What is Project 2025? The proposed policy that could change the world as we know it.

"He's telling us he'll be a dictator. HE'S TELLING US. America wake up," Illinois politician Joe Walsh wrote on X in response to former US President Donald Trump's latest comments.

Congressman Adam Schiff wrote, "This year democracy is on the ballot, and if we are to save it, we must vote against authoritarianism. Here Trump helpfully reminds us that the alternative is never having the chance to vote again."

These are dramatic comments, but they paint the picture of the rising panic in the United States about what some feel another Trump presidency could look like for the country. 

The comments were written in response to Trump's recent speech to a largely Christian audience. 

"Get out and vote. Just this time. You won't have to do it anymore. Four more years, you know what? It'll be fixed, it'll be fine, you won't have to vote anymore," he said.

"You've got to get out and vote. In four years, you don't have to vote again. We'll have it fixed so good you're not going to have to vote."

Naturally, many Democrats have seen this as Trump voicing that he plans to end voting altogether, and potentially democracy as a whole, if elected. 

Trump has since claimed that he was referring to the fact that Christians are one of the lowest voting demographics and that he was telling them to vote "just this once". Meant to reassure the country, his follow up explanation didn't relax many.

"That statement is very simple. I said, 'Vote for me, you are not going to have to do it ever again.' It is true. Because we have to get the vote out. Christians are not known as a big voting group. They don't vote! And I'm explaining that to them. You never vote. This time, vote," he said.

"Don't worry about the future. You have to vote on November 5. After that, you don't have to worry about voting anymore, I don't care... The country will be fixed. And we won't even need your vote anymore, because frankly, we will have such love. If you don't want to vote anymore, that's okay."

His comments come after a policy document called Project 2025 went viral for its extremely conservative blueprint, designed for a Republican candidate to transform America as we know it.

Here's what we know about it, and whether or not Trump is involved in the plan. 

What you need to know about Project 2025.

It's rare that a policy document in the annals of a US think tank gets global, viral attention. But that is exactly what is happening with Project 2025, which has become a hot topic in political circles and is sparking widespread concern.

Project 2025, a comprehensive plan to reshape the American government, names a series of far-reaching proposals and movements that would change the way the country governs itself.

It's something we should understand before the upcoming election, because let's face it, what happens in America impacts us all.

If you've heard this buzz term, but aren't sure what it means, we've got you covered.

Mamamia's twice-daily news podcast The Quicky's Claire Murphy recently interviewed Foreign Policy magazine's Amelia Lester about the potential implications of Project 2025.

This is what we found out.

Listen to this episode of The Quicky on Project 2025 here. Post continues below. 

What is Project 2025?

Project 2025 is a detailed 920-page blueprint created by a conservative think tank, the Heritage Foundation.

It outlines a sweeping overhaul of the executive leadership in the US Government if Donald Trump wins the 2024 election.

As Murphy puts it, "It outlines the aspirations, of a large group of Republicans for the Heritage Foundation, one of the US most influential conservative policy groups.

"The hope is that this handbook will be handed to his administration to hit the ground running."

This 'roadmap' for the Republican administration covers everything from policy to personnel selections for government agencies and a playbook for actions to be taken in the first 180 days in office. 

"It outlines every policy area you could imagine for a government down to who should be appointed in what roles and their budgets," explains Murphy.

Who wrote Project 2025?

A tweet from Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation, the think tank behind Project 2025. Image: Instagram/heritagefoundation.

Project 2025 is the brainchild of the Heritage Foundation, a prominent think tank with conservative values. It's led by two former Trump administration officials, Paul Dans, the former chief of staff at the Office of Personnel Management and Spencer Chretien, former special assistant to President Trump.

They helm the ship, but it has contributions from over 100 conservative groups, which form an advisory body. 

As Lester explains, "Each chapter has been written either by those who had a high level role in the previous Trump administration, or who will likely have a role in his second should he win in November."

However, President Trump has distanced himself from the controversial project, saying he doesn't know anything about Project 2025. That is despite CNN reporting that 240 people involved in Project 2025 have ties to Donald Trump.

"He's trying to distance himself and say they do not speak for him," says Lester, adding that many of the policies in the project would not be widely accepted by the American public. "[Yet] when the party met at the recent Republican National Convention, there were many policies discussed that are mirrored by Project 2025."

What are the policies in Project 2025 at a glance?

Pro-choice campaigners protest against the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Image: Getty.

In a speech, congresswoman Ayanna Presley outlined her view on the policies in the playbook. 

"The Department of Education would be eliminated, cutting students off from civil rights protections and ending essential 'title one' funding for K through 12 schools," she says. 

"The Department of Justice would go on a 'murdering spree': would rush to use the death penalty and expand its use to even more people. 

