Bankrupted conspiracy theorist Alex Jones turned on Donald Trump on Monday over the former president recently distancing himself from Project 2025. Jones suggested that Trump is being controlled by his advisers as part of a power struggle—echoing the same criticism as white supremacist livestreamer Nick Fuentes.
“Trump gets told by his advisers and people who really just don’t want competition in his new White House.… ‘Oh God, these are radicals, sir. You’ve got to come out and distance yourself,’” Jones said, according to Newsweek. “It’s the Heritage Foundation, Trump. And again, Trump’s really smart; he’s got good instincts. He doesn’t understand Republican machinery,” Jones continued.
After Trump publicly denied association with Project 2025 on Friday, claiming to have no idea what it is, white supremacist livestreamer Nick Fuentes claimed Trump’s disavowal was proof of Trump’s “assimilation into the establishment” and that his campaign is “controlled by billionaires”—which for Fuentes and his white supremacist followers is a not-so-subtle antisemitic dog whistle raising the specter of Jewish billionaires.
Project 2025 is a 900-page document crafted by conservative think tanks, led by the Heritage Foundation, as a sort of Trumpian wish list, with detailed tactics for how Trump can manifest various extreme policies once he’s in office. Trump has claimed it’s been a thorn in his side for a while, with his campaign spokespeople repeatedly insisting it isn’t affiliated with Trump. Despite those efforts, Project 2025 exists with the intention of being used by Trump, is based on Trump’s desired policies, and was created by Trump’s former and current associates. Project 2025 has claimed it’s intended for any incoming conservative president, not just Trump, but Trump is the presumptive Republican nominee.
The criticism among the right wing is an ultra-niche split between the belief among white supremacists like Fuentes that Project 2025 is a purist white supremacist effort in line with “America First” policies, and Trump’s “Make America Great Again” posture itself as more open to a wider variety of conservatives and less inclined toward explicit virulent racism. It’s the difference that all comes out in the wash: Project 2025 is modeled after Trump’s aspirations, and a Trump presidency would end up ticking off boxes on its wish list, regardless of whether Trump follows Project 2025’s step-by-step directions on how to get there.
