Project 2025 October 16th Update

Project 2025 is a 920-page plan spearheaded by the powerful and extreme far-right Heritage Foundation. More than 100 organizations support this blueprint for autocracy. Their stated goal is to create an “ideal” America that would see women, LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, people of color, and others deprived of their hard-won constitutional rights and the erosion of environmental and education protections. It also advocates for a frightening centralization of power in the executive branch. Rooted in hate and Christian Nationalism, the plan promises to “rescue the country.” Read GPAHE’s full analysis of Project 2025 and the groups behind it.

GPAHE tracks the activities of those behind Project 2025, and their plans for an authoritarian and Christian Nationalist America, no matter who is president, and the groups in this extremist movement are relentlessly implementing initiatives at local, state, and federal levels.

This week we look at the Heritage Foundation’s deep ties to Hungary and their newest blunder, Project Esther, the American Principles Project’s support of Project 2025, how Project 2025 could ruin baseball, and Charlie Kirk’s presidential fever dream. We’ll also hear from John Amanchukwu, Kevin Roberts, Charlie Kirk, and Joy Pullman in their own words.

Heritage Foundation Stumbles Again: From Project 2025 to Project Esther

The Heritage Foundation finds itself navigating increasingly choppy waters. The think tank’s recent foray into combating antisemitism, dubbed “Project Esther,” has raised eyebrows and drawn criticism from unexpected quarters, The Jewish Insider reports. This stumble comes on the heels of Project 2025’s growing pariah status among certain conservatives.

Project Esther, unveiled on the first anniversary of the Hamas attacks, was meant to be Heritage’s conservative counterweight to the Biden administration’s national strategy on antisemitism. Heritage’s  33-page report focuses exclusively on left-wing, anti-Zionist antisemitism, eschewing any mention of right-wing extremism. This narrow focus has not gone unnoticed, as hate crimes and terrorism by white supremacists targeting the Jewish community have sadly been on the rise.

James Carafano, who heads up the Heritage Foundation’s antisemitism task force, told  Jewish Insider that he doesn’t believe antisemitism is an issue within the American conservative movement. “I refuse to acknowledge that that is part of the conservative movement and that they are my problem, because white supremacists are not my problem because white supremacists are not part of being conservative,” Carafano said.

Carafano’s antisemitism task force which produced the report is primarily made up of evangelical and Christian Nationalist organizations who are also Project 2025 supporters, including the Family Research Council, The Heritage Foundation, the Independent Women’s Forum and the National Association of Scholars. 

Carafano defended the decision to exclude “traditional Jewish groups” from Project Esther. He argued that non-Jewish organizations are better equipped to combat antisemitism, a stance that has further alienated potential allies in the fight against hate.

Several high-profile organizations, including Christians United for Israel and the World Jewish Congress, quickly distanced themselves from the project after being named as participants, as several organizations did with Project 2025. The Republican Jewish Coalition claimed no knowledge of the report, while think tanks like the Hudson Institute and the Atlantic Council denied formal involvement.

Heritage’s struggles with initiatives like Project 2025 and Project Esther point to a larger identity crisis within the organization. Once known for its measured, intellectual approach to conservative policy, under President Kevin Roberts, the think tank now finds itself caught between its traditional role and the demands of an increasingly polarized political landscape.

Domestic Extremism = Patriotism: Provocateur Terry Schilling’s American Principles Project

Terry Schilling, president of the American Principles Project (APP), a Project 2025 advisor, raised eyebrows in October 2024 with a provocative statement on domestic extremism. “Another word for domestic extremism is someone who really loves their country and wants to support America,” Schilling declared on a Project 2025-supporter Tea Party Patriots podcast. This assertion encapsulates the combative stance of APP and its role in the conservative movement’s Project 2025 initiative.

Schilling’s organization, founded in 2009, has evolved into a significant player in the culture wars, particularly focusing on LGBTQ+ issues, immigration, and education. The organization’s self-proclaimed mission to be “the NRA for families” reflects its combative stance and desire to mobilize conservative voters around social issues.

Under Schilling’s decade-long leadership, APP has embraced aggressive tactics and messaging. In 2022, the organization conducted a poll in Maine under the assumed name “Maine Today & Public Insight,” raising ethical concerns and drawing criticism from local media outlets. The survey probed voters on hot-button issues such as welfare for immigrants, critical race theory, and gender identity — themes that align closely with Project 2025’s policy priorities.

APP’s approach to political advertising further illustrates its confrontational strategy. In 2020, the group produced a series of ads targeting transgender rights, which Facebook ultimately rejected for containing false and damaging content.

Schilling’s rhetoric often pushes the boundaries of political discourse. He has repeatedly misgendered transgender individuals and made disputed claims about transgender people’s participation in sports.

