Project 2025 September 11th 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 transition to an aggressive political operative seeking to influence the 2024 election, how Project 2025 threatens election integrity, Leonard Leo’s billion-dollar plan to “crush liberal dominance”, and how Project 2025 supporters are infiltrating academic and tech conferences to push their Christian Nationalist agenda.

Heritage Foundation: From Think Tank to Political Operative

The Heritage Foundation has undergone a radical transformation in recent years. Under president Kevin Roberts it has evolved into an aggressive political operative. This shift is exemplified by the recent activities of Heritage’s Oversight Project, which released a series of misleading videos about noncitizen voters. According to The New York Times, these efforts appear to be part of a broader strategy to influence the 2024 election. 

Roberts has been candid about the foundation’s new direction. On his first podcast as president in 2021, he stated, “If we’re going to save this country, it’s time to go on offense.” This pivot aligns closely with the objectives of Project 2025, which seeks to radically restructure the executive branch and advance a hard-right policy agenda.

At the heart of Heritage’s new focus is an alarmist narrative about widespread noncitizen voting. Mike Howell of the Oversight Project recently told Glenn Beck on a podcast, “This is a criminal pattern where people come over with false names, they go through shelters and are able to get false documents, which we’ve proven, uh, nonprofits giving out fake residency documents. You have to look at the way they’ve designed the system.” 

For “Top Deportation Scientist” Howell, illegal aliens are everywhere if you simply look around, he told Beck. “I was walking over to the studio here, almost got hit by an illegal on a moped zipping around delivering drugs in Washington, DC,” he claimed before going into an intense rant about illegal invaders bent on taking over the United States. 

“Look at your children’s schools that are being overrun with illegal aliens and a lot of kids have to go into trailers because the schools are so crowded and basically converted to ESL-teaching babysitters. Look at your healthcare costs that are skyrocketing because we have to give healthcare, uh, to illegal aliens who use the ER as their basic primary care physician. Every single area of your life is negatively impacted by illegal immigration and that future is your destiny.”

The left, he argues, in concert with the current administration, is making a conscious effort to register non-citizens to vote, he claims, and they have an army of 10 million undocumented aliens to choose from.

Borrowing tactics from groups like Project Veritas, the Oversight Project has produced a series of videos purporting to show widespread voter fraud among noncitizens. Using their best attempt at a scientific method, undercover Spanish-speaking Oversight operatives pretending to be from an organization that helps Latinos register to vote went to an apartment building in Norcross, Georgia where immigrants live. They knocked on doors and asked 50 people if they were registered to vote and if they were citizens. 

Seven said they were, leading Oversight to the questionable statistical extrapolation that 14% of Georgia’s undocumented population, over 47,000 non-citizens, may have registered to vote.

These videos, which have gone viral on social media platforms with 56 million views on Twitter since July 31, 2024, paint a picture of an election system under siege from illegal voters — a narrative that stands in direct contradiction to Heritage’s own data.

Despite the fear-mongering, Heritage’s database documented just 23 cases of noncitizen voting nationwide between 2003 and 2023. This disconnect between Heritage’s data and its public messaging is striking, raising questions about the true motivations behind the organization’s current campaign.

Howell defended his group’s controversial tactics to Beck, saying, “We’ve been to Georgia, we’ve been to North Carolina, the team’s been elsewhere, uh, just doing these spot checks, speaking to, uh, non-citizens and asking them if they’re registered to vote. And the rate of affirmative responses is through the roof and should terrify every American who wants the destiny of this country to be controlled by Americans.”

The tactics employed by Heritage’s operatives raise serious concerns about voter intimidation. In multiple instances, individuals working with the Oversight Project have gone door-to-door in immigrant-heavy communities, asking residents about their citizenship status and voting history while secretly filming the encounters. This approach has left many feeling vulnerable and afraid, potentially discouraging legitimate voters from participating in the electoral process.

Marta, an immigrant from Honduras interviewed by The New York Times, described her experience with Heritage’s operatives: “I just wanted them to go away.” She explained that she had falsely told them she was registered to vote out of fear that refusing to answer might lead to problems with immigration authorities. 

Another woman explained she “gave the men at her door a fake name, and told them what she thought they wanted to hear ‘to get them away,’” The Times reported.

