Pro-Trump Project 2025 director steps down amid political scrutiny

Dr. Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation, announced today the departure of Paul Dans, the director of the Project 2025 presidential transition initiative. Dans, who formerly served in the Trump administration, has led the transition initiative for the past two years. Roberts expressed his gratitude to Dans for his dedication to Project 2025.

Roberts stated that the Project 2025 was launched in April 2022 with a specified timeline to conclude its policy-drafting after the Republican and Democratic nominating conventions, and emphasized that the organization is committed to adhering to that schedule. Under Dans' leadership, Project 2025 successfully brought together over 110 leading conservative organizations to establish a unified conservative vision. The initiative aimed to decentralize power from the unelected administrative state and return it to the people. The completion of this milestone is significant as it provides a structured framework for any future administration to utilize.

Statement from Paul Dans

In an email to Project 2025 staff, obtained by CBS News, Dans conveyed that the initiative's work is in its final phase, and he will be parting ways with Heritage next month. He recognized the substantial achievements of Project 2025 and its unifying impact on over 110 leading organizations. The endeavor was focused on deconstructing the administrative state, aligning with the conservative vision.

A member of the Project 2025 advisory board revealed that the initiative's efforts are likely to persist beyond Dans' departure. The submission of its work, including a database of potential hires and a comprehensive list of policy recommendations for the first six months of a potential second Trump term, to the former president's campaign for review, signifies the ongoing nature of the project.

Dans' exit coincides with former President Donald Trump's endeavor to create distance between himself and the far-reaching policy agenda of Project 2025. Trump's campaign explicitly stated that Project 2025 was independent of the campaign and should not be associated with the former president in any capacity. The campaign's senior advisers, Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita, issued a statement reinforcing this position and cautioning against any misrepresentation of influence with the president and his campaign.