How Trump policies align with Project 2025 on immigration, federal reform and more

From immigration to abortion policies, numerous actions by the Trump administration mirror Project 2025 proposals, a Snopes analysis shows.

As a U.S. presidential candidate in 2024, Donald Trump attempted to distance himself from Project 2025, a wide-ranging initiative by the conservative nonprofit The Heritage Foundation to overhaul the federal government.

But, since taking the oath of office on Jan. 20, 2025, a number of his administration's actions have mirrored the effort.

Below, we highlight several proposals in a roughly 1,000-page document at the center of Project 2025 and actions by the Trump administration that align with them, as of December 2025. They cover the following policy areas:

In 2022, the Heritage Foundation formally revealed Project 2025, partnering dozens of conservative advocacy groups and former government officials to develop goals for a future presidential administration.

The effort centered on a document of proposals, published in 2023, including recommendations to reclassify federal jobs to give more power to the executive branch and reverse policies issued by former President Joe Biden on immigration, climate, civil rights and more.

Based on news reports by reputable sources, federal records and the Project 2025 document, this report analyzes just a sample of Project 2025 proposals. Snopes selected these issues, in particular, to follow up on Project 2025 reporting during Trump's 2024 presidential campaign and because evidence exists to confirm the presidential administration's work on them, as of December 2025.

Also, some Trump-sponsored measures that mirror Project 2025 recommendations haven't been fully implemented because they face legal challenges or require legislative action.

We reached out to the Trump administration to respond to our findings about how its agenda aligns with Project 2025. We will update this report if we receive a response.

In mid-December 2025, the Heritage Foundation sent an email to members that said it was planning to "work with the Trump administration" to enact its latest set of proposals.

Restructuring the federal workforce

Project 2025 proposed turning up to 50,000 nonpartisan, career civil servant jobs in the federal government into politically appointed positions, with the long-term goal of giving more power to the executive office.

To do that, Project 2025 recommended reinstating Schedule F, an executive order to change federal workers' job titles that Trump issued during his first presidential term and Biden later rescinded.

Per the Project 2025 document, the Schedule F order would recategorize career civil servants as at-will employees, giving high-level workers the ability to terminate subordinates' employment for any reason without warning and fill those jobs with new people.

From the beginning of his second presidential term, Trump implemented changes to the federal workforce that mirrored these recommendations by Project 2025.

On Jan. 20, 2025, Trump's first day in the White House, he issued an executive order reinstating Schedule F.

Months later, in April 2025, the White House announced that the Office for Personnel Management (OPM) — the chief human resources agency for the federal government — was reclassifying thousands of federal employees as at-will workers. According to the OPM, this change impacted 50,000 positions, approximately 2% of the federal workforce.

Following in line with Project 2025's goal of shifting power to the executive branch, the Trump administration has also eliminated thousands of jobs by closing or restructuring departments.

In an August 2025 interview with Fox Business, OPM Director Scott Kupor estimated the federal workforce would shrink overall by approximately 300,000 employees in 2025 — a figure that included not only voluntary resignations but also what he described as "reductions among probationary employees," "removals," and "other voluntary retirement programs."

During the 2025 government shutdown, the Trump administration sent notices to thousands of furloughed government employees telling them that they were laid off.

A number of unions sued the Trump administration over those layoff notices and sought to block White House budget director Russ Vought — a key architect of Project 2025 — from implementing the staffing cuts. In late October 2025, a federal judge indefinitely barred the administration from firing federal employees during the shutdown. (The judge's order did not apply to layoff notices before the shutdown.)

Changing protections for LGBTQ+ people

Project 2025 made several recommendations related to gender policies and federal protections for LGBTQ+ people. The Trump administration has followed through with some of them.

For example, Project 2025 called for abolishing a federal department that Biden established to supposedly "advance equity in government policy," dubbed the Gender Policy Council. On the first day of Trump's second presidential term, Trump issued an executive order rescinding the council.

Project 2025 also recommended removing terms such as "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" from records and policies, as well as rescinding policies that prohibit discrimination on the basis of "sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, and sex characteristics."

The president carried out those objectives with another executive order on his first day, titled, "Defending women from gender ideology extremism and restoring biological truth to the federal government."