Heritage’s alarmist rhetoric not only contradicts its own data but also flies in the face of extensive research showing that noncitizen voting is exceedingly rare. The Brennan Center for Justice found that only one ten-thousandth of 1 percent of votes in the 2016 election were cast by noncitizens. These findings are further corroborated by a recent analysis published by the Cato Institute, which found that the number of votes cast by noncitizens discovered through state audits in 2016 ranged from three in Nevada, out of over a million votes cast, to 41 in North Carolina, where nearly five million votes were cast.

Heritage’s efforts are less about uncovering actual voter fraud and more about creating a narrative that can be used to challenge unfavorable election results. By focusing on the specter of noncitizen voting, Heritage taps into existing anxieties about immigration and demographic change, potentially providing a pretext for post-election challenges or stricter voting laws that could disproportionately affect minority communities.

The focus on noncitizen voting is part of a broader trend. Activists, Republican party lawyers, and state officials are mobilizing behind a crackdown on a supposed scourge of noncitizens casting ballots. This effort has led to questionable practices that echo Jim Crow-era voter suppression.

According to The New York Times, “One woman, a local party chair from Georgia, recommended scouring school enrollment figures to find neighborhoods with large numbers of migrants. Another, Darlene Hennessy, an activist from the Detroit area, recommended hanging up signs in “ethnic” neighborhoods warning people not to vote if they were not eligible. She also suggested searching voter rolls for certain types of surnames.”

As the 2024 election approaches, the activities of the Heritage Foundation and its Oversight Project bear close watching. What began as a conservative think tank has evolved into a political machine with the potential to significantly impact both public perception and the mechanics of American elections.

Project 2025: A Looming Threat to Election Integrity

As America gears up for another presidential election cycle, Project 2025 threatens to undermine the very foundations of our electoral system. Spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation, this ambitious plan to overhaul the executive branch under a conservative administration could dramatically reshape how elections are run and protected in the United States.

At its core, Project 2025 aims to dismantle many of the safeguards put in place since 2020 to combat election misinformation and protect election workers, the Brennan Center for Justice reports. The plan would effectively hobble federal agencies tasked with securing elections, while empowering those who spread baseless claims of voter fraud. Project 2025 represents a concerted effort to tilt the electoral playing field and potentially revive the “Big Lie” narrative that has plagued recent elections.

One of the most alarming aspects of Project 2025 is its proposal to gut the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), a crucial player in election security. CISA has been instrumental in helping local election offices improve both cyber and physical security, filling critical gaps for jurisdictions with limited IT resources. The agency also maintains an “Election Security Rumor v. Reality” webpage to combat misinformation.

As noted by the Center for American Progress, Project 2025 would strip CISA of these responsibilities and  leave local election offices more vulnerable to both cyber threats and the spread of harmful misinformation.

Similarly, the plan takes aim at the FBI’s efforts to counter foreign interference in U.S. elections. It would prohibit the bureau from “conducting any ‘activities related to combating the spread of so-called misinformation and disinformation by Americans’ outside of criminal investigations,”  the Brennan Center for Justice writes. This restriction would severely hamper the FBI’s ability to assess and respond to foreign influence campaigns, particularly when they intersect with domestic actors.

Perhaps most concerning is Project 2025’s vision for the Department of Justice (DOJ). The plan suggests abandoning the long-standing practice of DOJ independence, particularly in matters of investigations and prosecutions.

This politicization of the DOJ could lead to targeted prosecutions of election officials for decisions that federal appointees disagree with. The Brennan Center notes that Project 2025 explicitly suggests prosecuting the Pennsylvania secretary of the commonwealth for issuing guidance to protect mail voting access during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Such a weaponized DOJ could have a chilling effect on election officials across the country, many of whom are already facing unprecedented threats and harassment. The Brennan Center’s 2024 survey found that 38% of local election officials have experienced threats or abuse, with over a third knowing a colleague who resigned partly due to safety concerns.

While hampering legitimate election security efforts, Project 2025 simultaneously seeks to empower those who spread election misinformation. The plan proposes using the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to pressure social media companies into allowing more election-related falsehoods on their platforms.

The plan also aims to strip social media companies of legal protections under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, potentially exposing them to lawsuits for removing election misinformation. While these proposals likely violate the First Amendment, they send a clear message to tech companies: allow election lies to spread, or face retaliation.

Project 2025 doesn’t stop at government agencies and tech companies. It also threatens to supercharge attacks on researchers and civil society groups studying and flagging election falsehoods. The plan suggests using the DOJ to investigate and persecute perceived political enemies, escalating an ongoing campaign that has already involved congressional subpoenas and lawsuits by state attorneys general.

