On November 5th 2024, it was announced that Republican Donald J. Trump had won the US election, beating his rival Democrat Vice President Kamala Harris, winning both the election and the popular vote, an outcome improved from his 2016 win against Democrat Hillary Clinton.
This result has been divisive, both in Europe and the USA, as some fear for the policies and ideas that Trump intends to bring in in his next term as the 47th President of the United States of America, a fear only exacerbated by the policy proposals of Project 2025.
But what is Project 2025? The 2025 Mandate for Leadership, or as it is more commonly known, âProject 2025,â is a 900-page document written by Trump Administration officials alongside The Heritage Project. The Heritage Project is one of Washingtonâs most prominent conservative think tanks and has been creating proposed policy plans for Republicans since Ronald Reagan ran in 1981.
Trump has attempted to distance himself from Project 2025, however; he has said that he will âgovern by a simple motto: promises made, promises kept. Weâre going to keep our promises.â Additionally, a year into Trumpâs first presidential term, The Heritage Project bragged that the White House had adopted nearly two-thirds of its proposals, so the influence that The Heritage Project has over Republican governments is nothing to diminish.
So, what is listed in Project 2025 that makes the document so divisive and controversial? Here is a breakdown of some of Donald Trumpâs key upcoming policies and the infamous 900-page document.
Abortion Access
Trump has proudly taken credit for the controversial overturning of Roe vs. Wade in 2022, with Trump being quoted to have said, âAfter 50 years of failure, with nobody coming even close, I was able to kill Roe v. Wade, much to the âshockâ of everyone.â
Overturning Roe vs. Wade ended the federal right to abortion in the United States and gave states the power to regulate and ban abortions. Project 2025 calls for the reversal of the FDA-approved drug âmifepristone,â more commonly known as the abortion pill. It also calls for the revivification of The Comstock Act, a 19th-century law that banned any abortive medications or equipment to be sent through the US Postal Service.
There is also speculation that the Trump Administration would pass a national abortion ban across the whole of the States, however, this has not been confirmed by Trump yet.
Governmental Control
Project 2025 proposes a concept called âunitary executive theory,â which would place the entire federal bureaucracy, including independent agencies such as the Department of Justice under direct presidential control. This concept argues that it would âstreamlineâ law- and decision-making processes, allowing the President direct influence on pardoning and indictments. Project 2025 also calls for the elimination of the Department of Education and an entire overhaul of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which Trump has deemed corrupt.
This autocratic policy is likely to be implemented by the Republicans as Trump has unequivocally said that he will pardon the January 6th rioters who stormed the Capitol in protest of Joe Bidenâs victory, and âfreeâ those convicted of offences. Despite this riot being incited by Trump and resulting in several deaths, he argues they are âwrongfully imprisoned.â Similarly, âwithin two secondsâ of being in office, Trump has vowed to sack Special Counsel Jack Smith who is the prosecutor who indicted Trump for his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election and alleged mishandling of classified documents.
Censorship
Additionally, Project 2025 promises to censor academic discussions in schools regarding race, gender and systemic oppression and vows to cut funding for schools that teach these subjects. It also goes further to ban âwoke propagandaâ terms such as âgender equality,â âsexual orientation,â and âreproductive rightsâ from all laws and federal regulations.
This policy carries significant controversy as it is argued that it is a violation of the First Amendment protecting free speech. This claim is credible as it is no secret that Trump has always had a hatred for journalism and the media. After his assassination attempt, Trump commented that he wouldnât have minded if journalists had been shot during the attempt. He has also threatened to remove the licences of broadcasters and media outlets he disapproves of.
Immigration
One of Trumpâs signature 2016 proposals regarding the Mexican-USA border wall has been revisited for the 2024 election, with Trump proposing further funding to fortify and finish the wall. Trumpâs top pitch to voters in this election was a promise to carry out the âlargest deportation programme in American history,â saying, âletâs start with one million and go from there.âÂ
Trumpâs words align with the Project 2025 premise, which suggests dissolving the Department of Homeland Security and creating a new, more united, and powerful border security force – one capable of carrying out Trumpâs huge new deportation programme. To boot, he also wants to abolish birthright citizenship, which would leave people stateless, and remove the DACA programme, despite the programme significantly boosting the US economy.
Consequently, the future of America is looking different to how it was under the Biden administration, or even under Trumpâs previous administration. With plans to roll back trans rights, female rights, LGBTQ+ rights and threatening the First Amendment, Trumpâs landslide victory is going to be a new era for America. Already, Trump has made history in two categories: Americaâs oldest President to take office and the first convicted felon to take office.
To conclude, with policy proposals that are borderline despotic and responding to public panic, Fox News asked the 34-count felon if he would abuse his Presidential power and he replied, âNo, no, no, other than day one. Weâre closing the border, and weâre drilling, drilling, drilling. After that, Iâm not a dictator.â
Sources
https://static.project2025.org/2025_MandateForLeadership_FULL.pdf
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-was-able-kill-roe-v-wade-rcna84897
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c977njnvq2do
https://www.aclu.org/project-2025-explained
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cev90d7wkk0o
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce9z0lm48ngo
https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/unitary_executive_theory_%28uet%29
https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2024/11/06/project-2025-policies-trump-president/
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/11/07/media/trump-news-media-press-freedom-threats/index.html