Project 2025

This page is designed to explore Jess Pettitt’s Project 2025 and the Heritage Foundation’s Mandate for Leadership. Here, we aim to foster understanding, facilitate meaningful discussions, and create a space where everyone feels comfortable engaging with these topics.

PROMISES In no particular order

1. China is bad for the US, democracy, business, defense, and just about everything. (China is one of the four fastest growing power houses on the globe with Brazil, Russia, and India, and needs to be contended with one way or another as a communist country, massive land mass with a huge population, that contributes to the global economy whether we like it or not.)
2. National sovereignty is of utmost importance hence the lack of outsourcing or support for any collaborative agreement, treaty, organization, or alliance. This is putting the “us” back into the U.S. This also manifests itself in a dramatic need to control our borders and immediately remove the liberty enjoyed by undocumented people that already reside inside the United States. (Reserving commentary for now on who is the us in their us because that isn’t everyone and this seems to be the only priority that the expense, logistics or cost of implementation doesn’t matter in the slightest).
3. Free market economy, capitalism as defined by only the benefit to shareholders, profits based on supply and demand manipulation disguised as consumer choice therefore liberty and blessings rules the day as priority for wealth building (primarily through home ownership) with little to no regard to climate change, environmental impact, injustice, or inequitable opportunity. (This only follows when the emphasis on business owners is at the center of an outdated definition of the sole responsibility being to the return on investment of investors.  There is a complete rejection of a newer definition of business rooted in corporate social responsibility to stakeholders in our communities).
4. There is a priority to cease duplicative and wasteful government spending, downsize oversight and regulation generally, decrease bureaucracy, empower local municipalities, counties, and states, to represent their local needs best, end any future forecasting or predicative expense to focus on the right now, and align the “nonpartisan civil servants” employed by the government agencies with the President’s agenda. (Removing apolitical positioning streamlines the President’s agenda to be both accomplished without challenge but also broadcasted and reiterated uniformly to others – resist the urge to call these “others” stakeholders – and this messaging mirrors the needs of the “us” that is limited in scope and therefore doesn’t apply to anyone else).
5. To no surprise, a significant part of the “us” is a “biblical” nuclear family where the husband (not boyfriend – yes this is specified) is the breadwinner, the married wife and mother (no mention of a father role), provides childcare to children they conceived in communities as defined by marriage, family, work, church, school, and volunteering. (There is zero acknowledgement of those that fall outside of this strict definition of the “us” making single parents, unmarried and same sex relationships, infertility, those that choose not to have children, single adults, etc., and only those privileged enough to be focused on wealth accumulation vs. day-to-day survival irrelevant).
6. Identifying “winners and losers” based on mutable characteristics is in itself oppressive, silencing, and marginalizing just as guidance that isn’t codified as law creates unfair peer pressure for those that disagree with the agenda behind such guidance further silencing and oppressing those identified as losers in equity focused initiatives as well as those that are based in scientific findings forecasting the future. (The hypocrisy isn’t lost on me, but it is the bold irony of the argument that is the hardest to wrap my head around. I am truly trying to be charitable and understand the priorities, and this one is hard for me).

If you are still reading, go refill your beverage as we are on the home stretch.  Go on but come back.  It is my hope that I have created a sense of urgency to watch or listen and share these conversations as our form of resistance – knowledge, education, reflection, and follow through is the tool to get past our paralysis and shock or disappointment.  I would add that even those that are excited for this next administration – there is some explaining to do and much clarity needed that requires your attention too.  Remember we are coexisting already – we are in this together – not two rival teams.  Go refill and come back.

Ok – you are back.  Here is your prize – my scary moments and my hope moments.

Let me first manage expectations.  Yes, there were two sentences specifically that keep me up at night.  Out of 922 pages, two sentences is less than I was expecting but the reality of this fear is real and much bigger than I imagined.  The gems of hope are just that – like a plastic rhinestone stuck to a grocery cart wheel – it is still shiny and I will take the hope no matter how small in a sea of darkness.

