Project 2025 director steps down amid Trump campaign criticism

The director of the Heritage Foundation-led Project 2025, Paul Dans, is departing from the role, the conservative think tank’s president, Kevin Roberts, said Tuesday.

“When we began Project 2025 in April 2022, we set a timeline for the project to conclude its policy drafting after the two party conventions this year, and we are sticking to that timeline,” Roberts said in a statement.

“Paul, who built the project from scratch and bravely led this endeavor over the past two years, will be departing the team and moving up to the front where the fight remains,” Roberts said. “We are extremely grateful for his and everyone’s work on Project 2025 and dedication to saving America. Our collective efforts to build a personnel apparatus for policymakers of all levels—federal, state, and local—will continue.”

Dans was previously chief of staff at the Office of Personnel Management in the Trump administration.

His exit comes as Democrats have made Project 2025 central to their campaign attacks on Republicans and former President Trump. The project, made up of a coalition of more conservative organizations and many Trump allies, includes a 900-page hard-right policy blueprint intended to guide the next conservative administration and a bank of individuals who could staff it.

Trump and his campaign have distanced themselves from Project 2025, which takes a farther right stance on some issues than Trump does. 

Trump campaign senior adviser Chris LaCivita said at a CNN-Politico event at the Republican National Convention earlier this month that Project 2025 was “a pain in the a‑‑.”

After the news of Dans’s exit became known, Trump’s campaign released a statement that essentially welcomed the news.

“President Trump’s campaign has been very clear for over a year that Project 2025 had nothing to do with the campaign, did not speak for the campaign, and should not be associated with the campaign or the President in any way,” the statement from LaCivita and Trump adviser Susie Wiles stated.

“Reports of Project 2025’s demise would be greatly welcomed and should serve as notice to anyone or any group trying to misrepresent their influence with President Trump and his campaign— it will not end well for you,” they said.

The Daily Beast first reported Dans would depart from his role. But a source close to Project 2025 told The Hill that the Daily Beast’s suggestion that the staff change indicated that the effort could shut down was incorrect. 

Still, the director’s exit amid the criticism from the Trump campaign puts a spotlight on the tensions between the conservative nonprofit sphere that hopes to push policy to the right and the campaign operatives wary of alienating swing voters and looking to ensure victory in November. 

“Under Paul Dans’ leadership, Project 2025 has completed exactly what it set out to do: bringing together over 110 leading conservative organizations to create a unified conservative vision, motivated to devolve power from the unelected administrative state, and returning it to the people. This tool was built for any future administration to use,” Roberts said in his statement.

Updated at 3:20 p.m. ET