Trump’s Early Actions Mirror Project 2025 – Casson Living – World News, Breaking News, International News

Trump’s Early Actions Mirror Project 2025 – Casson Living – World News, Breaking News, International News

President Donald Trump was vocal during his campaign about his reservations regarding Project 2025, a detailed and controversial conservative policy framework developed by the Heritage Foundation. Yet, within just a few days of starting his second term, it appears that many of Trump’s early actions are closely mirroring the objectives laid out in Project 2025.

According to a recent analysis by TIME, nearly two-thirds of the executive actions Trump has enacted so far either align with or draw from the extensive 900-page document, which includes a range of initiatives from major deregulation efforts to rigorous immigration reforms.

Throughout the campaign, Democrats pointed out Trump’s connections to Project 2025, emphasizing that many individuals who contributed to the framework had previously collaborated with him or were part of his inner circle. Trump repeatedly asserted that he was unaware of who was behind the conservative agenda, describing some of its proposals as “utterly absurd and dreadful.” However, after securing the presidency, he softened his stance, stating to TIME in November, “I don’t disagree with everything in Project 2025, but there are certain aspects I take issue with.”

Despite his earlier denials, several key figures involved in developing Project 2025, including Russell Vought and Brendan Carr, have been appointed to prominent positions in his Administration. Vought was tapped to lead the Office of Management and Budget, while Carr was selected to chair the Federal Communications Commission. The Heritage Foundation declined to comment on these developments.

A White House spokesperson told TIME that Trump “had no connection to Project 2025” and emphasized that his initial batch of executive orders “fulfills the commitments that won him a decisive mandate from the American public—enhancing border security, restoring common sense, reducing inflation, and unleashing American energy.”

When Project 2025 was launched in April 2023, it served as a comprehensive strategy for a future Republican presidential administration, aiming to realign the federal government with conservative, free-market principles. This agenda includes aggressive deregulation, tougher immigration policies, challenges to civil rights protections, and a significant downsizing of the federal workforce, all aimed at decreasing governmental size and reinforcing executive authority.

While many of Trump’s executive actions resonate with the proposals outlined in Project 2025, not all fully align with the framework’s recommendations. For example, initiatives like declaring an energy emergency and contesting birthright citizenship aren’t explicitly referenced in the document. Nonetheless, a variety of executive actions initiated by the new administration reflect the central themes of Project 2025, especially concerning immigration reform, governmental restructuring, and deregulation.

“I suspect many liberal think tanks are envious that a conservative think tank holds such sway over the policy agenda,” observes Bill Galston, chair of the Brookings Institution’s Governance Studies program and a former advisor to President Bill Clinton. He adds that while the influence of think tanks is significant, it “is likely to wane once the President and the Republican majority in Congress begin working together on legislation.”

In adopting elements of the Heritage Foundation’s agenda, Trump’s second term appears to be guided by a vision established before his return to the White House. Skye Perryman, the chief executive of Democracy Forward—a legal organization that recently launched Democracy 2025, a resource center monitoring the new administration’s actions—comments, “This is a strategy we’ve witnessed before and expected would materialize. The real letdown is that on the campaign trail, Trump didn’t fully disclose his agenda to the American people. He acted as if he had no connection to Project 2025, while it’s evident he’s working to accelerate that agenda.”

Let’s delve into some of the parallels between Trump’s executive actions and Project 2025.

Immigration and Border Security

Trump’s early actions regarding immigration and border security align closely with Project 2025’s vision of a more aggressive and militarized immigration enforcement strategy. For example, the framework suggests deploying active-duty military personnel and National Guard members to assist with border security efforts, including making arrests. Trump took swift action by signing an executive order on his first day in office to deploy National Guard troops to the southern border.

Moreover, Trump signed an executive order suspending the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, reflecting Project 2025’s recommendation for an “indefinite halt” on refugee admissions. He has also sought to extend restrictions on asylum seekers and pause certain immigration pathways—policies that resonate with Project 2025’s calls for limiting refugee and asylum programs as part of a broader immigration control strategy.