Two scary sentences with three dashes of Scary Spice on top

1. Privatizing the disposal of nuclear waste. I remember when Rick Perry was in charge of the Department of Energy and there was a deal that fell through and somehow may be related to how he had to step down during Trump’s first term regarding nuclear waste disposal in west Texas.  This comes up because we don’t currently have a great disposal process and if nuclear proliferation expands in the future this is going to be more and more of a concern and I can’t help but think of all of the bossy I have had that were in positions that showcased their incompetence being at a table making this decision based on profitability.
2. Disasters need to be foreseen and have a clear definition of when it is over. Referencing primarily COVID with a dash of interest around natural disasters, this idea is that disasters can be scheduled, remain constant, and end within a specific and accurate amount of time (yet NOAA is challenged for their “fatal conceit of planning for the unplannable.”  This is convenient and efficient and not how science, biology, or things work.  I agree that I wish it did, but viruses mutate, weather in unpredictable, and risk mitigation isn’t perfect.  What scares me is the lack of complexity allowed to be part of our decisions and a naïve assumption that limited forecasting will hold consistent over time as if one variable change doesn’t then have an effect on everything around it.  This myopic worldview mimics the shareholder not stakeholder consideration and the truth are on a small percentage of the population even make it to shareholder status.
3. Many of the chapters only focus on tiny portions of the assigned department of focus. There is little to zero mention of major initiatives that will be arbitrarily moved to some other department that in that chapter advocates for the whole thing to be outsourced or shut down completely.  The programs receiving zero attention may appreciate the safety in the shade and millions of people are dependent on these programs with no clear connection to the President’s agenda.
4. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard doesn’t seem to have a rightful home anywhere and is both the catch all and forgotten branch of the military.  It is the common variable when asking who is going to take on this responsibility as often as it is left out, dismissed, or demeaned in it value.  As someone that lives on a cliff on the ocean and see the very complicated swaths of responsibilities the “coasties” do on a regular basis, it serves as a scary example of what happens with the left and the right hand (in this case) aren’t communicating meanwhile real lives are in the balance.  Departments of Homeland Security, Transportation, Commerce, and Treasury, (off the top of my head), have plans for you Coast Guard and they haven’t talked to one another at all about them.
5. The emphasis to trust markets and not government regulations or oversight because it is in collusion with the private sector. Not the private sector that agrees with the President’s agenda – that collusion is good.  The private sector and liberal states, especially California, are peer pressuring the other parts of the market and that is the doom we will all face.  This is a consistent bass line.  Please let me know if it makes sense to you.  It scares me because of the harm that can happen with this argument.

