Earlier this year a plan to fundamentally change life, politics and the structure of government in America through granting nearly unlimited power to the next Republican president was published by the Heritage Foundation. This plan is known as the Presidential Transition Project, Project 2025 or the 2025 plan.

Right-wing think tank, the Heritage Foundation, has been involved with setting the Republican agenda since Ronald Reagan’s presidency. Heritage boasts that in its Mandate for Leadership over 60% of their suggestions became reality in the 80’s.

Project 2025 and the Mandate for Leadership are both the result of a 70 organization coalition including Heritage. The effort has been funded with $22 million so far. 

The entire project is the result of current Republican talking points regarding the administrative state, or “deep state.” The administrative state is a blanket term for every government agency, from the Department of Education, to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Internal Revenue Service. 

The rhetoric is based in the belief that these agencies are growing too powerful, are the result of Congress being weak  and are controlled by the left with the intent to target Republicans and block conservative agendas from implementation. 

The bureaucracy is composed of government agencies that are generally founded by Congress, with the job of overseeing certain goals or laws. The Food and Drug Administration, FDA,  was formed as a response to the Clean Food and Drug Act in 1906, for example. The first agency ever formed was the Department of Foreign Affairs, created in 1789, when the government and politics were dominated by original authors of the constitution.

Running a country, enforcing laws, regulating corporations, the environment and many more is tedious work, more work than one president or a collection of congressmen can shoulder. Agencies, which are constitutionally legal, oversee the nuts and bolts of the vast machine that is America. 

These agencies are not controlled by Republicans or Democrats, generally only the heads of agencies may be changed by new presidential administrations. Agencies are staffed by professionals and subject matter experts who are employed long term so they can grow their expertise.

When former President Trump took office, many of the more extreme policies he wished to implement were stopped by the bureaucracy, and his appointees had trouble being confirmed by Congress. This was not because Trump and Republican interests were targeted by the deep state or some leftist agenda. The 2025 Plan aims to prevent this the next go round, and push through the more extreme ideas that weren’t enacted his first term, this time by force.

The justification for Project 2025 is the Unitary Executive Theory, a theory which holds that Congress cannot limit the president’s control over government agencies because the constitution intended to establish a hierarchy where the president is most powerful. The theory was fleshed out by the Reagan administration’s lawyers, who were looking to justify Reagan’s overreaching deregulatory agenda. 

Project 2025 seeks to consolidate presidential power in a way that gives impunity from Congressional oversight, and offers complete control of long independent government agencies. This would be an increase in power that makes it possible for policies and agendas to be enforced by the president and his cabinet alone, with little to no oversight.

There are four pillars that comprise the 2025 plan, a personnel database to restaff governmental agencies (conservative Linkedin), an educational program named the Presidential Administration Academy, the 180 day playbook and the manifesto – the Mandate for Leadership.

The personnel database is crucial to the plan. The application to join includes a drop down where you select your political ideology, an inquiry into who most influenced the applicant’s politics and a portion to identify which living political figure inspires the applicant the most. Next is a series of questions, with answer choices being agree, disagree, or neither, with the final portion being a resume drop box.

Questions include, ‘Are police systemically racist?’, ‘Should the U.S. recognize more than two genders?’, ‘Are religion and “the family” foundational to America and the common good?’, and ‘Does life begin at conception?’. These questions are designed to determine the applicant’s views, and weed out those who aren’t traditional enough.

John McEntee, Trump’s director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office, and Project 2025 senior advisor, stated how crucial this aspect is. “The Presidential Personnel Database will be of extraordinary value…we are doing a lot of the incoming administration’s most important work ahead of time. Together, we are going to bring thousands of vetted, trained conservatives from across the country to Washington.”

The need for the database is caused by plans for the next conservative president to reinstate the Schedule F executive order. This would reclassify employees of federal agencies as “at-will,” meaning that their employment protections would be voided and the president would be able to fire agency employees much easier. Per the plan, up to 50,000 federal employees would be fired, creating the openings for a pool of indoctrinated individuals loyal to the Republican president.