"Project 2025 not only calls for national book bans in schools but also creates a list of banned words. Here are just a few of the words on the list: diversity, gender, reproductive health and, of course, conservatives want to ban the word abortion."

While those words may be hyperbolic, the document does call for major governing changes very quickly.

Murphy adds that some of the policies include "stripping the FBI" from being able to investigate cases where misinformation has been fed to the public. 

"It suggests increasing prosecutions against providers of abortions, including those who send out the abortion drug in the mail," she says.

Then, there is the overhaul of the public service, slimming it down and replacing roles. 

"They hope to replace federal civil service employees with conservative placements, something Trump ordered in 2020 but left office before it could be implemented," Murphy explains. Biden later rescinded that order. 

"They also want to ensure the leadership of departments like Health, for those who hold pro-birth and anti-LGBTQIA+ values. 

"They would like to deport all illegal immigrants including the group known as 'The Dreamers' who were brought into the country as children."

Thomas Homan, who served during the Trump Administration as Acting Director of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and contributed to the Project 2025 document, said, "They ain't seen sh*t yet. Wait until 2025. Trump comes back in January, I'll be on his heels coming back and I will run the biggest deportation operations the country's ever seen."

Thomas Homan has promised to deport immigrants if Trump is elected. Image: Getty.

A dive into the details of Project 2025.

1. Abortion.

This will be a big topic in the upcoming election, especially now that Kamala Harris, a pro-choice campaigner, will be up against Trump. She's been an outspoken advocate and defender of reproductive rights. 

While the Republicans are mostly pro-life, Lester says that Trump has been "deliberately vague about abortion this election cycle."

"He wasn't [vague] in 2016," she says. "He stood on the debate stage in 2016, and said that he was going to appoint conservative judges to the Supreme Court who are going to overturn Roe v Wade, and therefore restrict women's access to abortion services. And he did exactly that."

"Now, on this year's debate stage, when he was debating Joe Biden, he essentially said that he would leave it up to states to decide what to do about abortion, it was definitely a sort of dial back from what he'd been seeing in 2016. And that's because he recognises that it's a losing strategy."

But what does Project 2025 say?

According to Lester, "It advocates for prosecuting anyone who mails abortion pills, which is really important in the States, because that's how a lot of pregnant people in states with new abortion bans are getting around those bans. 

"It doesn't go so far as to say there should be a federal abortion ban with no exceptions. And my view is I think the reason why they didn't want to write that down on paper is because they recognise that really would be electorally disastrous for Trump to be affiliated with it."

However, the Heritage Foundation has called for a 'heartbeat abortion ban' nationwide, meaning that once a foetus has a heartbeat there can be no abortions with no exceptions. This is usually around 5-6 weeks gestation. 

2. Democracy.

While Lester won't call what Project 2025 outlines a 'dictatorship', as this would suggest the military are in cahoots with the right wing blueprint, she will say that the project gives the president an "unprecedented amount of power."

"It advocates for a stripping away of the public service, it would be about two thirds the size that it is right now," she says. 

"And this is part of the whole obsession that the right has developed over the last 10 years or so, with the so-called 'Deep State'. 

The 'Deep State' refers to a conspiracy theory that career employees inside a government conspire against an elected leader's agenda, and it's something that Trump supporters have previously claimed happened to him.

That, in part, would explain why Project 2025 may choose to reshape and 'dismantle' the perceived powers behind this conspiracy. 

3. Religion.

While America does not have 'separation of church and state' written into the constitution, the First Amendment says, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion."

This is supposed to prevent governments favouring one religion over another and prohibit the government from creating an 'official religion'. 

Yet, Project 2025's manuscript points to a move towards Christian beliefs being enshrined in policy. 

"Rather than call it a Christian agenda, I would call it a religious right agenda," says Lester. "Certainly the people doing it are Christian, but I think there's plenty of Christians in the United States who would want to distance themselves from the particular brand of Christianity that's being pushed here."

In line with the religious values, the Project also calls to outlaw pornography and imprison its creators and distributors. 

"I think that porn sites are probably among the most visited sites on the Internet. And I'm also pretty sure that Donald Trump is not going to, in fact, ban all pornography when he comes into office. But just that point alone gives you a sense of how deeply unpopular I think a lot of this is going to be across the board: across blue states and across red states," Lester adds. 

Are there any myths about Project 2025 to debunk?

While there is a lot to take in about Project 2025 and its policies, there has also been a rumour mill spouting policies that aren't actually in the manuscript. 

Lester explains, "So for instance, it does not call for the ending of no-fault divorce. I have seen that that's been an idea that's been circulating online, and it does not call for the end of marriage equality.

"[But], it does put in place all sorts of restrictions and curtailments on the rights of transgender Americans, and on LGBTQI+ Americans generally."

What has Trump said about what he actually intends to do?

Image: Getty.

So, we've heard about Project 2025's manuscript, but what has Trump actually pledged to do, if he claims not to know about it? 

