BERNARD COLUMN: Project 2025- blueprint to destroy democracy

Published 9:00 am Tuesday, July 9, 2024

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By: Jack Bernard

“We are in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be,” -Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts

There are conspiracies…and then there are open plots to destroy democracy. Project 2025 is the latter- a detailed step-by-step plan to take away the will of the American people and replace it with the malignant lunacies of a despot- Donald Trump. A person who, per General John Kelly (White House Chief of Staff)  -“has no idea what America stands for” and “admires autocrats and murderous dictators”.

To those who say it cannot happen here, I will remind you of history. Less than a century ago, a narcistic man with no morality who did not believe in democracy came to power and nearly ruled all of Europe. Previously, that man had failed to overthrow the democratic regime in Germany and was jailed.

There, he wrote a treatise similar in some ways to Project 2025. He called the 720-page document Mein Kamp. And it provided a road map on how to successfully overthrow the government on his second attempt.

We have a former President who unsuccessfully attempted to overthrow the 2020 Presidential election. He called his minions to the Capitol and encouraged them to march. Upon reaching the Capitol, they ransacked offices, violently assaulting law enforcement officers, screaming that they wanted to hang the Vice President.

Hundreds of these treasonous insurrectionists have been found guilty and many are in jail. Of course, Trump says they are “hostages” and declares that he will pardon these traitors. All of this is reminiscent of the 1920s in Germany.

Let’s review what is in the lengthy 920-page Project 2025, which was constructed by Trump loyalists at the Heritage Foundation who favor an autocracy versus a democracy. The aim of Project 25 is to have “both a governing agenda and the right people in place, ready to carry this agenda out on Day One of the next conservative Administration.” It further states “History teaches that a President’s power to implement an agenda is at its apex during the Administration’s opening days.” Does this “Day One” dictator verbiage sound familiar to you?

Project 2025 is based on the premise that we have a President who can act with immunity from prosecution. Its goals are already being achieved via an extremist, politicized Supreme Court which is dedicated to rebuilding our nation in a radically right-wing fashion, regardless of prior SCOTUS decisions. Recently, SCOTUS moved, 6-3, to ignore precedent and give the President powers that were never foreseen by our Founding Fathers. In other words, SCOTUS is OK with the US having a 4-year king. This move was contrary to common sense, much less precedent. Per Justice Sotomayor- “The court effectively creates a law-free zone around the president, upsetting the status quo that has existed since the founding.”

In Trump’s first term, traditionalists calmed down his more violent and narcistic tendencies. However, not in a second term. One source claims that there are “as many as 54,000 pre-vetted Trump loyalists to the executive branch”. These people are vetted for their political views first and foremost.

Competence, experience… and reverence to democratic traditions…are secondary (https://www.axios.com/2023/11/13/trump-loyalists-2024-presidential-election). The constant conflict of Trump’s first term will pale in comparison to what these right-wing radicals will do if they replace our civil servants, people who have both knowledge and experience.

The bottom line is- understand who and what you are voting for in November. Or our nation will suffer the consequences.