Project 2025 is a conservative endeavor to prepare the groundwork for a second Trump administration or adminstration that will accept a policy playbook sponsored by the right-wing think tank The Herritage Foundation. The leaders of Project 2025 had emphasized that the effort was launched before the GOP primaries began and that it is not an extension of Donald Trump’s campaign. Still, throughout the election, Democrats worked hard to tie Trump to the radical policies. The motivation behind the project is to ensure that any administration can efficiently begin implementing conservative policies as soon as 20 January 2025.

The Herritage Foundation extended a warm congratulations message to the former presidnet on X. Kevin Roberts, the organization’s president pointed to the way the former president “triumphed over a relentless left-wing machine intent on stopping him – and the will of the American people – at any cost.”

One of the main critiques of the Trump administration’s tenure, most commonly lodged by Republicans, was that it was slow to appoint political appointees and administration officials. Thus, the administration lost time when it could have used its new power to enact conservative policies.

For Democrats and Progressives, Project 2025 is a nightmare and highlights how dangerous an effective far-right administration could be if the right people are leading the way. Critics argue that the policies included would blur the lines between Church and State by enacting policies centered around the Christian faith. In the section on the Department of Labor, the author who served there during the Trump administration as the Acting / Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Jonathan Berry, notes that “the Judeo-Christian tradition, stretching back to Genesis, has always recognized fruitful work as integral to human dignity, as service to God, neighbor, and family.” The document attacks Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives that the Department of Labor has led during the Obama and Biden administrations and calls on Congress to prohibit funding programs that incorporate another right-wing boogy man, ‘critical race theory.’

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While Democrats have suggested that Project 2025 would create a national pregnancy registry, this characterization is somewhat misleading. In reality, the project aims to establish a national database that tracks abortions, including details about the mother and the gestational age of the fetus. Concerns have been raised that this information could lead to increased criminalization of abortion, causing medical professionals to be more cautious when performing the procedure. Such hesitance could endanger the lives of patients who urgently need this type of care. The plan accuses “liberal states” as serving as “sanctuaries for abortion tourism,” and that to avoid that the CDC must require “every state to report exactly how many abortions take place within its borders, at what gestational age of the child, for what reason, the mother’s state of residence, and by what method.”

The plan also encourages the federal government to prohibit public money from being used to finance abortions, and would severly limit the family planning offerings of USAID and international agencies, in part, financed by the United States. It also calls on the FDA to “reverse its approval of chemical abortion drugs,” which are the primary medication used to provide abortions in the United States.

What is the stated goal of Project 2025?

“The actions of liberal politicians in Washington have created a desperate need and unique opportunity for conservatives to start undoing the damage the Left has wrought and build a better country for all Americans in 2025,” reads the Project 2025 website. The project is described as an attempt to “rescue the country from the grip of the radical Left” which will require “we need both a governing agenda and the right people in place.”

The organization has begun publishing a “playbook” with policies it would encourage the administration to adopt and is collecting resumes to ensure that the White House could place the “right” candidate on the vacant rolls if the Democrats lose.

This group blames the “radical left” for enacting regulations on industry that but into their profit margins. However, in many cases, the lack of regulation can leave communities in a dangerous position, unable to trust the water they drink or the air they breathe. Consider the events that took place after the East Palestine train derailment in Ohio last year. The train transporting highly flammable materials was not considered high risk, and it stretched over a mile long, increasing the chance of a derailment.

The first line of the section on the Department of Education reads: “Federal education policy should be limited and, ultimately, the federal Department of Education should be eliminated.” For many conservative political leaders, the structure of education should be up to the states, with the federal government restricted in its ability to make mandates over curriculum. The mandate put together by the organizations involved is available to be read online for those who want to form their own opinion of Project 2025.

Which organizations form part of Project 2025?

Organized by the conservative think tank, The Heritage Foundation, Project 2025 brings together over 100 right-wing political organizations, including the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which has been known to draft laws proposed by conservative lawmakers. Other members include the Claremont Institute, Moms for Liberty, and Turning Point USA, not to mention organizations like the Alliance Defending Freedom and Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, which see Project 2025 as a vehicle to bring a Christian nationalist vision to Washington.