According to that order, all federal departments and policies must refer to sex as an individual's "immutable biological classification as either male or female" and should not consider gender identity a "meaningful basis for identification," nor be "recognized as a replacement for sex."

Banning trans people in the military

Project 2025 called for reinstating a ban on transgender people in the military, reversing a Biden-era action.

Pulling back on efforts to curb climate change

Project 2025 called for withdrawing from international efforts attempting to reduce climate change, such as the Paris Agreement, as well as reversing Biden-era policies that aimed to curb the country's carbon emissions.

The Trump administration's actions have aligned with those recommendations. In January 2025, Trump ordered the U.S. to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, as well as "any agreement, pact, accord, or similar commitment made under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change." The withdrawal from the Paris Agreement will take effect in 2026.

Trump also ordered to terminate the American Climate Corps, a Biden initiative that attempted to encourage young people to go into jobs that aim to reduce carbon emissions and protect communities against weather disasters.

Increasing reliance on fossil fuels

Also aligning with Project 2025's proposals to increase U.S. production of fossil fuels, Trump declared a "national energy emergency" and ordered federal agencies to facilitate energy production on federal lands.

For example, Trump signed executive orders opening Alaskan federal lands to oil and gas production, thus permitting drilling and mining on a region that federal law designated a national wildlife refuge.

According to court documents, more than a dozen states have filed a joint lawsuit against the Trump administration over its attempts to fast-track drilling and mining projects around the country. Also, per The New York Times, environmental groups have filed a lawsuit seeking to block the Trump administration's efforts to open up new areas to offshore drilling. Those legal challenges were pending, as of this writing.

Per an analysis by Inside Climate News, a news organization focused on climate change, courts are divided on whether to allow the Trump administration to dismantle certain policies related to energy production and the environment. The administration has had six wins, five losses and three mixed decisions. (Columbia Law School has a database of these legal challenges.)

Revamping K-12 education

Project 2025 proposed that "federal education policy should be limited and, ultimately, the federal Department of Education should be eliminated." Trump's efforts have aligned with that goal.

On March 20, 2025, Trump signed an executive order that intended to shut down the Education Department. A couple of days later, a judge temporarily blocked the order. In July 2025, the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration could dismantle the Education Department and issued a stay on a federal judge's preliminary injunction to stop gutting the department. The case was pending in lower courts, as of this writing.

Project 2025 also called for bans on so-called "critical race theory" (CRT) and "gender ideology" lessons in public schools, asking for legislation that would require educators who share such material to register as sex offenders and be imprisoned.

The Trump administration has taken steps in line with those objectives around curriculum and has called for legal action against teachers who it claims have inappropriately discussed "gender ideology" in lessons.

A January 2025 executive order called for eliminating federal funding for what it described as "illegal and discriminatory treatment and indoctrination in K-12 schools, including based on gender ideology and discriminatory equity ideology."

Weeks later, in February 2025, the Education Department said it cut $600 million in grant funds to teacher training programs. Per the Education Department, these programs "included inappropriate and unnecessary topics such as Critical Race Theory; Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI); social justice activism; 'anti-racism'; and instruction on white privilege and white supremacy."

Project 2025 also asked the federal government to prioritize "education freedom" and "school choice," the notions that families should be able to select education programs for their children from a range of private, faith-based or charter schools, not just public schools.

In line with that Project 2025 proposal, Trump issued a January 2025 executive order requiring the Education Department to make "education freedom" a priority when deciding how to issue federally funded grants.

Halting efforts to monitor online disinformation

Project 2025 recommended the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) stop efforts to curtail online propaganda campaigns, arguing the federal government should not make judgment calls on what's true and what isn't. Trump has taken steps in line with that Project 2025 proposal.

Soon after taking office, he signed an executive order that urged federal agencies against spending resources on combating misinformation or disinformation, calling such efforts an infringement on free speech.

The Trump administration put numerous CISA employees on administrative leave, including employees of the division responsible for securing elections, and nearly one-third of the agency's employees had resigned by April 2025.

