House Democrats Identify a New Threat: "Project 2025"
The party is actively working to shift the narrative by leveraging a contentious array of conservative policy proposals.
TroibNews 
Donald Trump continues to struggle with Project 2025, and House Democrats are seizing the opportunity to leverage it against their opponents.
Despite Trump's attempts to distance himself from the contentious policy proposals developed by the Heritage Foundation, Democrats remain determined to connect him to the initiative. The extensive array of conservative policies provides ample material for Democrats to tie Republicans to issues ranging from abortion to taxes.
A coordinated effort is underway among House Democrats to launch attacks based on Project 2025.
Polling conducted by House Democrats indicates that Project 2025 resonates strongly in battleground districts. Their communications team is urging lawmakers to hold events focused on the conservative blueprint and its implications throughout this month, according to a Democratic aide. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has been discussing it during campaign engagements, and in recent weeks, several Democratic candidates have begun airing advertisements that highlight the policy plan as a means to depict their opponents as extreme.
“MAGA Republicans’ plan called Project 2025: their dangerous proposal to end Medicare as we know it,” states a commercial from Nevada Rep. Dina Titus and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
“Zach Nunn's voting record is the blueprint for a controversial plan called Project 2025,” Iowa Democrat Lanon Baccam says in an advertisement targeting the GOP incumbent. “Nunn's own donors wrote it, and it's shockingly radical.”
“Their Project 2025 plan would ban abortions nationwide, track pregnancies and limit access to birth control even in Virginia,” warns another spot from Democrat Eugene Vindman and the DCCC.
Democrats are viewing the policy framework as a means to link Republican-led conservative legislation, which has been proposed in Congress, to the campaign trail. They believe its comprehensive nature is advantageous, allowing candidates to adapt their messages to various races, whether discussing local or national issues.
"No matter what your background is, your political leanings, your interests, there's something that attacks your family,” remarked Rep. Mark Pocan.
Republicans have largely dismissed the Project 2025-related criticisms as falsehoods and claim ignorance regarding the specifics of the proposals. However, Democrats remain undeterred.
“This incorporates a lot of the extreme elements of their agenda and things that we're seeing on the House floor and in committee every day, so there's a consistency there,” said Rep. Jared Huffman, a key contributor to House Democrats’ task force on Project 2025. “When people look at it and they think about what they saw Trump try to do in his first four years, what they see these guys trying to do in this Congress, it instantly clicks in.”
Recent discussions among House Democrats at party headquarters, along with private DCCC polling from battleground districts, revealed that 56 percent of voters hold an unfavorable view of Project 2025, with 62 percent of independents sharing that sentiment, according to a committee spokesperson. An NBC News poll from last month found that 57 percent of respondents viewed the plans negatively; only 4 percent perceived them positively, while 23 percent were unsure.
“There’s a fear associated with this, and it’s really organic,” said Vindman, who is running for a competitive open seat largely situated in the D.C. media market. “The more they learn about it … the more they are against it.”
This widespread public awareness and negative connotation have provided Democrats an advantage, enabling them to select specific issues for campaigning while framing them within a broader narrative of "Republican extremism."
“I’m talking about particular pieces of it” like cuts to Social Security and Medicare, Rep. Matt Cartwright remarked about Trump’s district. “What surprises me is the amount of uptake there has been and awareness of this Heritage Foundation project. People in my district know about it, and they don't like it.”
Baccam is strategically using Project 2025 to challenge Nunn in the Des Moines-based swing district on issues such as school vouchers, seniors’ benefits, abortion access, and taxes. He was motivated to adopt this messaging due to constituents' concerns about Project 2025 expressed during his district visits — a sentiment echoed by other candidates.
“Iowans are really quite tired of what Iowans sense as this national agenda being pushed down on them: the school voucher program, that is a national agenda item. This abortion ban, driven by a lot of national organizations,” Baccam asserted. “Iowans can see these are all part of a bigger national agenda here, and they see Project 2025 as this kind of overarching encapsulation of what they've been sensing and feeling. They can see it. They hear about it on the news.”
Democrats could place Republican candidates in a challenging position, forcing them to either ignore the attacks or inadvertently draw more attention to the policy proposals through a rebuttal, a potential "Streisand Effect." Most GOP responses have characterized the ads as a “false attack.”
“This desperate lie is the clearest sign yet that House Democrats see their chances of regaining the majority dwindling,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Will Reinert stated.
In New Jersey’s prominent congressional race, a significant moment occurred when a woman inquired about Project 2025 during a town hall meeting with Republican incumbent Rep. Tom Kean Jr.
“I’ve never read Project 2025. The first time I’ve ever heard of being supportive of it was when I was accused of supporting it. … My focus here is on the things that are important to the people here,” Kean declared.
Nunn's campaign manager Kendyl Parker emphasized that he “has never endorsed Project 2025 — and he never will.” Similarly, Titus’ opponent, Mark Robertson, dismissed the claims as lies, stating that he has never even mentioned "Project 2025." Derrick Anderson, who is challenging Vindman, also claimed he was unaware of what it was until Vindman “kept talking about it over and over again.”