As usual, Trump has done a lot of posturing and said bold statements, but he hasn't been too specific about his plans if he is to become the next president. 

Lester explains, "Donald Trump is not much of a 'details guy'. Part of the reason why Project 2025 has gotten so much attention—I mean, policy memos don't normally go viral online… is because he's a difficult politician to read, to understand what he's actually going to do.

"He's deliberately vague about his policies and his plans."

So, no, we don't really know what he has in store. Lester says that people have latched onto Project 2025 as a "roadmap for what the people around Donald Trump are hoping to achieve in his second term.

"This document really is the best clue as to what might happen, because there are so many people who put it together who he will very likely appoint in his second term. 

"In fact, two-thirds of its authors and editors worked in the first Trump administration."

Just how much of a threat to democracy is it?

Trump in court during the Stormy Daniels hush money trial that saw him branded a criminal. Image: Getty.

US journalist and TV show host Rachel Maddow said, "Donald Trump, he's trying to get rid of the American system of government. And that means getting rid of a government that does anything other than serve him. And that's what Project 2025 is all about. 

"I really think the bottom line here is that Trump and his movement, they're not running against Democrats. They're running against democracy."

So yes, people are worried about the possible impact of Project 2025 on the state of American democracy as we know it. Trump's latest comments telling Christians that they wouldn't need to vote again have added fuel to this fire.

"One of the leaders of the group, of the Heritage Foundation that wrote [Project 2025], Kevin Roberts, has called what this document represents a 'second American Revolution'," explains Lester. 

"Now Donald Trump would never use language that dramatic, but the very fact that the people around him are kind of coalescing and spoiling for this fight… It's a safe bet that if those are the people who get him elected, those are the people that he's going to empower once he's in the Oval Office."

Image: Instagram/heritagefoundation.

Why is Project 2025 considered dangerous?

It's not just the threat to democracy that has people worried—the potential for undermining the rule of law, the separation of powers and civil liberties—there are other reasons too. 

The potential for authoritarianism loiters on the outskirts of this policy, while the erosion of checks and balances enable sweeping reforms without safeguards and blocks in the way. 

Critics of the project cite social regression as a major danger, the rolling back individual freedoms, while radical policy shifts could lead to dramatic and destabilising changes for the American public. 

Could Trump actually pull off Project 2025 if he tried?

Many democrats hope Kamala Harris will stand against Project 2025. Image: Getty.

Many can't help but ask, could Trump really change the face of America as we know it if this project comes to fruition? 

Well, it depends if the American people take heed of this blueprint or take Trump's his vague statements at face value. Contrary to popular belief, many of the policies outlined in Project 2025 are deeply disliked by the majority of citizens. 

"It's not a popular platform to have, according to most pundits, to be anti-women's rights, to be anti-abortion. In fact, the majority of Americans when polled support having access to abortions," Murphy explains. 

"It is pretty extreme in what it puts forward," Lester responds. "Donald Trump likes to play a game where he says he doesn't know anything about it."

If Trump does indeed get voted in, and it turns out that he does plan to enact Project 2025, then the first hurdle to this  project becoming a reality is cleared. 

The project also has the backing of a $33 million (approx. AUD) budget, and includes a clear strategy to implement it immediately after inauguration. The Heritage Foundation intends to hit the ground running, already creating a database of conservative loyalists ready to fill government positions and a program to train them. 

However, it is likely that many of the proposals would face the legal checks and balances that previous governments have upheld, so it depends how steadfast they remain under the pressure this project elicits. 

Lester adds that many have wondered if Trump will be called out on his "sort of falsehoods or sort of entanglements with lies" before he is elected in. 

"It is essentially a trick, distancing himself from a document put together by the very people who are pushing to get him into power again," she says. "I would say that he now has a very formidable opponent, who is going to interrogate him on this and not leave it: being Kamala Harris. 

"She is a former prosecutor, I think she's going to be able to hold his feet to the fire in a way that Joe Biden clearly wasn't able to in the last debate. 

"And there does seem to be a bit of a sort of vibe shift happening in the US where people are very alarmed about this. Like I said, it's not often that a policy document gets this much attention."

It's possible that Kamala Harris' defence and the weight of public scrutiny could stop the project's progress in its tracks.

"I think people are paying more attention than they were in 2016. And that's in part because that whole experience with Trump's first term taught Americans what it means to have someone in power who does broadly unpopular things, like enable the Supreme Court to overturn nationwide access to abortion people, are paying more attention this election cycle. I think it's gonna be hard for him to ultimately distance himself from it," Lester says.

Regardless of its implementation, Project 2025 represents a significant shift in conservative strategy, and it's possible it could influence Republican policy-making for years to come. 

It will remain a focal point of the rest of the 2024 American election. 

Feature image: Getty