Environment and Energy Policy

Trump’s initial actions in the realm of environmental regulations and energy policy echo the recommendations of Project 2025, particularly its opposition to climate change initiatives perceived by some Republicans as overly burdensome to American businesses.

On his first day back in office, Trump signed an executive order promoting the use of Alaska’s abundant energy resources, aligning with Project 2025’s call to expand oil and gas drilling in the region. The blueprint advocates for exploring Alaska’s energy resources to bolster national security, highlighting the importance of tapping into natural resources “as a counter to rising Russian and Chinese interests in Antarctica.” Trump’s executive order established a policy for resource extraction in Alaska, instructing federal agencies to expedite permitting, leasing, and development, particularly concerning liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects.

Additionally, Trump re-signed an executive order withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement, a signature move from his first term that directly aligns with Project 2025’s position. The framework suggests that exiting international climate accords would enhance national sovereignty and economic competitiveness by removing restrictions on industries. “The next conservative Administration should rescind all climate policies from its foreign aid programs (specifically USAID’s Climate Strategy 2022–2030); eliminate the agency’s offices, programs, and directives supporting the Paris Climate Agreement; and narrowly limit funding to traditional climate mitigation efforts,” states Project 2025.

Read More: What Happened the Last Time Trump Withdrew From the Paris Agreement

Furthermore, Trump has taken steps to restrict offshore wind development, which Project 2025 identifies as part of an agenda aimed at limiting substantial areas of the ocean from commercial activities.

Government Reform and Bureaucratic Restructuring

A core objective of Project 2025 is to reshape the federal bureaucracy, diminishing its size and influence while empowering the executive branch. Trump initiated several executive orders on his first day in office that reflect these aims.

He revived the Schedule F executive order—a policy originally proposed in 2020 that aims to reclassify certain federal employees as political appointees, simplifying the process for their dismissal. Project 2025 advocated for this policy’s revival. This move has sparked concerns among Democrats and civil service advocates, who view it as an attack on the independence of the federal workforce. Trump argues it is essential for eliminating political bias and inefficiency within government agencies, a point central to both his agenda and the broader goals of Project 2025.

Project 2025 also advocates for significant cuts to the federal workforce, focusing on reducing regulations and eliminating agencies deemed unnecessary or counterproductive. Trump’s early actions indicate he is taking steps in this direction, such as streamlining government operations, implementing a hiring freeze for all federal civilian employees, and aiming to reduce the size and scope of regulatory agencies. Although these actions do not exactly mirror Project 2025’s specific proposals—like abolishing the Departments of Homeland Security and Education—they reflect the overarching philosophy of minimizing the government’s footprint.

Cultural Issues

Trump has also adopted several social policy changes that align with Project 2025’s stance, particularly regarding gender identity and diversity initiatives. One of his first executive orders reversed protections implemented during the Biden administration for transgender individuals in the military, reinstating a ban on transgender service members, which corresponds with Project 2025’s recommendation to “firmly state that men and women are biological realities” and eliminate policies that conflate gender identity with biological sex.

Additionally, Trump has taken steps to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives within the federal government. One executive order rescinded policies requiring federal contractors to endorse affirmative action and diversity programs, consistent with Project 2025’s call to eliminate initiatives that advocate for racial or gender-based quotas.

Foreign Relations

Trump’s early actions also indicate a shift back to a more isolationist and unilateral foreign policy stance, aligning with Project 2025’s perspectives on international agreements and alliances. He signed an executive order to withdraw the U.S. from the World Health Organization, marking a return to the foreign policy positions that defined much of his first term. Project 2025 explicitly advocated for this step, labeling the WHO as an ineffective and politically biased organization that undermines American sovereignty.

In addition to his exit from the Paris Agreement, Trump has taken measures to distance the U.S. from various international collaborations, consistent with the isolationist philosophy outlined in Project 2025. One executive order asserts, “no further United States foreign assistance shall be disbursed in a manner that is not fully aligned with the foreign policy of the President of the United States,” claiming that the “foreign aid industry and bureaucracy do not align with American interests and often contradict American values.”