These replacement employees would be required to complete the 2025 Plan’s Presidential Administration Academy. The online program guides applicants through gaining their security clearance, passing background checks and the dangers of the administrative state (the same state they would be joining). 

There are even courses on how the government functions for newcomers, meaning the anticipation and acceptance of candidates with almost zero qualifications or experience. Inexperience isn’t an issue, so long as employees conform to the president’s and the plan’s goals.

All the training is designed to prepare applicants who are deemed extreme enough to serve the next Republican president at the federal level. Applicants will be able to “immediately begin rolling back destructive policy and advancing conservative ideas in the federal government.”

These employees would flood the federal government on day one, equipped with the 180-day playbook they would be tasked with bringing “quick relief to Americans suffering from the Left’s devastating policies.”

The playbook is a comprehensive plan to target federal agencies, as well as consolidate the power of the president in an authoritarian manner. The playbook outlines how to implement and further the interests, which are expressed in the Mandate for Leadership, within just half a year. 

The Mandate for Leadership is a 900 page book that has hundreds of contributors, it communicates the overarching goals of Project 2025, as well as actions to be taken within many departments. 

In the Foreword, it is stated that both the United States and the conservative movement are in dire straits. This situation is then described as a result of the ruling and cultural elites, children being targeted by transgenderism and pornography in school libraries, a “totalitarian cult known today as The Great Awokening,” and welfare programs.

This is all used to prove the “very moral foundations of our society are in peril.” This is not a book or political movement concerned with policy, the concern is using policy in a way that crafts America socially, religiously and politically in manner to their choosing, by any means, in the name of morality.

The situation is then compared to the status of the Republican party in the late 1970’s, an era when the Moral Majority combined Christian Nationalism with the Republican party to mobilize voters and elect Reagan as president.

The book, subtitled “The Conservative Promise”, explains these promises after the comparison. The promises are restoring the family as the centerpiece of American life and protecting children, dismantling the administrative state, defending national sovereignty and borders and securing God-given individual rights to live freely.

Restoring the family, for example, is possible by deleting terms like sexual orientation, gender, abortion, reproductive health and reproductive rights from “every federal rule, agency regulation…and piece of legislation that exists.” By deeming pornography illegal, and then considering transgender individuals pornographic by virtue of existing. 

The restoration can be furthered by criminalizing the supposed child sexualization inherent in drag shows, sex education initiatives and banned books. Those who are deemed guilty of purveying materials, including teachers and librarians, would be punishable through imprisonment and the sex offender registry. Targeting abortion in “every jurisdiction,” and legislating against the “industrial-scale child abuse” that is social media applications, as they reduce the bond between parent and child, are also methods offered.

The mandate then moves into section one, taking the reins of government. It is stated that political appointees who are answerable to the president are fundamental, and that the next administration “must not cede…authority to non-partisan ‘experts.’” 

With the overarching goals established, the different pillars of the plan illuminated, and the proposed legal basis for such a power grab explained, it is important now to analyze the specifics surrounding individual agencies. It is also important to keep in mind that each agency, per the plan, would already be restaffed by the President’s loyalists, making the goals easier to achieve and enforce.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is composed of multiple agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). 

Regarding the CDC, the Mandate for Leadership singles it out as “the most incompetent and arrogant agency in the federal government,” based on the CDC’s actions during COVID, which supposedly trampled human rights, and medical choice. The CDC during COVID made the egregious mistake of closing churches for a period that included Christian’s holiest day, which showed the agency doesn’t care enough about “souls saved.” Rights were also trampled, supposedly, by mask mandates and encouraging vaccines.

The proposed fix is to dismantle the CDC into two separate agencies, weakening it, and reducing the CDC’s input in policy making. The CDC would also be directed to eliminate activities that undermine family formation, which could be any type of abortion related care or family planning. The CDC would also increase abortion surveillance programs, be stripped of vaccine related oversight functions and take a backseat to private corporations in regard to disease testing.

