In the United States, a conservative think tank has outlined a comprehensive policy blueprint for the next Republican presidential candidate – the “2025 Plan”. The plan has recently sparked controversy, with former President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump publicly denying any association with it.
Trump posted on the Truth Social platform on Friday, July 5th, stating, “I know nothing about the ‘2025 Plan’…I have no idea who is behind it. I disagree with some of their claims, some of which are absolutely absurd and terrible.”
He further clarified, “Whatever they do, I wish them luck, but I have no connection with it.”
The “2025 Plan” took to its official account on social media platform X on Friday, the 5th, stating, “As we have been saying for over two years, the 2025 Plan does not represent any candidate or campaign…We are an alliance composed of over 110 conservative groups advocating policies and personnel recommendations for the next conservative president.”
The “2025 Plan” also known as the “Presidential Transition Plan”, was launched in April last year. This over 900-page manual proposes a series of conservative policies, including recommendations for major reforms and restructuring of the federal government, reforms in the Department of Justice and the FBI, as well as addressing hot-button issues such as abortion and immigration.
The plan is led by Paul Dans, who served as Chief of Staff at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management during the Trump administration and currently serves as the Director of the 2025 Presidential Transition Project at The Heritage Foundation, one of the conservative think tanks behind this plan.
Many of the experts contributing to the plan have previously served in the Trump administration, including former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson, former Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller, conservative economist Stephen Moore who was nominated by Trump for the Federal Reserve Board but was not successful, former White House trade advisor Peter Navarro, and former Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought.
The controversy surrounding the “2025 Plan” stemmed from comments made by Kevin Roberts, President of The Heritage Foundation, on Steve Bannon’s online program “War Room” on Tuesday, the 2nd.
He stated, “We are witnessing the Second American Revolution, and if the left does not block it, it will be a peaceful revolution.” His remarks quickly spread online and sparked discussions.
In an effort to address the public opinion, in a statement released on the official account of the 2025 Plan on social media platform X on Friday, the 5th, Roberts reiterated his statement that Americans are engaged in a revolution aimed at “reclaiming power from elites and bureaucratic oligarchs” and stated that the left has a history of political violence.
While the “2025 Plan” provides recommendations for the next Republican president, if Trump wins, it will be up to him to decide whether to adopt these recommendations.
However, the Democratic Party quickly launched a new offensive using the “2025 Plan.” Biden campaign spokesperson James Singer accused Trump and his allies of “dreaming of a violent revolution to destroy this country.”
The Biden campaign describes this plan as “a plan of Trump’s MAGA Republican allies aimed at allowing Trump to seize more power from your everyday life, undermine democratic checks and balances, and consolidate power in the Oval Office after winning.”
Trump’s campaign team had previously warned external allies not to speak for the former president and implied that their efforts during the transition period were of no benefit to the campaign.
According to The Washington Post, on Friday, the 5th, when asked about the relationship between Trump and the “2025 Plan”, Trump’s campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung stated in an email that the campaign team had been saying for months that external groups like the “2025 Plan” do not reflect campaign strategies or policies.
The statement read, “Let’s be clear: unless the message comes directly from President Trump or authorized members of his campaign team, any aspect of future staffing or policy announcements should not be considered official.”
For further reading:
Update: Think tank Paving Way for Trump 2.0, Committing to Deepening Japan-South Korea Relations
How U.S. Allies are Preparing for the Era of “Trump 2.0”
Key Cabinet Picks for Trump 2.0, All Hawkish on Anti-Communism