Award shows are known for drama: we remember Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the 94th Academy Awards in 2022. However, this is not in the category of Taraji P. Henson – at the 2024 BET Awards – calling out Project 2025 which aims to change the course of the United States drastically.
Project 2025, a comprehensive plan developed by conservative think tanks and activists of the Heritage Foundation, has been gaining attention as a potential roadmap for a future Republican administration.
This ambitious initiative, if implemented, could dramatically reshape the federal government and American society. And Henson, hinting at the magnitude said at the BET, “Did you know that it is now a crime to be homeless? Pay attention. The Project 2025 plan is not a game. Look it up!”
Here’s what the United States might look like under such a plan detailed in over 900 pages:
At its core, Project 2025 aims to reduce the size and scope of the federal government significantly. One of the most immediate changes would be a massive reduction in the federal workforce. The plan calls for firing up to 50,000 civil servants deemed to be members of the “deep state,” replacing them with ideologically aligned personnel. That sounds like some jargon. What it really means is that the plan will only allow the employment of people with ‘conservative’ ideologies into such roles. This portends a fundamental shift in how government agencies operate and implement policies.
This gets clearer when page 27 of the Project 2025 document reads, “Moreover, while a candidate with elite credentials might seem ideal, the best one will be above all loyal to the President and the Constitution.” You might not give this much thought as it also says “the constitution” until you remember that the Supreme Court recently made a ruling on Presidential Immunity which allows anything that can be put under “core constitutional powers”
Calling a spade what it is, Colin Seeberger, a senior adviser at liberal think tank Center for American Progress, reacts this way: “Project 2025 is really an authoritarian playbook that seeks to basically do away with the 250-year-old system of checks and balances that American democracy was built on. American democracy is not guaranteed. Democracies all over this world have fallen before, and they have backslid into authoritarianism. And that is exactly what Project 2025 proposes.”
Environmental regulations would see a dramatic rollback. The Environmental Protection Agency could be stripped of much of its authority, potentially leading to increased industrial activity and raising concerns about air and water quality. Climate change initiatives would likely be abandoned, with a renewed focus on fossil fuel production.
Imagine a world that doesn’t care about the sea level rising, greenhouse waste, pollution and the ozone layer getting wiped off. Feel free to keep imagining how far this could go.
In education, the Department of Education might be eliminated entirely, with control over curricula and standards shifting more decisively to states and local districts. This could result in significant disparities in educational content and quality across the country.
You may have been annoyed at the banning of books from schools or the enforcement of the study of the Bible by Oklahoma in its school curriculums, but Project 2025 takes it a notch higher and might be a steep slope to having students with our own version of Heil Hitler!
The plan also envisions a more aggressive approach to immigration, potentially including the deployment of military forces to the southern border and a significant expansion of deportation efforts. This could have far-reaching effects on the U.S. economy and demographic composition considering the contribution of immigrants to the nation
In terms of healthcare, efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act would likely intensify, with a push towards more market-driven healthcare solutions. Medicaid takes a direct hit and this could lead to reduced access to healthcare for some Americans but potentially lower costs for others as inferred from the Centre for American Progress
Foreign policy under Project 2025 would likely be more isolationist, with potential withdrawal from international agreements and organizations. Trade policies might become more protectionist, possibly affecting global economic relationships.
Supporters of Project 2025, including imprisoned Steve Bannon, argue that these changes would lead to a more efficient government, lower taxes, and greater individual liberty. Critics including Professor Erwin Chemerinsky of UC Berkeley Law School, however, warn of potential threats to civil rights, environmental protections, and social safety nets.
It’s important to note that the full implementation of Project 2025 would require not only executive action but also significant legislative support and likely face legal challenges. The actual impact, if ever realized, might differ from the current blueprint.
If elected, ex-President Donal Trump, who has been linked to the project, would wield the requisite power. Trump has tried to distance himself from with a post on Truth Social, saying, “I know nothing about Project 2025. I have no idea who is behind it”
However, this is hard to believe as CNN has found nearly 240 people that link him to Project 2025. These people span almost throughout Trump’s political career and the White House including Steven Groves, Christopher Miller, Paul Dans, Peter Navarro, Ben Carson.
As the United States approaches another election cycle, the debate around Project 2025 serves as a stark reminder of the deeply divergent visions for America’s future that exist within its political landscape. Whether this plan remains a conservative aspiration or becomes a blueprint for governance will depend on the choices American voters make in the coming years, and this is why we are also telling you to ‘look it up’
