{"id":270531,"date":"2024-07-29T12:00:14","date_gmt":"2024-07-29T11:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=270531"},"modified":"2024-07-29T09:09:15","modified_gmt":"2024-07-29T08:09:15","slug":"project-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2024\/07\/project-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Project 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

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DISCLAIMER:<\/span> Publication of this piece on<\/em> TMS <\/em>does not mean that we subscribe, agree or support Project 2025\u2014quite the opposite. Our aim is to inform and present the facts from diverse angles and perspectives so that our readers may form educated, intelligent opinions<\/em>.<\/em><\/h4>\n

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A New Pax Romana<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

28 Jul 2024 <\/em>– Roman poet Juvenal coined the phrase \u201cbread and circuses<\/a>\u201d nearly 2,000 years ago for the extravagant entertainment the Roman Empire used to distract attention from imperial policies that caused widespread discontent. Imagine the lavish banquets, gladiatorial bouts, use and abuse of young men and women for the pleasure of the rich, and so much more that characterized the later years of that empire. And none of it seems that far off from the situation we, in these increasingly dis-United States, find ourselves in today.<\/p>\n

Although the Roman Empire described itself as being in favor of life and peace, the various Caesars and their enablers regularly dealt death and destruction in their wake. They spread the Pax Romana<\/em><\/a> (the Roman Peace), including a taxation system that left the poor in debt servitude, a military that caused terror and violence across the then-known world, and a ruling authority that pitted whole communities against each other, while legislating who could associate with whom (passing marriage laws<\/a>, for instance, that banned gay, inter-racial, or even cross-class marriages). The emperor in power in Jesus\u2019s time, Caesar Augustus, was known for ushering in a Golden Age of Moral Values that went hand in hand with that Pax Romana<\/em>, and it meant war and death, especially for the poor.<\/p>\n

Fast forward millennia and that world bears a strange resemblance to the media distractions, violence, and regressive policies that MAGA and other extremists are pushing forward in our times. Whether it\u2019s Donald Trump\u2019s assertion that \u201cI alone can fix<\/a> your problems\u201d; Supreme Court and state legislative attacks on reproductive rights<\/a>, same-sex marriage,<\/a> and trans youth<\/a> in the name of family values; cuts to welfare<\/a>, healthcare<\/a>, worker\u2019s rights<\/a> and other life-sustaining programs to protect corporate interests; the militarizing of endless communities by allowing guns<\/a> (especially AR-15 rifles) to proliferate, while offering only thoughts and prayers to the victims of violence, the MAGA movement is promoting culture wars<\/a> and extremist policies under the banner of Christian nationalism<\/a>. In doing so, its leaders are perfecting a disdain<\/a> for the excluded, exploited, and rejected that hurts the poor first and worst, but impacts all of society.<\/p>\n

And now, after decades of neoliberal plunder and the coronation of an avowed Christian nationalist \u2014 Speaker of the House Mike Johnson<\/a> \u2014 to the third most powerful position in the government, the Christian Right and its wealthy patrons have their eyes set on an even more ambitious power-grab: Project 2025. Articulated through the Heritage Foundation\u2019s<\/a> 2025 Presidential Transition Project, it\u2019s a sprawling plan to maximize presidential power with hundreds of newly trained and deployed political operatives during Donald Trump\u2019s next presidency. It was seen in full display recently at the Republican National Convention and made all the more likely by the recent assassination attempt against him with (yes!) an AR-15! The nearly 900-page document outlines a plan to ramp up U.S. military might, slash social welfare programs, and prioritize \u201ctraditional marriage.\u201d A reflection of the Republican Party today, including several Christian nationalist organizations and billionaire funders listed among its 100 institutional sponsors, Project 2025 is a roadmap for what could be thought of as a new Pax Romana<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The Formal Project 2025 Takeover<\/strong><\/p>\n

As Project 2025\u2019s official website<\/a> explains (and doesn\u2019t this sound like it could come directly from the mouth of vice-presidential nominee J.D. Vance?): \u201cIt is not enough for conservatives to win elections. If we are going to rescue the country from the grip of the radical Left, we need a governing agenda and the right people in place, ready to carry this agenda out on Day One of the next conservative Administration.\u201d Although its authors unabashedly deploy the language of conservative populism \u2014 decrying wokeness and \u201ccultural Marxists\u201d \u2014 the plan is chiefly concerned with how to put ever greater control of both people and resources in the hands of a small minority of mostly white, mostly male, wealthy Christians.<\/p>\n

The wholesale capture of the state is the ultimate goal of its Christian nationalist architects. Project 2025 simply clarifies just how they plan to implement their drive for power. \u00a0Each of its sections \u2014 from \u201ctaking the reins of government\u201d by centralizing executive authority in the office of the President to securing \u201cthe common defense\u201d by expanding every branch of the military \u2014 is worth reviewing.<\/p>\n

The longest section focuses on \u201cgeneral welfare\u201d and it should be no surprise that the Departments of Agriculture, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development are subject to significant cutbacks, including:<\/p>\n