The FDA would be directed to increase competition in the pharmacological industry, which is mistakenly listed as a way to reduce costs for consumers. FDA officials would also be tasked with undoing its approval of chemical abortion pills and ceasing their distribution through mail. 

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) would be subject to vast changes through Project 2025. The Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights would be eliminated, and the EPA would be forced to focus on compliance through building relationships with companies and corporations rather than enforcement.

A Day One executive order would be drafted ahead of time for the Republican president, with goals to stop every grant to advocacy groups, begin editing existing rules, implement new rules, reduce full time employees and fire new hires in “low-value” programs. There would also be a focus on strengthening the position of states in environmental regulation, which could have disastrous effects on the environment in Republican areas, or areas more concerned with profits and corporate interest. 

Essentially, the EPA would be hamstrung through loss of personnel, loss of authority and loss of enforcement ability. Along with dealing with the usual Republican goals of cutting spending, with the Office of Water being “one very targeted area where increased spending would be in the nation’s interest.”

The Department of Education (DOE) would take a vastly limited role, and may even be completely eliminated under Project 2025, as stated in the mandate and mainstream Republican sentiments. In order to improve education, the Mandate for Leadership believes in furthering school choice and voucher initiatives, increased state control over funding, “protecting the federal student loan portfolio from predatory politicians” by ending any type of loan forgiveness and protecting civil rights by rejecting gender ideology and critical race theory.

The plan also calls for removing the Office for Civil Rights, Office for Postsecondary Education and Institute of Educational Sciences, while greatly weakening the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. 

None of these actions would do anything to improve education or the DOE, these actions would be taken with the intention to wholly weaken the department and ensure what is taught in schools adheres to or promotes a conservative, religious, pro-American worldview. Protecting civil rights by not teaching about them is hypocritical. Describing loan forgiveness as predatory is a bad-faith argument, an argument that ignores the true predation that exists in out of control price hikes for tuition, and the predatory nature of the loan business itself.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) would be in for a “top-to-bottom overhaul,” as the authors admit that not accomplishing so would guarantee the failure of the agenda in “countless other ways.” This overhaul is described as energetic and holistic in nature. 

The DOJ would be used to aid jurisdictions with “rule-of law deficiencies,” think every big city that is constantly subject to Fox News’ fear mongering, like Portland, Seattle, San Francisco, New York, etc. The DOJ would overstep their boundaries, prosecuting and imprisoning those not targeted by local or state personnel, since prosecutors in these areas have “abdicated this duty.” The DOJ’s Civil Rights Division would also be reorganized and refocused.

District Attorneys who do not perform to the standard of the Republican president would be subject to legal action. Any policies, investigations, or cases that are contrary to presidential goals would be ceased, and it would be ensured that every litigation decision is consistent with the presidential agenda as well. The death penalty would be pushed in a way that would make Nixon blush, “until Congress says otherwise.” Lastly, a campaign to enforce criminal prohibitions on those who distribute abortion pills by mail would be announced.

In order to combat criminal organizations, the DOJ would be forced to prosecute as much drug activity as possible, including simple possession offenses, and reinvigorate use of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). Listed with combating criminal organizations is securing the border, which is described as operationally controlled by cartels. Securing the border would include finishing the wall, utilizing the military, and a “creative…aggressive approach.” Cartels are then portrayed as operating freely without any concern for criminal prosecution.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) would be subject to the termination of investigations deemed unlawful or contrary to national interest, prohibited from combating misinformation, the elimination of any office that would not require congressional approval and the downsizing of the FBI headquarter’s personnel.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is a non-profit, taxpayer funded organization that gives aid to radio, television, and journalism groups, including PBS, NPR and Pacifica Radio.

According to the Mandate for Leadership, the CPB shouldn’t receive a penny from Congress, and this action should be spearheaded by the President from the “bully-pulpit.”

