Project 2025 spells out second Trump term in alarming detail. That is no stretch | Opinion

You may have heard about “Project 2025,” a comprehensive set of proposals from a conservative Washington think-tank outlining the first 180 days of a second Donald Trump presidency should he defeat President Joe Biden in November.

But have you read the behemoth plan? If you haven't, you really should. I read most of the 922-page document, and honestly, it scares me.

I can confidently say that if put into effect, it has the potential to cause immense harm to minority communities, women of childbearing age, undocumented immigrants, public education, diversity, equity and inclusion programs, unions, and the LGBTQ community.

I started reading Project 2025 about three months ago after my 20-year-old daughter told me about it. She had already formed her opinion based on TikTok and Instagram videos, which influencers chopped up into information she could use and share with friends. She called Project 2025 “depressing,” among a few other harsh words I can’t use here, but I think you get my point.

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The document, which was first published last year, is gaining attention for two reasons. First, the upcoming election, with President Joe Biden and Donald Trump in a virtual tie. Second, the Heritage Foundation, a significant sponsor of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this week, developed the project and is pushing for its implementation.

On Monday, the foundation gathered with RNC delegates and conservative luminaries at the home of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra for a "policy fest" to discuss Project 2025, among other things, and celebrate the news that Ohio Senator JD Vance was named Trump's running mate.

According to the Associated Press, Heritage President Kevin Roberts said he’s “good friends” with Vance and that the foundation had been privately rooting for him to be the VP pick. Vance, Roberts said, recognizes that “we have a limited time to pursue policy.”

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It's crucial that we all understand the implications of Project 2025 and why voting is imperative in these times. Actress Taraji P. Henson, who hosted the 2024 BET Awards on June 30, used the platform to warn the mostly Black viewers about the far-reaching plan.

“They are trying to bring the draft back. Who do you think they’re going to draft first? ... Did you know that it is now a crime to be homeless? Pay attention. It’s not a secret. Look it up. They are attacking our most vulnerable citizens,” she said. "I'm not trying to scare us, I'm trying to inform us. I'm talking to the mad people who don't want to vote. You're gonna be mad about a lot of things if you don't vote."

Henson’s opinion, which I respect, is just one of many voices. I wondered if people were just blowing things out of proportion. After all, it is a political season and things can often be stretched and exaggerated.

For example, last week Biden took to the social media platform X to warn voters about Project 2025. In the five-second clip, Biden decked out in shades, points to the camera and says, "Project 2025 will destroy America. Look it up." In another interview, he called it “the biggest attack on our system of government, our personal freedoms, that has ever been proposed in the history of this country.”

Meanwhile, I continued reading the document and interviewed historians I respect to gauge their views.

Those whom I spoke to referred to the document — which aims to reduce the size of federal agencies, ban abortion drugs, and overhaul popular programs like the Affordable Care Act — as "alarming." One claimed that if Trump is re-elected and implements Project 2025, it would grant him unprecedented and potentially dangerous powers unlike any occupant of the White House in American history.

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The document lays out specific policy proposals and aims to have vetted conservatives in place in the early days of a new administration in order to take sweeping actions during the first 180 days in office.

“Everyone should be reading this because this would take things back to the 1950s,” said Maurice Cunningham, a retired professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

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Cunningham called Project 2025 "terrifying" and said Biden's assessment was not far off. He said Roberts, the leader of the Heritage Foundation, believes that Republicans are in the process of reclaiming the country. On Steve Bannon's podcast earlier this month, Roberts said America is is in the midst of a “second American Revolution” that will be bloodless “if the left allows it to be.”

My question is, reclaim it from whom? The American citizens who contribute to the tapestry that makes our nation a place others long to live in?

If Trump wins, Cunningham said Project 2025 would be initiated immediately after Trump is sworn in. This could also lead to dismantling DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) programs in the workplace. While some may not see a problem with that, I must ask you: if you surround yourself with people who all perceive things the same way, do you think that will ultimately make you better or worse in the long run?

It should also be noted that during Trump's presidency he was able to nominate three hardline conservatives to the Supreme Court, in a move that tilted the court 6-3 to the right — a court that issued a historic ruling early this month giving presidents sweeping immunity protections for actions taken in office.

Milwaukee historian Reggie Jackson said his biggest fear is that the document lays out ways Trump could gain the power to dismantle federal agencies, remove dissenting individuals who disagree with him, and give him dictator-like powers.

“He essentially wouldn’t have to answer to anyone,” Jackson said.

Jackson said that, due to social media, young people are more informed about Project 2025 than those aged 50 and above. Although the document is dense, it is well-crafted. The problem is that most people won’t take the time to read even 100 pages of it.

Maybe that’s why the Democrats have been tardy in their response.

Trump claims he did not know who was behind Project 2025

Robert Smith, a Marquette University professor and Black historian, said that one thing that makes the 2025 document different is that it is designed to be an “intergenerational conservative” agenda.

“This is not just a conservative agenda designed for old white guys," Smith said. "This was strategically planned."

Since Project 2025 surfaced in the headlines and faced mounting criticism, Trump claimed not to know who is behind it, but a CNN review found that at least 140 people from the Trump administration were involved in creating the report. Trump's lying about not knowing who is behind Project 2025 is unsurprising. The truth is that Heritage Foundation has been aligned with the former president since 2016. They have both been on the record calling for eliminating the federal Department of Education.

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Over the next several months, there will be a lot of talk about Project 2025. It does not support people who look like me or come from similar backgrounds. It also fails to address the progress of minority groups, the underprivileged, women, or LGBTQ individuals, which is clearly problematic. The document would have benefited from having a diversity of writers.

Henson said it best when she told people to "Look it up."

But looking it up is just the first step. People need also to act and vote. I have heard too many people say they will not vote in this election for several reasons, ranging from the candidates' age to not thinking their vote matters.

In Henson's words, "You're going to be mad about a lot of things if you don't vote."

You can reach James E. Causey at [email protected] or follow him on X @jecausey.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Heritage Foundation's Project 2025 plans for next American revolution