If you spent any time on the internet during the last election cycle, you probably saw the name "Project 2025" everywhere. It was the boogeyman for some and a holy grail for others. But the question that kept everyone refreshing their feeds was simple: Is Trump affiliated with Project 2025? Honestly, the answer depends on who you ask and when you asked them. It’s kinda like a "he said, she said" situation, except the stakes are the entire federal government.
During the 2024 campaign, Donald Trump went out of his way to say he had nothing to do with it. He posted on social media that he hadn’t read it and didn’t even know who was behind it. He even called some of the ideas "seriously extreme." But now that we’re sitting here in early 2026, looking at his first year back in the White House, the "no affiliation" claim is looking a little thin.
Let's break down what's actually true versus what’s just political spin.
The "I Don't Know Them" Defense
Back in 2024, the Trump campaign was in full damage-control mode. Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita, his top advisors, were basically shouting from the rooftops that Project 2025 had nothing to do with them. They even welcomed the news when the project's director, Paul Dans, stepped down after some serious blowback.
Trump himself said on a debate stage in September 2024: "I have nothing to do with Project 2025. I haven't read it. I don't want to read it."
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It was a classic distance-building move. But here’s the thing: while Trump the candidate was distancing himself, Trump the operation was crawling with the people who actually wrote the book.
The Personnel Problem
You can’t really say you don't know the people behind a project when they’re the ones sitting in your cabinet meetings.
A report from CNN found that at least 140 people who worked on Project 2025 were former Trump administration officials. We aren’t talking about low-level interns. We’re talking about the heavy hitters.
- Russell Vought: He was one of the main architects of Project 2025. He’s now back in the White House heading the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). He calls it the "nerve center" of the government.
- Peter Navarro: He wrote the section on trade for Project 2025. He’s now a top trade advisor again.
- Brendan Carr: He wrote the chapter on the FCC. Guess who Trump put in charge of the FCC? Yep, Brendan Carr.
- Stephen Miller: His group, America First Legal, was an advisory board member for the project. He’s now the White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy.
So, was Trump affiliated? Technically, the campaign said no. But in reality, the same brains that dreamed up the 920-page "Mandate for Leadership" are now the hands pulling the levers of power in 2026.
One Year In: The Playbook in Action
Fast forward to today. We’ve had a full year of the second Trump term. If you look at what’s actually happened since January 2025, the overlap between Project 2025 and Trump’s executive orders is, well, pretty staggering.
Some researchers say the administration has already implemented about half of the goals laid out in that document. It’s hard to call it a coincidence when the moves are this specific.
Reproductive Rights and Health
Project 2025 was very clear: it wanted to gut abortion access and roll back LGBTQ+ protections. Trump has been busy here. In January 2025, he signed an executive order revoking Biden-era protections for people traveling out of state for abortions.
By August 2025, the administration moved to stop the VA from providing abortion counseling, even in cases of rape or incest. This was a specific "win" for the Heritage Foundation, the think tank behind Project 2025.
Reshaping the Military
Remember the talk about banning transgender people from the military? Project 2025 called for it. In January 2025, Trump issued an order listing gender dysphoria as a disqualifying medical condition.
The Pentagon also halted new hormone treatments for service members in May. On top of that, DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) offices in the Defense Department were scrapped on day one. It’s almost like they were checking items off a grocery list.
The Heritage Foundation Connection
You can’t talk about this without mentioning The Heritage Foundation. They’ve been the "idea factory" for the GOP since the Reagan years. Their president, Kevin Roberts, didn't seem to get the memo about Trump "not knowing" them.
Roberts has been vocal about how this was always the plan. Even when the Trump campaign was trying to play it cool, Heritage was building a massive database of loyalists to staff the new government. They weren't just writing a book; they were building an army.
Is Trump Affiliated With Project 2025? The Verdict
Look, if you mean "did Donald Trump sit down and type out 900 pages of policy?" the answer is obviously no. He’s not a policy wonk.
But if you mean "is he using it as a roadmap?" the evidence in 2026 says yes.
The administration has successfully dismantled major parts of the Department of Education’s influence, increased logging on public lands by 25%, and started the "Schedule F" process to make it easier to fire career civil servants—all core Project 2025 ideas.
The "affiliation" isn't a signed contract. It's a shared vision. Trump provides the brand and the base; the Project 2025 team provides the technical blueprints to rebuild the government in their image.
What You Can Do Now
Staying informed is basically a full-time job these days, but here are a few ways to keep track of what’s actually happening versus the rhetoric:
- Track Executive Orders: Don't just listen to the news clips. Go to the Federal Register or the White House website and read the summaries of the orders being signed.
- Follow the Personnel: Watch who gets appointed to mid-level roles at the DOJ, EPA, and HHS. These "under-the-radar" picks often have deep ties to the Heritage Foundation and are the ones doing the actual work.
- Look at the Budget: Russell Vought’s OMB is where the real power lies. Watch the "President's Budget" requests to see which agencies are being starved of funding—that's usually where the Project 2025 "elimination list" starts.
The reality of 2026 is that the distance between the Trump campaign and Project 2025 has evaporated. Whether they admit it or not, they’re working from the same script.