This denial of money is solely because the organizations funded through the CPB have, according to the Mandate, demonstrated a pattern of bias. This pattern is based on the belief that NPR and PBS do not try to attract a conservative audience through their material, so they should not receive funding. These media companies are deemed noneducational because they do not pander to Republican interests, an example of just how far reaching and authoritative Project 2025 is. 

This is, but a brief recap of some of the agencies outlined in the Mandate for Leadership. The sections for each agency are up to 60 pages, and the document in whole is over 900. Every agency could be subject to similar reforms and weaponization.

While the direct effects of Project 2025 would be debilitating, the plan as a whole symbolizes the affection some on the American political right currently have for authoritarianism, and the desire to make a specific vision of America reality through authoritarian means. 

These sentiments are currently being capitalized on by former President Trump, many Republican politicians and voters are following the example he set.

Former President Trump is not mentioned by name in the plan, but with current Republican primary polling in mind, no other candidate has a shot to win the nomination. Trump is the de facto choice, and the proximity past employees of his administration have to Project 2025 is quite telling. 

In “Strongmen: Mussonlini to the Present”, NYU Professor Dr. Ruth Ben-Ghiat details the tendencies and circumstances around authoritarian leaders from the 1920’s to the present day. Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, Muammar Gadaffi, Silvio Berlusconi, Vladmir Putin and Donald Trump are all figures discussed throughout.

Following will be several characteristics of authoritarian leaders according to Ben-Ghiat, and an explanation of how these can be applied to Trump. 

Right-wing authoritarian leaders often come into office amidst investigation, or with a criminal record. Trump, before his initial run for President in 2016, had been accused of sexual assault from the 1970’s up through the early 2000’s. In the 1970’s the DOJ sued Trump and his father for discriminating against non-white rentors in their New York properties. Trump has been alleged to have some degree of mafia ties in the past, he was confirmed to have gifted nine luxury cars to Robert LiButti, an associate of John Gotti, in the 70’s. In November 2016, Trump paid $25 million to settle lawsuits stemming from a fake school he created, Trump University, he tried to silence and intimidate the plaintiffs during the proceedings, and blamed the result on the judge’s ethnicity.

Once onto the political scene, authoritarian leaders construct a cult of personality, of which they are the leader. A cult based off of machismo, while playing the victim and the aggressor simultaneously, and endorsing violence. Many who follow Trump believe him more than their families and their religious leaders. What Trump says goes, and what he says is often a lie, with over 30,000 cataloged throughout his term. 

During Trump’s presidency, he posted a photo with his face photoshopped onto the body of Sylvester Stallone from the movie Rocky 3 on twitter. Trump makes fun of political opponents (Little Marco, Crooked Hillary, Lyin’ Ted, Ron DeSanctimonious), compared himself to Tom Brady, touted his association with athletes, brought up his hand size in the 2016 debates, is known for rating women 1-10, and bragged about his ability to kiss women without their consent and look at pageant contestants in dressing rooms because he was in charge. All of this is an effort to seem macho, to seem manly, it’s explained away as locker room talk.

Trump thrives on, exudes and encourages extremely toxic masculinity, but this type of cult following is also created by a leader playing the victim, while simultaneously using aggression. One of Trump’s most consistent rhetorical decisions is referring to himself as the victim of a “witch hunt,” and in his four active cases currently Trump is denying everything and has even claimed he’s immune to prosecution. Trump has said that the judges in his active cases are biased. 

Any scrutiny that comes towards Trump, no matter how truthful, is met with criticism and denial. This habit of playing the victim, along with Trump’s love for telling his followers that an attack on him is an attack on them, creates a group that feels they must help him by any means, as it is equivalent to helping themselves. 