“It’s not my plan,” Anderson stressed. “He continues to try to put words in my mouth and lie.”
Daniel Han contributed to this report.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
Despite Trump's attempts to distance himself from the contentious policy proposals developed by the Heritage Foundation, Democrats remain determined to connect him to the initiative. The extensive array of conservative policies provides ample material for Democrats to tie Republicans to issues ranging from abortion to taxes.
A coordinated effort is underway among House Democrats to launch attacks based on Project 2025.
Polling conducted by House Democrats indicates that Project 2025 resonates strongly in battleground districts. Their communications team is urging lawmakers to hold events focused on the conservative blueprint and its implications throughout this month, according to a Democratic aide. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has been discussing it during campaign engagements, and in recent weeks, several Democratic candidates have begun airing advertisements that highlight the policy plan as a means to depict their opponents as extreme.
“MAGA Republicans’ plan called Project 2025: their dangerous proposal to end Medicare as we know it,” states a commercial from Nevada Rep. Dina Titus and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
“Zach Nunn's voting record is the blueprint for a controversial plan called Project 2025,” Iowa Democrat Lanon Baccam says in an advertisement targeting the GOP incumbent. “Nunn's own donors wrote it, and it's shockingly radical.”
“Their Project 2025 plan would ban abortions nationwide, track pregnancies and limit access to birth control even in Virginia,” warns another spot from Democrat Eugene Vindman and the DCCC.
Democrats are viewing the policy framework as a means to link Republican-led conservative legislation, which has been proposed in Congress, to the campaign trail. They believe its comprehensive nature is advantageous, allowing candidates to adapt their messages to various races, whether discussing local or national issues.
"No matter what your background is, your political leanings, your interests, there's something that attacks your family,” remarked Rep. Mark Pocan.
Republicans have largely dismissed the Project 2025-related criticisms as falsehoods and claim ignorance regarding the specifics of the proposals. However, Democrats remain undeterred.
“This incorporates a lot of the extreme elements of their agenda and things that we're seeing on the House floor and in committee every day, so there's a consistency there,” said Rep. Jared Huffman, a key contributor to House Democrats’ task force on Project 2025. “When people look at it and they think about what they saw Trump try to do in his first four years, what they see these guys trying to do in this Congress, it instantly clicks in.”
Recent discussions among House Democrats at party headquarters, along with private DCCC polling from battleground districts, revealed that 56 percent of voters hold an unfavorable view of Project 2025, with 62 percent of independents sharing that sentiment, according to a committee spokesperson. An NBC News poll from last month found that 57 percent of respondents viewed the plans negatively; only 4 percent perceived them positively, while 23 percent were unsure.
“There’s a fear associated with this, and it’s really organic,” said Vindman, who is running for a competitive open seat largely situated in the D.C. media market. “The more they learn about it … the more they are against it.”
This widespread public awareness and negative connotation have provided Democrats an advantage, enabling them to select specific issues for campaigning while framing them within a broader narrative of "Republican extremism."
“I’m talking about particular pieces of it” like cuts to Social Security and Medicare, Rep. Matt Cartwright remarked about Trump’s district. “What surprises me is the amount of uptake there has been and awareness of this Heritage Foundation project. People in my district know about it, and they don't like it.”
Baccam is strategically using Project 2025 to challenge Nunn in the Des Moines-based swing district on issues such as school vouchers, seniors’ benefits, abortion access, and taxes. He was motivated to adopt this messaging due to constituents' concerns about Project 2025 expressed during his district visits — a sentiment echoed by other candidates.
“Iowans are really quite tired of what Iowans sense as this national agenda being pushed down on them: the school voucher program, that is a national agenda item. This abortion ban, driven by a lot of national organizations,” Baccam asserted. “Iowans can see these are all part of a bigger national agenda here, and they see Project 2025 as this kind of overarching encapsulation of what they've been sensing and feeling. They can see it. They hear about it on the news.”
Democrats could place Republican candidates in a challenging position, forcing them to either ignore the attacks or inadvertently draw more attention to the policy proposals through a rebuttal, a potential "Streisand Effect." Most GOP responses have characterized the ads as a “false attack.”
“This desperate lie is the clearest sign yet that House Democrats see their chances of regaining the majority dwindling,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Will Reinert stated.
In New Jersey’s prominent congressional race, a significant moment occurred when a woman inquired about Project 2025 during a town hall meeting with Republican incumbent Rep. Tom Kean Jr.
“I’ve never read Project 2025. The first time I’ve ever heard of being supportive of it was when I was accused of supporting it. … My focus here is on the things that are important to the people here,” Kean declared.
Nunn's campaign manager Kendyl Parker emphasized that he “has never endorsed Project 2025 — and he never will.” Similarly, Titus’ opponent, Mark Robertson, dismissed the claims as lies, stating that he has never even mentioned "Project 2025." Derrick Anderson, who is challenging Vindman, also claimed he was unaware of what it was until Vindman “kept talking about it over and over again.”
“It’s not my plan,” Anderson stressed. “He continues to try to put words in my mouth and lie.”
Daniel Han contributed to this report.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
