Trump disowned Project 2025 — but vast majority of his executive orders use it: report

During the 2024 election, President Donald Trump ran away from any association with Project 2025, the controversial Heritage Foundation policy list that called for a right-wing ideological takeover of the civil service and federal programs.

But now he is in office, an analysis by Time Magazine reveals around 2 in 3 of his executive orders are at least partially inspired by Project 2025.

"When Project 2025 was published in April 2023, it was designed as a roadmap for a future Republican presidential administration, with the goal of reshaping the federal government in ways that align with conservative, free-market values," wrote Nik Popli. "The initiative's agenda includes aggressive deregulation, curbs on immigration, challenges to civil-rights protections, and a substantial reduction of the federal workforce, all with the aim of reducing the size and scope of government while reasserting executive authority."

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Not all of Trump's executive orders this week involve ideas from the 900-page policy project, one of the most notable being Trump's order to revoke birthright citizenship from the Fourteenth Amendment — a wildly controversial action that has already been paused by a federal court in Seattle.

However, "dozens of executive actions rolled out by the new administration reflect Project 2025's core objectives, particularly in areas like immigration reform, government restructuring, and deregulation," the report continued.

Moreover, a number of people associated with drafting Project 2025 are being tapped for key positions in the Trump administration, including Russell Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget, and Brendan Carr to chair the Federal Communications Commission.

Asked for comment, a White House spokesperson insisted that Project 2025 did not inform any of the agenda and that the executive orders simply “delivered on the promises that earned him a resounding mandate from the American people — securing the border, restoring common sense, driving down inflation, and unleashing American energy.”