This approach builds on a conspiracy theory about a “censorship industrial complex” that includes government agencies, academic researchers, and private sector leaders working to provide accurate election information. By targeting these groups, Project 2025 aims to suppress efforts to study and counter election misinformation.

For those who closely follow American politics, the implications of Project 2025 are dire. If implemented, this agenda would significantly weaken our election infrastructure, embolden those who spread false claims about voter fraud, and potentially pave the way for future attempts to overturn legitimate election results.

The plan’s multi-pronged approach — gutting federal agencies, weaponizing the DOJ, pressuring tech companies, and targeting researchers —  creates a perfect storm for election deniers. By dismantling the systems put in place to protect election integrity and promote accurate information, Project 2025 threatens to plunge American democracy into a new era of uncertainty and mistrust.

The $1 Billion Crusade: Leonard Leo’s Quest to Reshape American Society

Leonard Leo, the conservative strategist known as Trump’s “Supreme Court Whisperer,” is expanding his influence far beyond the judicial realm. Recent tax documents reveal that Leo’s network funneled over $216 million to far-right groups in 2022 alone, a $34.1 million increase from the previous year. This massive financial operation underscores Leo’s growing power in shaping American politics and culture.

In a rare interview with the Financial Times, Leo unveiled an ambitious $1 billion plan to “crush liberal dominance” across the private sector, particularly in media and entertainment. “We need to crush liberal dominance where it’s most insidious,” Leo stated, outlining his strategy to build “talent and capital formation pipelines in the areas of news and entertainment, where leftwing extremism is most evident.”

Leo’s influence in conservative circles is hard to overstate. As the longtime leader of the Federalist Society and former White House judicial adviser, he orchestrated the appointment of three conservative justices to the Supreme Court during the Trump administration. This shift led to landmark rulings, including the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

At Benedictine College’s 2023 commencement ceremony, Leo warned graduates about “modern-day barbarians, secularists and bigots” who are “determined to threaten and delegitimize individuals and institutions who refuse to pledge fealty to the woke idols of our age.”

Leo’s financial network is vast and complex, involving numerous non-profit organizations and for-profit companies. The Marble Freedom Trust, which Leo chairs, controls tech mogul Barre Seid’s massive $1.6 billion donation — one of the largest political donations in history. Since 2021, Leo has directed $50.7 million to Heritage Foundation and other Project 2025 groups, organizations aiming to radically reshape the federal government.

His ties to Opus Dei, a conservative Catholic organization known for its secretive nature and influence in right-wing politics, add another layer to Leo’s network. Leo sits on the board of directors of Washington DC’s Catholic Information Center, operated by Opus Dei. Leo’s staunch Catholicism and his work advancing conservative causes align closely with the organization’s goals.

Leo’s financial activities have drawn scrutiny from watchdog groups and legal authorities. Washington, D.C., Attorney General Brian Schwalb began investigating Leo in August 2023 for possible violations of non-profit tax laws. The investigation focuses on whether Leo-affiliated nonprofits have diverted funds for his personal benefit.

Despite the growing scrutiny, Leo remains committed to his conservative crusade. “Expect us to increase support for organizations that call out companies and financial institutions that bend to the woke mind virus spread by regulators and NGOs,” he told the Financial Times, adding that these entities “have to pay a price for putting extreme leftwing ideology ahead of consumers.”

Leo’s influence extends to media as well, with plans to invest in a U.S. local media company within the next year. He’s also building conservative coalitions through groups like Project 2025 supporter the Teneo Network and supporting campaigns against companies implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives.

“The political environment is more topsy-turvy and more uncertain than it’s ever been in my lifetime,” Leo observed. “Political investing is not as good a bet as it used to be.” Despite this, he remains focused on his mission to find “very leveraged, impactful ways of reintroducing limited constitutional government and a civil society premised on freedom and personal responsibility and the virtues of western civilization.”

Leonard Leo’s billion-dollar crusade represents a significant escalation in America’s ongoing culture wars. His vast financial network and strategic vision are poised to reshape not just the judicial landscape, but the broader cultural and corporate environment in the United States for years to come.

Project 2025 Strategically Infiltrates Academic and Tech Spheres, Pushing Conservative Agenda

In a series of controversial moves, organizations and individuals associated with Project 2025  have been making strategic appearances at academic and tech conferences across the United States, pushing Christian nationalist viewpoints into spaces traditionally dominated by liberal, factual, and centrist ideologies.