The organization’s financial clout has grown significantly under Schilling’s tenure. In 2022, APP reported revenues of $5.12 million, positioning itself as a formidable force in conservative politics. This financial backing has allowed APP to expand its operations beyond traditional lobbying and into direct voter engagement and media production. 

APP’s alignment with Project 2025 is evident in its policy focus and political alliances. The organization has been particularly vocal on issues such as dismantling diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in the military — a key component of Project 2025’s national security agenda.

The group’s involvement in electoral politics further demonstrates its commitment to reshaping government from the ground up. In 2022, APP targeted races in seven states, including key battlegrounds like Arizona, Michigan, and Georgia. This state-level focus aligns with Project 2025’s strategy of building a bench of ideologically-aligned officials to implement its policies on a local level, while at the ready to staff a future conservative administration.

Schilling and APP’s role in shaping and promoting Project 2025’s agenda is likely to grow. Schilling’s willingness to court controversy and push ideological boundaries positions APP as a potentially influential force in translating Project 2025’s broad vision into concrete political action on the federal, state and local level, no matter the results of the 2024 election. 

Fastball from the Right: Project 2025 Takes Aim at Baseball’s International All-Stars

As the World Series approaches, a political curveball threatens to change the face of America’s pastime. Project 2025, the authoritarian blueprint for a potential conservative administration, isn’t just targeting immigration policies — it’s on a collision course with Major League Baseball’s international soul, the Tribune News Service noted.

At the core of this looming confrontation is the H-2B visa program, long considered the conduit of MLB’s global talent pipeline. Project 2025’s proposal to limit or phase out this program threatens the diversity that has defined modern baseball.

The numbers tell a compelling story. Last season, foreign-born players comprised 25 percent of major league rosters and 38 percent of minor league teams. The Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Cuba have been prolific in producing some of the game’s most electrifying talents. 

The potential casualties of this policy shift extend beyond today’s superstars. Consider the journeys of players like José Altuve, who signed with the Astros as an international free agent at 16, or Ronald Acuña Jr., who entered the Braves’ system at 17. Under Project 2025’s proposed restrictions, these players might never have had the chance to develop into the MVP-caliber talents they are today.

But the threat extends even further. It’s the next wave of international talent — the future Shohei Ohtanis and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s — currently honing their skills in the rookie leagues, who stand to lose the most. These are the dreams Project 2025 seems determined to defer — perhaps indefinitely.

Project 2025, ostensibly aimed at “putting America first” could end up striking out one of its most quintessentially American institutions and the sport that broke the color barrier with Jackie Robinson. It’s a classic case of policy myopia, where the drive to close borders blinds policy makers to the collateral damage.

Heritage Foundation’s Hungarian Ties Deepen

Kevin Roberts, president of the influential conservative think tank Heritage Foundation that birthed Project 2025, was recently awarded the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of Hungary, The Daily News Hungary reports. Hungary awards up to 140 such awards each year.

This high honor, presented in Washington D.C., ostensibly recognizes Roberts’ role in strengthening Hungarian-American relations. However, the award also highlights the deepening ties between the Heritage Foundation and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s increasingly authoritarian regime.

Roberts has been an outspoken admirer of Orbán, describing him as an “impressive leader” whose efforts to “cause a conservative Christian political turn” in Hungary “should be celebrated.” 

“Heritage is proud of our policy work on foreign policy and national security. We are especially proud of our relationship with Prime Minister Orbán, whose leadership in Hungary on immigration, family policy, and the importance of the nation-state is a model for conservative governance,” Roberts said in a statement in March, after a March 2024 report in The New Republic suggested Heritage was receiving funding and guidance from Hungary.

This close relationship comes despite widespread concerns about democratic backsliding in Hungary under Orbán’s rule. The European Parliament has gone so far as to label Hungary an “electoral autocracy,” citing the erosion of press freedoms, judicial independence, and minority rights.

The Heritage Foundation’s relationship with Hungary extends beyond mere admiration. In recent years, the organization has actively collaborated with Hungarian government institutions and Orbán-aligned think tanks. In 2023, Heritage co-organized conferences with the far-right Danube Institute, a think tank funded by the Hungarian government. Heritage also signed a formal agreement allowing its researchers to work with the institute in Budapest.

These connections are particularly noteworthy given the Heritage Foundation’s role in shaping conservative policy in the United States through Project 2025, which presents proposals that echo some of Orbán’s policies in Hungary.

Project 2025’s Poster Boy: Charlie Kirk’s Radical Roadmap for America

Christian Nationalist Charlie Kirk, a fervent Project 2025 supporter who heads up Turning Point USA, recently indulged in a thought experiment about presidential power. 

