What you should know about Trump's plan to reform the US government

A version of this story appeared in CNN's What Matters newsletter. To receive it in your inbox, sign up for free Here.

CNN
—

President-elect Donald Trump has promised to completely reshape the US government and wield new powers as president.

The ambitious promises, if implemented, would transform society. His most frequently repeated promises during the election campaign include:

Now Americans will find out what was exaggerated and what was real – what is achievable and what he can impose himself, with the help of Congress and without interference from the courts.

His promise to end Russia's war against Ukraine “in 24 hours” seems, to put it bluntly, excessive.

His promise of mass deportation, on the other hand, is very serious. There appears to be clear planning, but there is a lack of public details.

During the campaign, Trump sought to distance himself from Project 2025, the controversial and detailed blueprint for a reimagined federal government that conservatives at the Heritage Foundation released in anticipation of a second Trump term.

While Trump may want nothing to do with this plan, it was formulated by his allies – at least 140 people associated with Project 2025 worked in Trump's administration, according to a review by CNN's Steve Contorno. To be sure, there is some overlap between many of the proposals in the 900-page Project 2025 and what Trump has announced in a series of very simple “Agenda47” videos on his website laying out his plans for a second term.

For example, in an Agenda47 video, Trump promises that he will prepare an executive order to eliminate birthright rights for the children of undocumented immigrants. The 14th Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship, so legal disputes are to be expected in this case.

One of Protect 2025's policy maestros, Russell Vought – who served as director of the Office of Management and Budget during Trump's first term – was filmed over the summer by undercover hidden-camera journalists talking about an aggressive agenda he was trying to achieve Trump's new administration got off to an active start in its first 180 days.

Trump's most aggressive promise is to detain and deport millions of illegal immigrants. Expect Trump to take office with a series of executive orders already written to reinstate border policies dismantled by the Biden administration.

This is the yo-yo of US immigration policy, considering that Congress has failed to pass meaningful reform for decades. It is unclear how exactly Trump will proceed with closing the US border and whether this will involve the US military, the National Guard or local law enforcement agencies.

Trump adviser Stephen Miller said on Fox News that he expects deportations to begin as soon as Trump becomes president again on January 20, 2025.

“They start on Inauguration Day, as soon as he takes the oath of office,” he said.

But it is still unclear exactly how deportations will take place. Rep. Carlos Gimenez, a Republican from Florida, told CNN's Pamela Brown on Thursday that he expects every undocumented immigrant to continue to get a hearing before he or she is deported, which deportations require the hiring of large numbers of additional government workers would be massively reinforced. The current process is lengthy.

“I agree; “It's going to be a very, very big task,” Gimenez said. “And I hope and expect that we just follow the law.”

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez reported that there have already been discussions between Trump allies and some in the private sector to detain and deport migrants on a large scale – although any operation would come with a heavy price.

She noted that Tom Homan, who was acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement director during Trump's first term, said deportation efforts would begin with anyone accused of a crime. It's not clear what would happen to the so-called Dreamers, people who were brought to the United States as children and have lived here most of their lives. Some of them are protected by an Obama-era program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which Trump tried unsuccessfully to end during his first term.

Ex-ICE official warns about Trump's mass deportation plan

Plans to “aggressively” lay off government workers and move agencies out of D.C

At the end of his first term, Trump planned to reclassify a large portion of civilian federal employees to make it easier to fire federal employees. Trump's plan, commonly referred to as “Schedule F,” was to remove longstanding protections for nonpartisan officials.

The Biden administration has put up some hurdles to counter such reclassification, but Trump promises in an Agenda47 video to begin reinstating it immediately so he can “remove rogue bureaucrats.” He says he will also “root out all corrupt actors” in the national security and intelligence apparatus and move federal agencies out of the nation’s capital “immediately.”

John McEntee, who was director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel during Trump's first term, worked on Project 2025, compiling a list of Trump loyalists suitable for administration positions. According to CNN's report on Trump's transition, he remains close to Trump.

McEntee recently said he was not involved in the policy recommendations in Project 2025, although he said, “I probably agree with most of them.” Instead, he was interested in “staffing the president with good people… I think that has he deserves.”

Trump likes to associate himself and his programs with bold names. Musk will play a role in government efficiency, but likely not a Cabinet position. Kennedy says he wants to give individuals more freedom to refuse vaccinations for their children, but that may not mean he will get a Cabinet post. Does Trump's promise at a rally in Georgia to put Walker in charge of a missile defense program mean an official government job for the failed Senate candidate?

There are 26 people in President Joe Biden's cabinet. Some, like the CIA director or the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, can be added or removed depending on the government. Only two of the 26 potential positions in a Trump Cabinet have been filled. Look for Trump to continue appointing top officials in the coming days.

Aside from Vice President-elect JD Vance, Trump's first major personnel news came Thursday evening when he announced that Susie Wiles, his campaign manager, would become his chief of staff. She will be the first woman to hold this position. Trump had four such top advisers during his previous term. The most senior of them, retired Marine General John Kelly, had warned about Trump's election.

Trump can simply hire a chief of staff, but most Cabinet positions, such as defense and homeland security secretaries, require Senate confirmation. Trump will have a Republican majority in the Senate, which should make confirmation of key positions easier, but each of the final Cabinet nominees will have a confirmation hearing before they can vote.

Frustrated by the difficulty of confirming Cabinet officials during his first term, Trump frequently appointed people as “acting” secretaries, although these appointments can only be made on a temporary basis.

Trump's eldest son, Donald Jr., said on Fox News that Trump will value loyalty and look for “people who don't think they know better than the duly elected president of the United States.”

Without bipartisan support in the Senate, Trump will not have the 60 votes he needs to move comprehensive legislation quickly through Congress. It is not yet clear whether Republicans will retain control of the House, but the majority will be small.

One of his big plans to challenge current government norms that has received less attention is his promise to strip Congress of some power over government spending. In an Agenda47 video, Trump says he would seek to re-impose the principle of “seizure,” under which a president can reject congressional spending orders and use taxpayer money in other ways.

After the Nixon administration, Congress reined in presidents with a law, but Trump says he will challenge it and give more power to the president.