Project 2025; RNC brings supporters to talk controversial initiative

MILWAUKEE - Fiserv Forum is ground zero for everything at the Republican National Convention, but there is action happening outside this building as well.

Conventions attract not just delegates, but groups hoping to have influence in a future administration. Policy wonks and think tanks are in town, hoping to shape the next administration if former President Donald Trump wins.

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There are people here networking. They want the attention of the Trump campaign so they can shape the future of the country, and possibly land a job in the administration.

The Heritage Foundation’s Policy Fest was held at the Bradley Symphony Center on Monday, July 15, the new home of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra.

The Heritage Foundation is a highly influential conservative think tank from Washington, D.C. The group is responsible for spearheading the controversial Project 2025.

The plan would overhaul the executive branch and calls for eliminating many federal agencies, including the Department of Education, and replacing civil servants with party loyalists.

Trump has distanced himself from the plan, saying he knows nothing about it. Some of his former aides work for the Heritage Foundation.

Democrats are blasting it, even using it on the campaign trail, calling it dangerous.

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"This document is creepy," Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman said. "It’s a takeover of the American form of government."

The question: is it a road map for a future Trump presidency?

"The president needs to be in charge. He’s the one who is elected and there shouldn’t be a permanent executive administrative branch, all these different agencies that are just the same no matter who is at the top in the White House," Heritage Foundation Executive Vice President Derrick Morgan said. "Instead, we think all those should come from the president because that’s the person who is accountable to the people."

The RNC approved their new platform on Monday, which softens its stance on abortion rights. The Heritage Foundation is not on board with that.