Through in person appearances, interviews, and social media posts Trump encourages violence, or is complacent when violence he supports occurs. In 2016 Trump bragged that he could shoot somebody on fifth avenue and he wouldn’t lose supporters at the Christian school Dordt College. In a 2020 Presidential debate Trump was asked to denounce the Proud Boys, a white supremacist, misogynistic, Islamophobic, xenophobic, antisemitic organization that engages in violent activity. Trump told the group to “stand back and stand by.” In 2020, Congressman Matt Gaetz R-FL, a Trump supporter, used the Proud Boys as security at a rally in Milton, FL. 

In 2021 Proud Boy members spearheaded the Jan. 6 insurrection, attempting to overthrow American democracy at the behest of Trump and his associates, during their trial the prosecutor claimed they viewed themselves as Trump’s army. After his election loss, Trump pondered declaring martial law, and deploying the military to key states with the job of re-running elections. In August of 2023 Trump suggested he’d jail his political opponents, and in September, Trump implied U.S. Army General Mark Milley should be put to death.

Trump consistently demonizes the press, a core practice of authoritarian leaders, and claims he is the victim of hostile reporting. In 2019, Trump declared the media the “enemy of the people. This is one in a long history of anti-press sentiments, sentiments that simultaneously strengthen the trust his supporters have in him while weakening their trust in anything not from Trump or a source/politician he endorses. Trump claims he invented the term “Fake News,” a term he uses constantly in hundreds of social media posts, rallies and press conferences to undermine the trust Americans have in reporting. Aside from being called fake news, Trump has called the press “human scum,” “bad people” and “corrupt.”  During Trump’s presidency the Justice Department increased investigations and the prosecution of journalist’s classified sources. Demonization of the press is a crucial tool for maintaining a cult political following, when looking at the conditions of cults in the traditional sense, the same is true. Controlling information that members receive, and disseminating information that only supports the leader, is crucial to maintaining trust and authority.

Lastly, authoritarian leaders often embrace technology, and use it to spread their messages effectively. Mussolini was among the first to use films as propaganda, the Nazi’s invested heavily in voice broadcasting technology because Hitler’s voice was moving to citizens, current authoritarian Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan communicated through a hologram in 2014. Trump gained much of the popularity he needed to become president by first being a reality television star, appearing in many movies and TV shows. Trump also began using social media early on as an important way to communicate with his followers. During his presidency Trump tweeted over 25,000 times. When Trump was banned from social media applications, he made his own social media, Truth Social. The name in itself is revealing, it shows the desire to paint what Trump endorses and supports as truth, while everything else is a lie or conspiracy. The creation of an entire social media platform just to give Trump a voice shows how valued mass communication is to Trump, and how powerful a tool it is. 

Project 2025 is damaging enough in itself, it is an authoritarian plot that is focused on undermining independent agencies by weakening their power, restaffing them, and weaponizing them at the behest of a unitary executive with more power than constitutionally allowed. If this plan were devised in a vacuum, without America’s current political and social environment, it would be less worrisome.

Concern is warranted because this blueprint for an authoritarian takeover was published just in time for the 2024 Presidential election, an election in which the clear favorite for the Republican party has embraced authoritarianism. Through the candidates cult following a similar mindset, or complacency when faced with that mindset, has infected many Republican voters and politicians, politicians who know opposing Trump is political suicide.

Authoritarianism as it is manifesting in America would be the end of democratic values, the end of election integrity, the end of a separated church and state, the end of factual information, the end of many aspects considered vital to our society. Republicans control the House of Representatives, and have packed the Supreme Court, a Republican President coming in aided by Project 2025 would be wielding power in a way America hasn’t seen before.

This power wouldn’t be granted by the people, it would be manufactured in order to force policies the minority of Americans support on a majority of Americans. The LGBT community has record approval, targeting abortion lost Republicans elections, Black Lives Matter became a global movement, healthcare for all has majority support, free or reduced state college tuition has majority support, the list goes on.

Allowing a minority of voters, misled and victimized by an authoritarian leader, to go against the will of the majority of Americans by fundamentally altering the structure of government is not an event that would be easy to overcome, and would go down in history as one of the biggest mistakes this country has made.