The Heritage Foundation, a key architect of Project 2025, has been at the forefront of this push. Its president, Kevin Roberts, made a surprise appearance at San Francisco’s “Reboot: The New Reality” tech conference on September 4-5, 2024, catching many attendees off guard. The event, hosted by the Foundation for American Innovation (FAI), a little-known think tank and Project 2025 supporter, was ostensibly focused on cutting-edge technology and innovation. Roberts’ presence stood in stark contrast to the conference’s advertised content, with his responses to tech-focused questions often veering into conservative talking points about family values. When asked about Big Tech being “one of the greatest institutions in this country,” Roberts responded, “They’re not the greatest institutions in this country. The greatest institution in this country is the nuclear family,” the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

This presence isn’t limited to the tech world, Science-Based Medicine reports. In academia, Johns Hopkins University is set to host the “2024 Symposium on Health Policy” on September 11, 2024, featuring several panels with participants associated with Hillsdale College, a Project 2025 supporter. Stanford University is scheduled to hold a symposium titled “Pandemic Policy: Planning the Future, Assessing the Past” on October 4, 2024. Key figures in these conferences, including Dr. Scott Atlas and Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, are founding fellows of the Academy for Science and Freedom at Hillsdale College.

The infiltration extends to political science circles as well. The American Political Science Association (APSA) has welcomed back the Claremont Institute, a Project 2025 supporter, to its annual conference. This decision comes after the Institute’s absence since 2021, following its involvement in efforts to overturn the 2020 U.S. presidential election results. Claremont’s return, with seven panels at the conference, has sparked controversy among APSA members.

David Karpf, an associate professor at George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs, has been at the forefront of efforts to address the Claremont Institute’s involvement with APSA. In September 2021, Karpf learned that John Eastman, a former Chapman University law professor and Senior Fellow at the Claremont Institute, was scheduled to speak at the APSA conference. Eastman had played a key role in advising Donald Trump on strategies to overturn the 2020 election and had spoken at the January 6 “Save America” rally preceding the Capitol attack.

Karpf took action by writing an open letter urging APSA to revoke Eastman’s membership. This initiative led to broader efforts to remove the Claremont Institute from the APSA annual meeting.

Now, three years later, Karpf reports that the Claremont Institute has returned to the APSA conference with a significant presence. “Claremont is back. They have seven panels, with titles like ‘The Future of Civil Rights Reforms,’ ‘The Supreme Court’s Recent Term and Its Future,’ and ‘The 2024 Elections and the Future of American Politics,'” Karpf stated.

Karpf expressed concern about the implications of the institute’s return, stating, “In effect, political science professors’ annual dues are being used to subsidize a Project 2025 planning meeting.”

Even mainstream media outlets are not immune to this trend. As reported by The New Republic, The New York Times has invited Kevin Roberts to speak at its upcoming “Climate Forward” event on September 25, 2024, despite Roberts’ anti-climate change stance. 

“Cheap grace” aptly describes the Left’s love affair with environmental extremism. Those who suffer most from the policies environmentalism would have us enact are the aged, poor, and vulnerable. It is not a political cause, but a pseudo-religion meant to baptize liberals’ ruthless pursuit of absolute power in the holy water of environmental virtue,” Roberts wrote in the foreword to Project 2025’s Mandate for Leadership.

These appearances serve multiple purposes: as potential auditions for positions in a future conservative administration, as campaign-adjacent events promoting Project 2025’s agenda, and as attempts to normalize extreme conservative viewpoints within traditionally liberal environments. Roberts has even announced plans for a potential “Project 2028,” stating, “If Vice President Kamala Harris wins the election, we’re going to have a press conference outside the White House announcing Project 2028.”

The controversial nature of these engagements is further underscored by Project 2025’s ambitious goals, which include dismantling large swaths of the federal government and pushing a hard-right agenda across multiple policy areas. Roberts’ forthcoming book, Dawn’s Early Light, paints a picture of America under siege by a nebulous “Uniparty” — a concept that blends corporate power, academic institutions, and government agencies into a sinister cabal. Climate change is just another tendril of this perceived conspiracy.

As the lines between mainstream conservatism and radical ideologies continue to blur, the presence of Project 2025 affiliates at these conferences serves as a stark reminder of the changing political landscape. The battle for ideological influence is no longer confined to traditional political arenas but has expanded into the heart of America’s intellectual and technological centers, raising serious questions about the future of public discourse and policy-making in the United States.