from the Election: Among the reasons likely prompting Trump’s statements that he knows nothing about Project 2025 is his fear that American voters might demand he withdraw from the election due to concerns about the extreme policies in the project, which could lead to violent revolution in the United States and the dismantling of democratic institutions.
Negative Impacts
In conclusion, Trump’s endorsement of Project 2025 would have numerous negative consequences, likely causing him to lose much of his electoral base and leading to widespread unrest and division between Republicans and Democrats, possibly resulting in an American civil war, according to many analyses. This would undoubtedly lead to his defeat in the upcoming U.S. presidential election, which is why Trump rejected the project to preserve his electoral base and increase his followers, enhancing his chances of returning to the White House on November 5, 2024.
