You do have to take a little time, though, because the manifesto “Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise” is more than 900 pages long. The handbook from the right-wing conservative think tank Heritage Foundation is better known as “Project 2025.” It is a radical policy blueprint for the next Republican president.
Trump is officially trying to distance himself from the document. But the foundation and the Republican Party are closely linked – the latter is one of the sponsors of the party convention in Milwaukee. “It is not enough for conservatives to win the election,” the project’s advertising statement says. “If we want to free the country from the grip of the radical left, we need both a government program and the right people who are ready to implement that program on the first day of the next conservative government.” Numerous conservative organizations have joined “Project 2025.” It offers a blueprint for shaping the first 180 days following taking office.
It is not Trump’s plan, but it is a plan that was made for Trump. The Heritage Foundation has published such strategy papers in the past – even before Trump’s election victory in 2016. After the Republican took office, however, there was chaos in the White House. If Trump wins the presidential election in November, the think tank believes things will be different this time.
Four main objectives
1. “Restoring the family as the centerpiece of American life and protecting our children”
The “Project 2025” represents extremely conservative sociopolitical positions. The authors reject abortion, call for a ban on pornography and advocate for measures that promote “marriage, work, motherhood, fatherhood and the nuclear family.”
2. “Abolition of the administrative state and return of self-government to the American people”
The authors of “Project 2025” want to largely replace civil servants in federal agencies and ministries with political employees. Behind this is the deep state myth that government officials who supposedly opposed Trump during his term in office are actually ruling in secret in Washington. The president’s power is to be expanded and Congress weakened. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which also includes the weather service and the US hurricane center, is to be dissolved because it is “one of the most important driving forces of the climate change alarm industry”. Its functions are to be transferred to other agencies or privatized.
3. “Defending our nation’s sovereignty, borders and wealth once morest global threats”
Protecting the US border is named as a priority in the manifesto. Trump’s border wall is to be completed on the southern border with Mexico and immigration laws are to be tightened. The detention and deportation of illegal immigrants is “crucial if we want to regain control of the border.”
4. “Securing our God-given individual rights to a free life”
The authors advocate so-called religious freedom. Contrary to what it may sound, this actually means that Christian values should be promoted with public funds and should play a central role in everyday life. The Ministry of Health and Social Services should stand for a “biblically based, social science-based definition of marriage and family.”
Biden issues urgent warning
US President Joe Biden’s Democrats are warning urgently regarding “Project 2025” during the election campaign. The blueprint gives Trump more power over people’s daily lives and eliminates democratic control mechanisms. This has brought the Republican into action. He knows nothing regarding “Project 2025,” the 78-year-old wrote on his online mouthpiece Truth Social. “I disagree with some of the statements, and some of the statements are absolutely ridiculous and catastrophic.”
Trump’s attempt to distance himself from the manifesto is not really credible. Allies of the Republican and former employees of his administration worked on it. Trump’s candidate for vice president, JD Vance, has close ties to the Heritage Foundation. The senator recently also tried to distance himself. “I guarantee you that there are things that Trump likes and doesn’t like regarding this 900-page document.”
20 “Promises”
There are also major overlaps between the manifesto and Trump’s political promises and the Republican party platform. The party platform was also adopted at the party convention in Milwaukee, where Trump was officially chosen as the Republican presidential candidate.
It lists 20 “promises” in capital letters – such as: “Carrying out the largest deportation operation in American history” or “Ending the electric vehicle mandate and repealing expensive and burdensome regulations”.
It is striking that the topic of abortion does not appear in the promises and is only mentioned once in the program. “We will reject late-term abortions,” it says. There is no mention of strict abortion bans – this has angered religious supporters. By appointing three right-wing conservative judges to the US Supreme Court, Trump has made it possible for the nationwide right to abortion to be overturned.
Trump initially celebrated this as a success. However, a majority of people in the USA support the right to abortion. That is why Trump is now evading the issue and avoiding making clear statements.
This is also evident in the party’s program and the attempt to distance itself from the blueprint. Trump does not want to scare off more moderate conservatives with these radical positions. However, “Project 2025” should provide Trump with inspiration for his policies following a possible re-election – at the very least.
