Congressional lawmakers unite to combat far-right Project 2025 Initiative
24th June 2024 · 0 Comments
By Stacy M. Brown
Contributing Writer
(NNPA Newswire) — U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman (D-California) has announced the formation of the Stop Project 2025 Task Force, a new working group aimed at halting the controversial Project 2025. Described by critics as a far-right roadmap designed to grant former President Donald Trump “supreme” powers, Project 2025 would radically undermine reproductive rights, LGBTQ equality, racial justice, free speech, and other democratic institutions and freedoms.
The newly formed task force will serve as a central hub for pro-democracy members of Congress, civil society, and affected communities to coordinate efforts in examining, highlighting, preempting, and counteracting the initiative.
“Project 2025 is more than an idea; it’s a dystopian plot that’s already in motion to dismantle our democratic institutions, abolish checks and balances, chip away at church-state separation, and impose a far-right agenda that infringes on basic liberties and violates public will,” Huffman said. “We need a coordinated strategy to save America and stop this coup before it’s too late.”
The Heritage Foundation, a prominent right-wing think tank, is leading Project 2025 with support from over 100 conservative groups and funding from entities like DonorsTrust. This coalition, which includes the Center for Renewing America and the Alliance Defending Freedom, seeks to dismantle democratic institutions and enforce radical policies against the majority’s will. Critics argue that the coalition, composed of election deniers and conspiracy theorists, aims to strip away rights ranging from voting to reproductive freedoms.
Further, with Trump falsely claiming that America has become racist toward whites, the convicted felon and former president is primarily responsible for a U.S. Supreme Court that has decimated policies that were put in place to help level the playing field for African Americans.
The Stop Project 2025 Task Force includes a diverse group of Democratic leaders who are at the forefront of many issues currently under attack. Founding members alongside Huffman are Democratic Caucus Vice Chair Ted Lieu of California, Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Nanette Barragán of California, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Chair Judy Chu of California, Equality Caucus and Labor Caucus Chair Mark Pocan of Wisconsin, Pro-Choice Caucus Co-Chair Diana DeGette of Colorado, Co-Chair of the Congressional Freethought Caucus and Ranking Member of Oversight Jamie Raskin of Maryland, and Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal of Washington.
“Project 25 is a radical, extreme, pro-authoritarianism plan pushed by conservatives who are desperate to take our country backwards,” Lieu insisted. “It attacks our nation’s founding principles, such as our system of checks and balances, freedom of speech and of the press, and separation of church and state.”
Project 2025 includes a comprehensive strategy with several components, such as a list of radical policy changes across the federal government, a blueprint for increasing presidential authority to implement right-wing policies, a database of right-wing ideologues ready to enforce these policies, and training programs to prepare staff for enacting the agenda. The initiative would purge civil servants who are not aligned with the agenda, centralize power in the presidency, and enact harsh immigration policies.
“Project 2025 is the product of a coordinated effort by extremists who want to strip away protections for minority communities, including LGBTQI+ people, and undermine the foundations of our democracy,” Rep. Pocan stated. “I look forward to working with members of this task force to thwart Project 2025’s extreme vision for the country.”
Patrick Gaspard, president of the Center for American Progress, called Project 2025 “an authoritarian playbook that threatens the system of checks and balances that has fortified American democracy for nearly 250 years.”
Project 2025 is “Donald Trump’s blueprint for destroying our democracy,” Jayapal declared. “It attacks the very foundations that this country was built on and seeks to limit Americans’ rights to embolden MAGA extremists further. We can and must stand up to ensure that Project 2025 never sees the light of day and instead ensure that our proposition agenda, bold, progressive, and popular policies, are at the forefront.”
MoveOn Political Action Executive Director Rahna Epting added, “Project 2025 is the MAGA authoritarian playbook to take away our rights and fundamental freedoms and destroy our democracy. Donald Trump and his MAGA enablers are planning to use power to monitor pregnancies, further restrict reproductive freedom, unlawfully use local law enforcement to detain migrants, and gut policies designed to fight climate change. We have to get to work right now to stop them in their tracks.”
With Election Day approaching, the task force will emphasize the importance of voter education and engagement to counteract the project’s potential impact.
“Education and awareness are crucial in the battle against Project 2025,” said Abeni Bloodworth, CEO of chromatic black. “It is our duty to inform others about the detrimental effects it could have on our communities and rally for change. On Election Day, we hold the ultimate power to fight back against this tyranny and defend our fragile democracy. Let us honor the legacy of those who fought tirelessly for equality by standing up against Project 2025.”
This article originally published in the June 24, 2024 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
