A detailed plan for dismantling and rebuilding the government, put forward by a conservative group known as the 2025 Presidential Transition Project, has infuriated critics due to its “apocalyptic” and “authoritarian” nature.
The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington, D.C., led the development of the 900-plus page “Mission for Leadership,” released in April 2023, laying out a plan for re-envisioning the executive branch and reforming several federal agencies, including the FBI, for the next conservative U.S. president.
According to the project's website, the playbook lays out a governance agenda and a list of people ready to implement it to “save the country from the grip of the radical left.” It includes domestic and foreign policy agendas, personnel lists, training and a 180-day game plan.
“It's not enough for conservatives to win elections,” Project 2025 said on its website. “With the right conservative policy proposals and the right vetted and trained people to implement them, we can take back our government.”
Project 2025 is being led by Paul Danz, who served as chief of staff for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management in the administration of former President Donald Trump. Though Trump's name appears in the handbook, the presumptive Republican nominee is not directly envisioned as the person to implement the project's policies.
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What does Project 2025 include?
The order attacks several policies put in place by former President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden, including student loan forgiveness and Obamacare, while simultaneously calling for an expansion of the commander in chief's executive power and criticizing what Project 2025 members see as Biden administration overreach.
“The president should not issue mandates for mask wearing, vaccination, arbitrary transfer of student loan debt, or monarchical edicts of any kind,” the plan states. “In a republic, the legislative branch makes the laws, not the executive branch.”
The strategy calls for the reinstatement of President Trump's executive orders that give the president greater power to hire and fire federal employees by replacing civil servants across the government with political appointees.
He also seeks to repeal parts of Obamacare, push the Food and Drug Administration to revoke approval of abortion pills, and give Immigration and Customs Enforcement more power to deport illegal immigrants.
The plan also specifically addresses LGBTQ+ issues, attacking “radical gender ideology.” In addition to calling for the abolition of the Department of Education, it proposes legislation that would prohibit teachers from using the names and pronouns of transgender students without written parental permission. It also opposes same-sex marriage and adoption by gay couples, and appears to aim to “uphold a biblical and social science-backed definition of marriage and family.”
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Project 2025 raises concerns
Project 2025 has drawn significant criticism from Democrats, including Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas, who criticized the controversial plan at a congressional hearing last month.
“I don't see how or why anyone could support Project 2025,” Crockett said. “Dictatorship is no laughing matter in the United States, and Project 2025 provides a playbook for authoritarians and the next dictators to come.”
Progressive Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts called it a “far-right manifesto” in a TikTok post. The Biden campaign captioned a video detailing Project 2025 saying it “deserves more attention.”
Rachel Barber is a USA TODAY 2024 Election Fellow focusing on politics and education. Follow her on Twitter as @rachelbarber_.
