The presidential election landscape has been changed by several political parties throughout American history. These parties came into being due to the distinct challenges and different beliefs of various historical periods.
The US has a two-party election system which indicates that at all three levels of government, two parties control the political landscape. The two major political parties in the US are the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. Among them, there are broad political ideas and beliefs such as “liberal” or “progressive” at one end and “conservative” or “traditional” at the other. However, other parties also exist, generally considered as “third parties.” These include the Natural Law Party, Libertarians, the Green Party, the Constitution Party, and many others.
Which president—the former or current—will lead the nation for the ensuing four years will be determined by American voters in November. Each has to promote their presidential vision while analyzing the others. “Project 2025” has now become the most controversial topic in the US elections in 2024 and is shaping, not only the parties’ fate, rather the future of the US as well.
Project 2025: Presidential Transition Project
Project 2025 was created by the conservative Heritage Foundation on April 21, 2023. It is a set of conservative and right-wing policy ideas that provide recommendations for Trump’s agenda. It seeks to reorganize the US federal system and strengthen the executive branch, which the president has complete charge over.
Tens of thousands of federal civil servants are to be classified as elected officials, according to the proposal, so that their positions can be filled by people more inclined to carry out the policies of the incoming Republican president.
Because of the deeds of liberal politicians in Washington, conservatives have a remarkable and critical chance to begin fixing the harm that the Left has caused to create a better world for all Americans by the year 2025.
Winning elections is not enough for conservatives; there is a need for a governing agenda and proper people to be on board—who are prepared to implement it from the beginning of the next conservative administration to free the country from the radical Left. This is the purpose of the “2025 Presidential Transition Project.” It will be built upon four pillars: a 180-day playbook, personnel, training, and a policy agenda. Together, these pillars will pave the road for an effective conservative administration.
Though the project’s ideas are generally in line with Trump’s policy objectives, it doesn’t explicitly state that it is meant for him. Instead, it suggests that any conservative president may pick up the mantle and run with it. But the only major conservative party that has the chance to win is Trump’s Republican Party.
Key Proposals of Project 2025
Project 2025 puts forth the contentious “unitary executive theory” notion, which calls for the direct presidential supervision of the entire federal bureaucracy, including autonomous agencies like the Department of Justice. That would expedite the decision-making process and provide the president the authority to carry out several programs directly.
The plan suggests increasing money for a wall on the US-Mexico border, one of Trump’s top priorities in 2016. Additional suggestions include raising immigration taxes and enabling expedited applications for those who pay a higher cost.
The document urges the next president to “end the war on oil and natural gas” and suggests cutting federal funding for renewable energy research and investment. The focus would shift from carbon reduction to boosting the production of energy and security.
The text presents two opposing perspectives on tariffs and expresses disagreement about whether the next president should work to increase export barriers or promote free trade. However, economic experts recommend that a second Trump term should dissolve the federal reserve, cut income and corporate taxes, and even think about going back to a currency backed by gold.
The recommendations further include the prohibition of pornography and the closure of tech and telecommunication firms that allow customer access to it. The manifesto criticizes “woke propaganda” and advocates for parental authority over education as well as school choice. A comprehensive list of phrases, including “sexual orientation,” “inclusion, equity, and diversity,” “gender equality,” “abortion,” and “reproductive rights,” are to be removed from all government rules and laws. There is no national prohibition on abortion in Project 2025 but it recommends removing the abortion drug from the market.
Role of the Heritage Foundation
The Heritage Foundation is a think tank that develops and supports conservative policy ideas. It is situated in Washington, D.C., and has a long and established history of influencing Republican policy, going back to President Ronald Reagan’s Administration in the 1980s. Reagan carried out 60% of the 2,000 recommendations included in the Heritage Foundation’s 1981 manifesto, often known as the “Mandate for Leadership,” during his first year in office. After the Reagan years, its influence continued, although not to the same degree.
The Heritage Foundation asserts that it influenced House and Senate Republicans during Democratic administrations. The adopted recommendations affected policy under the administration of former President George W. Bush.
When Trump declared his run for president in 2015, the Heritage Foundation was not exactly on his side. However, Politico claims that the organization later played a crucial role in his transition team and that it had a major impact on appointments and policy during his presidency.