Also in April 2025, the administration shut down the State Department's office for monitoring foreign disinformation campaigns known as the Counter Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference hub. The office focused on propaganda by countries such as Russia, China and Iran.

Cutting federal funding for public media

Project 2025 recommended reforming the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), an independent government agency that runs global media outlets, and gutting news agencies that it oversees, like the Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL).

The Project 2025 document accuses the agencies of promoting what it describes as "anti-U.S. talking points" and recommends the USAGM to be "defunded and disestablished."

Trump has targeted the same federally funded media outlets, calling them politically biased and an unnecessary expense.

For example, in March 2025, he ordered the federal government to cut funding toward USAGM, prompting the VOA to halt broadcasting for the first time in 83 years and place most of its staff on administrative leave, PBS reported.

In July 2025, he signed a bill eliminating $9 billion in public broadcasting funding and foreign aid, an action that stopped funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. These actions triggered lawsuits by journalists and press-freedom groups seeking to block the Trump administration's efforts to dismantle and reduce federal funding toward public media.

Cracking down on illegal immigration, crime

Project 2025 urged the federal government to crack down on illegal immigration, and the Trump administration has issued numerous policy changes in line with that goal.

For example, within his first few weeks in office, Trump signed an executive order that expands efforts by federal immigration authorities to detain and remove people living in the U.S. without legal status.

Project 2025 also proposed mobilizing law enforcement to crack down on immigrants with criminal records.

That is happening under the Trump administration. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have accelerated efforts to detain immigrants with alleged criminal histories, and Trump has signed the Laken Riley Act that expands mandatory detention for immigrants accused of certain crimes.

Deprioritizing DACA recipients, temporary work visas

Project 2025 proposed deprioritizing DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), the federal program that protects undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children from deportation.

As of this writing, DACA recipients can renew and keep their status. And while first-time applicants can file requests, the Trump administration is not approving any of those applications. In a court-ordered brief, the administration said it planned to restart adjudicating at least some new DACA applications in the future, per the Los Angeles Times and The Associated Press.

Project 2025 also recommended phasing out temporary work-visa programs that allow immigrants to legally work in the U.S. without full citizenship.

The Trump administration has taken steps to reduce people's access to those types of visas. In September 2025, Trump signed an executive order targeting the H-1B visa program that allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers in specialized professions by imposing a $100,000 fee on employers seeking such visas for workers who live outside the U.S.

Penalizing so-called 'sanctuary cities'

Project 2025 asked the federal government to penalize "sanctuary cities," referring to cities that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, including by restricting the exchange of information with federal authorities about an individual's immigration status.

Officials in those cities say they limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities so residents are not fearful about reporting crimes, or contacting local law enforcement, regardless of their immigration status.

In April 2025, Trump signed an executive order that directed federal agencies to put pressure on these jurisdictions, arguing that they undermine public safety by not cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. A follow-up executive order directed federal agencies to suspend or terminate funding for the cities, among other penalties.

By October 2025, more than two dozen cities and counties sued the federal government over new grant conditions that require local jurisdictions to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement in order to receive funding, Reuters reported.

Removing protections against housing discrimination

Project 2025 made several proposals to change housing policies, including recommendations affecting fair housing protections against discrimination and withdrawing federal support for organizations that investigate allegations of unfair treatment.

Specifically, it called for repealing the Biden-era "Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing" (AFFH) rule, which required some Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding recipients to identify and address patterns of discrimination.

In January 2025, in anticipation of Trump assuming the presidency, the HUD withdrew that rule, federal records show. Weeks later, in March 2025, the department issued new, looser guidelines for local jurisdictions to follow in order to receive federal funding.

The Trump administration has also terminated grants for organizations that investigate, or litigate, housing discrimination complaints, according to March 2025 reporting by The Associated Press.

Per the National Fair Housing Alliance, HUD has terminated dozens of grants for fair-housing nonprofits in 33 states. A class-action complaint challenged those terminations, and a Massachusetts federal court issued a temporary restraining order in late March 2025 requiring HUD to reinstate the grants. A ruling by a D.C. district court in late July 2025 ordered HUD to move forward with distributing other stalled FHIP (Fair Housing Initiatives Program) funds.