When questioned about what the president should do on the first day in office during an October 13 podcast, Kirk took it personally, rattling off a series of measures he would take that dovetail perfectly with Project 2025’s Christian Nationalist agenda for an authoritarian administration. 

At the top of Kirk’s list? Bomb Mexico. “We’re gonna just go send fighter jets and we’re just gonna start dropping bombs on them,” he told the interviewer.

A high school graduate who has made his living speaking on college campuses for the past 12 years, Kirk has tasted power and clearly likes it. The intro to his daily podcast features a conservative pundit declaring “Charlie Kirk’s running the White House, folks!” followed by glowing soundbites from former President Trump, whom he considers a close friend. 

Kirk is fond of recounting anecdotes about his social encounters with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, like that time he encountered the former president wandering the empty halls of his Florida mansion blasting “Phantom of the Opera” on his iPad, or when Trump, out of the blue, took Kirk and his now-wife flying around on Air Force One on Easter Sunday, 2019. 

Kirk also revels in Turning Point Action’s politically-charged role as door knockers in swing states, boasting of their massive $108 million, “Chase the Vote” campaign as they send a 1,000-person army out to court conservative voters. 

Could Charlie Kirk picture himself in the White House? It doesn’t appear he needs much prompting, and he’s clear on what needs to be done to get the country back on the Christian Nationalist track he and Project 2025 espouse. Bombing Mexico is just a starting point.

The aforementioned interview was with Justus Smith of the far-right Proverbs Media Group. During the conversation, Kirk ventured out of his own daily podcast format of asking leading questions of guests prompting them to express extreme viewpoints so Kirk doesn’t have to. He also shed the master debater persona he embodies in campus debates where he frequently dodges questions from college students about his rabidly anti-trans comments by asking the rhetorical question “What is a woman?”

Instead, Kirk held forth on a wide range of topics, from the connection between school shooters and antidepressants to the CIA’s “well-documented” mind control experiments involving the Unabomber and Charles Manson. Kirk is particularly fascinated by the government’s “heart attack gun, where the CIA can make it look like you had a heart attack by just shooting, you know, a dart at you, taking a dart out. And then it mimics a heart attack.”

Kirk’s ambitions clearly go beyond college campuses and Christian Nationalist conspiracy fodder and beam straight to the upper echelons of power. Kirk noticeably perked up when discussing the direction in which whoever next wields the reins of power should take this country. 

At the top of his agenda, Kirk proposed aggressive action against drug cartels in Mexico: “Every single fentanyl plant, every single cocaine plant needs to be shut down. Here are the 15 locations. And if they’re not shut down, I’m gonna send fighter jets and we’re bombing ’em ourselves in 20 days.” Another foreign policy element would entail sending “China a big invoice for Covid.”

On immigration and crime, Kirk stated: “I would first and foremost, seal the border, deport the foreigners. Uh, so I don’t have to go through Congress. I could do whatever I want. Yep. Wow. I would, by decree, immediately, bring in the US military and the National Guard into the major US cities and stop the crime wave.”

On economic matters, Kirk advocated for drastic cuts: “We would dramatically cut taxes and the size of the federal government would be reduced significantly from 6 trillion a year to like a trillion and a half a year.” He also stated, “We would audit the Federal Reserve and we would balance the budget immediately.”

Kirk’s vision extends to defunding certain institutions: “I would defund Planned Parenthood and defund NPR. Oh yeah. Overnight.”

Kirk’s approach to education reflects a desire for radical change: “I would go into the education system and completely blow up the current form and fashion and make it bibliocentric again.” He emphasized putting “God at the center” of his governance approach.

That’s better than the devil himself and/or a mysterious cabal that is currently in power, Kirk opines. “The scriptures say that Satan actually runs the world, he’s the prince of this world, but currently there’s an oligarchy that’s really hard to pinpoint of who’s actually calling the shots,” he stated.

Despite his calls for concentrated executive power, Kirk paradoxically claimed: “I would be the first dictator in human history that would give power back to the people.” 

While Kirk may not currently hold the power he envisions, don’t count the 31-year-old out. His growing influence in conservative circles and support for initiatives like Project 2025 suggest that these ideas resonate with a segment of the population he believes he has firmly in his grasp. His statements serve as a stark illustration of the type of executive action some on the far right envision and hint at and where Kirk sees himself in the years to come.

In Their Own Words

“Beyond fostering the extinction of a childless West, single women typically give Democrats their electoral margins of victory, a margin Democrats use to destroy our society… Feminism has broken women because it has taken away their place in the world. Broken and unfulfilled women project their insecurities onto politics, ensuring extremist left rule that is seriously endangering our country’s security and flourishing.”

— Project 2025 supporter The Heartland Institute fellow Joy Pullman in an essay entitled “How Feminism Makes Everyone Transgender And What To Do About It,” October 10, 2024.