A baker’s dozen barely visible glimmers of hope

1. After years of educating so many organizations about sex not being as they say “biological binary meaning,” sexual orientation and gender identity (as well as gender roles and expression) (aka SOGI), gender affirming care, LGBTQ+ language, though it was in sentences dedicated to dehumanizing these communities, relationships, marriages, businesses, families, refugee status, and the like, the words were in there! The vernacular of hate progressed!  I said these were glimmers of hope didn’t I!
2. Miscarriage treatment and ectopic pregnancy care should never be conflated with abortion services. Yep, this sentence is in there too. Texas – you missed a paragraph.
3. Wait until super lefty progressives (anti-fa according to the Right) find out that the Heritage Foundation demands on day one that the US withdraw from WTO and IMF. This is for obviously very very different reasons – AND sometimes differing opinions come full circle, and the responses are the same.
4. As a Slytherin, I appreciate the prioritization of loyalty while also see the shortcomings of doing the wrong thing persistently.
5. John Ratcliff, Trump’s appointee for the CIA, is a Trump loyalist and election denier but would be the first CIA Director that has worked within the FBI and the Department of Justice which is potentially a very exciting cross over for the Intelligence Community even with possibly Tulsi Gabbard at the helm.
6. Basic human rights to thrive are defined as equal and safe access to potable water, sanitation, food, education, health care, houses of worship, justice, pregnancy and family resources centers, working capital, electricity, technology, and business opportunities.
7. Nondiscrimination and equality is law. Yes, they are saying this because they feel discriminated against and as if they now have inequitable access, AND, it is stated in such a way that isn’t codifying discrimination and inequality – remember these are tiny rhinestones of home.
8. Tuition assistance (instead of loan forgiveness). Yes it would be GREAT to have both and I like that tuition assistance (at least those connected to Veteran Affairs somehow) is included if public service or economic distress will no longer (maybe) qualify for deferment, relief, or forgiveness and regulations in general will be thrown out the window.  This rhinestone has mud caked on it, yet it is a rhinestone!
9. Growing the Office of Advocacy by at least 50% for small business owners that specifically includes an emphasis for minority business owners. I know right?  It seems that when on the chopping block, they realized just how many minority small businesses exist and it wasn’t worth the loss.
10. Religious exclusions or discrimination is referenced regarding health care options (abortion, stem cell (aka “baby body parts”) research that derives vaccination, taxation, funding, political action, locations, inclusion of legal firearms, could codify religious practices that aren’t Christian if pursued in the courts.
11. Speaking of courts!!!! There was an assumption that the Supreme Court would support the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and not only did this not happen, but Clarence Thomas also wrote the reverse opinion of the fifth circuit’s finding. All rhinestones matter – just like trade deficits.  (Yes, they make the declarative statement that all trade deficits matter – must have learned something from the #BLM movement!)
12. Two rhinestones worth of hope in the Federal Election Commission chapter! (D) Nevada Harry Reid is the only person that has ever denied the bipartisan appointments to the FEC that is mandated to be no more than 3 commissioners from any political party by denying a Republican’s appointment who happens to be the chapter’s author talking about himself in third person.  There is currently a sitting commissioner who’s term ended in 2007 as one of the three Democratic appointments because she hasn’t been replaced yet.  In order for any regulations to be enforced let alone tightened, 4 of the 6 commissioners have to agree.  The Republican’s never want to vote for enforcement so the Democrats never vote to represent the FEC in court.  This is a political stalemate. 
13. Ok – this is how my brain works and since this project I dreamed up made my mind stroganoff for a few days, I hold onto this rhinestone! Milton Freidman developed the shareholder theory.  Edward Freeman developed the stakeholder theory.  This is the kind of fact that I love.  Also, Abraham Lincoln created the Department of Agriculture in 1862 to support northern farmers that were assisting the Yankee soldiers.  Isaac Newton was the first Chair.  I know right. And let this be a lesson to you to keep doing your research.  Isaac Newton is not the physicist but a man with the same name – for a few hours though… my brain exploded that this could be a contemporary working relationship.

Overall, “people are policy.”  The closing words, Onward reemphasizes this in the words from the original author.  I couldn’t agree more, and I think we need to function with an understanding of a definition of people and who is and isn’t included in the community that mirrors functional policy.  And this brings me back to resistance.  As people, we are responsible for becoming more conscious of what is going on in the world around us.  We need to do our parts to reflect on working definitions, assumptions, and justified arguments and see where we align and don’t, based on what we prioritize, value, and hold dear. 

What better way than to question ourselves, disrupt our assumption, and normalize complexity so that we can really hang in tough conversations because of our faith, beliefs, values, ideas?  I am grateful that I have the time, research skills, and vast network of friends so that I can follow through with my big ideas. 

Signed, your woke nonsense diversicrat extremist leftist Marxist liberal DEI/CRT revolutionist, (there are their words to describe Democrats or those not loyal to the Trump Administration’s agenda – so it could be you too!)

Jess

Outside Source- I have learned a lot from StopTheCoup2025.org and encourage you to utilize it as a resource.

I am proud to share the full Project 2025 Project playlist here!  As the videos are shared and released – you can find them all here! Please share widely and lets get to work!

Quote Jolt- “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means” is from the 1987 movie The Princess Bride. Inigo Montoya says this line to Vizzini, who frequently uses the word “inconceivable.”

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