Defunding the Justice Department

Project 2025 called for a "top-to-bottom overhaul" of the Department of Justice (DOJ), arguing the agency has become overly politicized.

The Trump administration has echoed that sentiment and taken steps to restructure the department.

For example, it has reshaped the DOJ's internal structure, reportedly relocating bureau employees from Washington, D.C., to field offices across the country and firing dozens of career prosecutors and DOJ officials.

In January 2025, the department's Civil Rights Division was ordered to freeze its work to enforce laws protecting civil rights, and a DOJ memo months later directed the Civil Division to use its enforcement powers to advance the administration's priorities.

Also, Reuters reported in October 2025 the DOJ was closing a drug cartel task force, as well as an office that aimed to ease racial tensions, as part of the restructuring.

Revamping the FBI

Project 2025 called for revamping the FBI and stopping investigations that are supposedly "unlawful or contrary to the national interest."

Trump's selection to head the FBI — Kash Patel, a former deputy assistant to the president on the National Security Council and Trump ally — has expressed similar goals.

In late September 2025, Trump signed a memorandum that directed an FBI task force to lead a nationwide effort to identify what the administration describes as "extremism on migration, race, and gender " and emerging domestic threats tied to "anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, and anti-Christianity." This phrasing mirrors language in Project 2025.

Citing FBI data, The Washington Post reported in October 2025 a quarter of FBI agents were assigned to immigration enforcement, reflecting a "vast reshaping" of the agency. (Snopes has not independently verified that reporting.)

Decreasing access to abortions

Project 2025 advocated for restricting people's access to abortions and for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to stop promoting abortion procedures as health care.

It also recommended the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) end its approval and promotion of pills that end pregnancies. The document stated "alternative options to abortion, especially adoption, should receive federal and state support."

Soon after taking office, Trump turned several of those recommendations into policy. In January 2025, he signed an executive order to end federal funding for "elective abortion," a term the administration uses for abortions that are not related to serious maternal health problems or fetal disease, and to rescind a Biden-era executive order that categorized abortion as health care.

That same month, Trump issued a presidential memorandum that reinstated the so-called Mexico City Policy, a Reagan-era rule that prohibits the federal government from dedicating money towards international organizations that provide abortion services. (Trump put the policy in place during his first term, and then Biden revoked it in 2021.)

In March 2025, Politico reported the Trump administration withheld tens of millions of dollars in federal funding for Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion provider, affecting clinics across multiple states. That move mirrored Project 2025's "goal of defunding abortion providers."

By June 2025, the administration rescinded federal guidance that aimed to protect people seeking emergency abortions.

Severing industry ties with China

Project 2025 framed China as an existential adversary and urged "strategic decoupling" across industries including technology, finance, higher education, and trade. Among its recommendations was restricting access to Chinese-controlled apps like TikTok.

In January 2025, Trump signed an executive order that gave the administration the authority to block apps owned by foreign companies, with TikTok as its main target. He then issued orders to delay the enforcement of a ban on TikTok (extended through Dec. 16, 2025, and later again to Jan. 23, 2026), while trying to broker a deal for the social media platform's parent company to sell its U.S. operations to non-Chinese owners.

The Trump administration also adopted a series of trade measures against China, mirroring Project 2025 proposals.

Between April and August 2025, Trump issued a series of tariff orders, adjusting reciprocal tariff rates on imports from China. (In late October 2025, after Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the United States agreed to reduce fentanyl-related tariffs, specifically, from 20% to 10%.) The legality of Trump's higher tariffs on Chinese goods — as well as imports from other countries — are pending court action, as of this writing.

Project 2025 also recommended outlawing Confucius Institutes, Chinese government-funded language and cultural centers, and urged penalties for universities that take money from the Chinese Communist Party, including loss of accreditation and federal funding eligibility.

Congress under Trump has considered similar proposals. As of this writing, the House of Representatives has passed the "DHS Restrictions on Confucius Institutes and Chinese Entities of Concern Act," a bill that would restrict funding to schools that have relationships with the in-question entities. The legislation pends action in the Senate.

Aleksandra Wrona is a reporting fellow for Snopes, based in the Warsaw, Poland, area.