Thomas Zimmer: That’s, ultimately, what worries me most about all of this - what I’ve been trying to emphasize in my writing about “Project 2025”: Too many people think a second Trump term would “just” be more of the same. They haven’t been paying attention. It would be something very different.

An argument I’ve been trying to make about “Project 2025”: A second Trump term would be worse not only because the radical Right would be better prepared, but also because they would be operating under much more favorable circumstances. With a much more extreme Supreme Court, for instance. 1/

What Makes “Project 2025” So Dangerousthomaszimmer.substack.com Will the Right be able to implement these radical plans? Is Trump on board? What happened to traditional conservatism? Let’s tackle some of the key questions surrounding “Project 2025”

Back in power, the radical Right could count on a reactionary supermajority on the Supreme Court - something they didn’t have during Trump’s first term. Today’s disastrous, truly extreme immunity ruling should be an urgent reminder of what an absolute game-changer that is. 2/

Additionally, this would not be the same Right that came to power in 2017. That starts with Trump himself. The idea that he has always been the same, just Trump being Trump, is massively misleading and obscures the rather drastic radicalization of the Right’s undisputed leader. 3/

Beyond Trump, the Right more generally has significantly radicalized. This radicalization has found its manifestation in a fully Trumpified GOP. Prominent Republicans like Liz Cheney and Mitt Romney who publicly objected to violent insurrection have been ostracized. 4/

Finally, resistance to the rightwing regime – not just coming from the Left, but also potentially fueled by whatever skepticism still remains among Republicans – would face a level of violent threat far beyond anything the country experienced during the first Trump presidency. 5/

The Right was hampered by a few factors during Trump’s first term: Public protest, the courts, vestiges of opposition in the GOP, the “deep state” consisting of professional civil servants, experts, lawyers… All of those sources of resistance have been drastically weakened. 6/

That’s, ultimately, what worries me most about all of this - what I’ve been trying to emphasize in my writing about “Project 2025”: Too many people think a second Trump term would “just” be more of the same. They haven’t been paying attention. It would be something very different.

What Makes “Project 2025” So Dangerousthomaszimmer.substack.com Will the Right be able to implement these radical plans? Is Trump on board? What happened to traditional conservatism? Let’s tackle some of the key questions surrounding “Project 2025”

Immunity. It's the greenest of green lights. The highest court in the land just told them, seize power and you can use it however you like. It doesn't matter if that's what the Court meant; some justices might even be sincere. That's what the Trumpengrüppen will hear. And that's what they'll do.

*takes notes* “Use Trumpengrüppen for now on” But more seriously and terrifyingly, you’re right about the “greenest of green lights.” JFC

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