Kevin Roberts, President of Heritage, believes that the organization is currently “institutionalizing Trumpism” under Project 2025 to supply an intellectual framework and personnel database to the Republican presidential nominee in 2024. This 920-page mandate was written by 100 conservatives, most notably, former Trump Administration officials.
“We are in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be.”
-Heritage President Kevin Roberts, July 2024
“Systematically preparing to march into office and bring a new army [of] aligned, trained, and essentially weaponized conservatives ready to do battle against the deep state.”
-Director of Project 2025—Paul Dans, April 2023
When Roberts speaks of a “second American Revolution,” he historically refers to a dramatic bloody revolution. Rather than encouraging peaceful political processes, this word choice encourages a state of tension and violence. The Project suggests using armed forces to enforce domestic laws. Roberts’s statement that the revolution will not result in bloodshed “if the Left allows it to be” suggests that if the opposition resists, violence may occur.
An “Us vs. Them” mentality is fostered by characterizing political opponents as members of the “deep state” and by using phrases like “weaponized conservatives.” The probability of violent interactions can rise as a result of this polarization, which can dehumanize the opposition and justify harsh measures against them.
Trump vs Biden: Project 2025 in the Presidential Election Campaign
The 2024 presidential campaign has already started with 15 candidates initially. However, they have all already withdrawn from the competition. The Trump and Biden parties are seen mainly in the presidential race. The discussions surrounding Project 2025 will be crucial in determining who wins the US presidential election and who will take on a leadership position in the future.
Trump advocates his own Agenda47 program and has not formally endorsed the blueprint. However, the Biden team is capitalizing on worries that Project 2025 is inherently linked to his Republican opponent’s power scheme and is a prescription for totalitarianism.
Biden did not discuss Project 2025 during the first presidential debate on June 27. However, his campaign the same day unveiled a website portraying it as a plan by Donald Trump’s MAGA Republican allies to provide Trump greater authority in everyday affairs. Moreover, Trump will control democratic checks and balances, and consolidate power in the White House if he wins. Furthermore, the Project seeks to impose Christian principles on society and the government. That’s why Project 2025 has been characterized by Biden and other critics as a dictatorial, Christian nationalist scheme to establish a dictatorship in the United States.
They contend that it would threaten civil liberties, such as the rights of women, and the LGBTQ community, as well as the rule of law, the separation of powers, and the separation of religion and state. They argue that it would threaten civil liberties, such as the rights of women, and the LGBTQ community, as well as the rule of law, the separation of powers, and the separation of religion and state.
Project 2025 is an aggressive right-wing agenda being pushed by allies of Donald Trump. President Biden and other Democrats are focusing more and more of their attacks on it, which has caused Trump and his team to lash out at supporters of the effort, affecting both his campaign and voters.
To allay this criticism, former President Donald Trump made an effort on Friday to distance himself from Project 2025 and the conservative think tank. He claimed that Democrats sought to use it as a political wedge against him in the November election.
Trump said that he knows “nothing about Project 2025.”
“I have no idea who is behind it, I disagree with some of the things they’re saying and some of the things they’re saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal. Anything they do, I wish them luck, but I have nothing to do with them.”
-Donald Trump
However, the majority of Project 2025’s participants are connected to Trump. Ben Carson, the former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under Trump, Russ Vought, the former Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and Peter Navarro, the former White House Trade Adviser, under Trump, are among the individuals working with Project 2025. Additionally, Mark Meadows, the former Chief of Staff of President Trump in the White House, is a senior partner with the Conservative Partnership Institute, one of the organizations advising Project 2025.
In addition, during his 2017 speech as president, Trump showered the Heritage Foundation with praise and requested its help in carrying out his mission to pass his planned tax cuts via Congress. Kevin Robert, also gave a hint about the project when he said, “We have been working with all of them on one project since soon after Joe Biden took the oath of office before any conservative presidential candidates had even entered the race. If President Trump is elected again then he and his administration to take credit for that and it will be a success then it Lord is smiling upon America.”
“Trump does not want people to know about the entire vanguard of extremist weirdos around him—and what their plans are when he governs.”
-Chris Hayes about Project 2025
All of these connections offer compelling evidence of Trump’s close ties to the Heritage Foundation and Project 2025, but if he wins, Trump would have the final say over whether to put them into action.
Future Implications
In two significant polls conducted following the debate in June, former President Donald Trump increased his lead against President Joe Biden. The whole world is watching the election closely because there would be worldwide consequences if Trump were to win and put some of Project 2025’s proposals into practice.
