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As an avid consumer of news (I typically read between 30 and 40 news stories a day), I began noticing in recent months a new narrative coming from Democratic operatives and elected officials about Project 2025. At first, I was confused as to why this narrative was forming. After all, I have known about Project 2025 for a while. I had even participated in two Zoom conference calls with Spencer Chretien, associate director of the Heritage Foundation’s 2025 Presidential Transition Project (now called Project 2025), in which he discussed its purpose and goals and asked for help to spread the word and get more people to participate. After reading several articles and watching several videos coming from Democratic operatives and elected officials, it dawned on me. They think former President Donald Trump is going to win, and this is how they plan to poison the well.
Before I get too far, spoiler alert: President Barack Obama’s administration first began to radically reshape the process of hiring and filling executive branch positions by overtly directing ideological adherence in its hiring decisions. In December 2008, the New York Times ran an article titled “300,000 apply for 3,300 Obama jobs.“ This story highlighted the creation and launch of change.gov, which was born out of the Obama-Biden Transition Project, Inc. This was a dramatic overhaul of the process for incoming presidential administrations. The goal was to help quickly transition the executive branch by implementing, in part, a robust recruitment campaign that encouraged people who aligned with Obama’s vision of America to apply to work in the government.
This path to radically reshape the executive branch was successful under the Obama administration. After Trump shocked Democrats and the corporate establishment media by beating Hillary Rodham Clinton, the executive branch’s deeply ideological entrenchment became apparent. Trump’s administration was inundated with roadblocks and pushback from employees recruited and employed by the previous administration. This reality was the impetus behind Trump’s announcement of Schedule F at the end of his first term, a new job classification that removed civil service protections for some policy-related positions.
At the conclusion of the 2020 election, which resulted in Joe Biden being sworn into office as the 46th president, the goal of Schedule F died when it was repealed. It was at that moment that the Heritage Foundation began laying the groundwork of Project 2025. I cannot stress enough that Project 2025 is not and has never been endorsed by Trump or his campaign. In fact, amid the barrage of attacks on it, Trump has disavowed any connection to Project 2025. The goal and point of Project 2025 has been to create a roadmap and blueprint for an incoming Republican presidential administration should it actually want to have an executive branch with employees who aren’t actively thwarting the will of the voters who elected that president.
What has been truly amazing to witness is the sudden explosion of outright lies about what Project 2025 is and how it was a secret, not-so-secret plan by Trump to radically reshape America into a Margaret Atwood-esque dystopian America. One of my favorite examples of this cartoonish and patently absurd portrayal of Project 2025 was broadcast by comedian/actor/Democratic activist turned late-night talk show host Stephen Colbert. He called Project 2025 a “blueprint of a radical far-right takeover” of the federal government and bureaucracy. Colbert proclaimed that Trump will replace the fired government workers with an army of loyal conservatives he called “MAGA loyalists.” While entertaining, his commentary is devoid of truth. But more important, this narrative has helped poison the well and reduce the number of Americans who would otherwise like to be a part of this effort to counter the ideological shift left of our government.
Need proof? Literally buy the book “Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise,” aka Project 2025. Yeah, you read that right. The “secret plan” to reshape the executive branch of government was turned into a book and published by the Heritage Foundation. If reading a 920-page book isn’t your speed, I suggest visiting their website and reading the truth section. Decide for yourself.