People were always quite curious and concerned about the topic of America’s presidential election. The US is now engaged in two hot wars—the Ukraine and Gaza conflicts. Moreover, tensions in the Asia-Pacific region have increased and US-China relations have gotten worse.
Almost everywhere in the world, American leadership is important. The already volatile situation is made more unpredictable by the possibility of Republican Donald Trump winning, getting re-elected, and implementing his America First foreign policy platform. However, a lot of America’s allies are more worried about the potential return of an unorthodox president that they struggled to work with in the past. A few countries eagerly await his return, particularly, authoritarian.
Among many countries, Ukraine is more interested in US elections because the result determines the war’s fate.
“If the policy of the next president—whoever he is—will be different toward Ukraine, colder or more inward-oriented…then I think these signals will greatly affect the course of the war.”
-Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky
Though he hasn’t provided details, Trump declared he would terminate the conflict “within 24 hours” of winning the presidency. The Ukrainians fear he will push for agreements that would not benefit their interests. This narrative is very popular in Russia as well, where Trump has received special support from the media. Beyond Ukraine’s borders, a change in US policy would have an impact on neighboring European states as well, which would be very concerning.
Other American partners might find that the US is an unreliable security ally further afield. A US senator brought up the possibility that Japan may build up its nuclear arsenal if the US stopped supporting Ukraine, as Tokyo could find that there are just too many gaps in the US nuclear security umbrella. Additionally, there’s a chance that President Trump, once re-elected, would carry out his intention to remove the United States from NATO, therefore severely damaging the alliance.
The Middle Eastern conflict, the other hot war, has undoubtedly altered US politics in several ways. Younger Americans and Arab Americans are particularly hostile to the White House’s support of Israel, to the point where Joe Biden may lose a state in the election as a result. Israelis favored President Biden because Trump’s conservative, America-first policies, might not back Israeli operations.
Still, a shift in Washington might be welcomed by other Middle Eastern nations. A Republican president would be less likely to criticize Saudi Arabia and other nations regarding their human rights records. The US is deeply involved in so many regions of the world as a protector of human rights and democracy. However, the events of January 6, 2021—the Capitol Attack— made clear how unstable American democracy is. The entire world is now interested in learning how the country will perform in its upcoming major democratic test.
Project 2025 and even Trump’s policy proposals harmed the American image and provided an opportunity for other states like Russia and China to successfully create a multipolar world. Project 2025 could not only destabilize American democracy but also promote autocratic rule across the world. Moreover, identity issues and economic and anti-environment policies raise concerns at domestic and international levels.
In recent years, the world has faced unprecedented challenges: a global pandemic in 2020, a financial crisis, war in Europe in 2022, and the hottest year on record in 2023. The United States and other nations are interconnected in addressing these global concerns, and neither can effectively respond without cooperation from the other. Therefore, the international community has a vested interest in the outcome of this election, as the global response to these challenges depends on it.
Withdrawal Update
President Joe Biden declared his plan to withdraw from the 2024 presidential contest on July 21st. Democratic leaders and fundraisers put pressure on Biden after his dismal performance in a debate on June 27. When polls revealed that Biden was falling behind former President Donald Trump, Democrats demanded his withdrawal from the campaign.
Intending to unite the party and divert attention from the chaotic aftermath of the debate, Biden declared his support for Vice President Kamala Harris to become the Democratic nominee.
Harris’s takeover has given the campaign new life after it had stumbled miserably due to Democrats’ mistrust regarding Biden’s possibilities of beating Trump. Since Joe Biden announced his resignation, Harris—the first Asian American and Black woman to hold the office of vice president—has raised $200 million in support.
During her first campaign event, Kamala Harris condemned several aspects of the conservative Project 2025 blueprint regarding the possibility of a second Donald Trump administration and referred to vague Project 2025 ideas as “seriously extreme.”
Early polls after Biden’s withdrawal indicate that Harris and Trump are closer in voting gaps, but she is still trailing behind despite putting in a lot of effort. However, her entry into the campaign has further intensified the elections and made the outcome more unpredictable.
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The views and opinions expressed in this article/paper are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of Paradigm Shift.
Sayba Sagheer is an M. Phil International Relations student at Kinnaird College for Women, Lahore. Her areas of interest include defense and strategic studies, geopolitics, and foreign policy analysis of major powers.