Washington, D.C. – Today, Unlocking America’s Future (UAF) released new research exposing Project 2025’s plans to dismantle responsible investing and the extreme shadow leaders behind the political initiative. Part of UAF’s new campaign around Project 2025, this report makes clear that the architects of the initiative, which include a network of greedy oil and gas billionaires and leaders of the Heritage Foundation, are not operating in the best interest of the American people, the economy, or our environment.
“Project 2025 is a 900-page anti-freedom doctrine, and its architects have made clear they plan to infringe on the rights of American retirees and their ability to invest freely and do what is best for their own personal interests,” said Kyle Herrig, spokesperson for Unlocking America’s Future. “Beyond forcing the hands of American taxpayers, the ESG section of Project 2025 will create severe, long-lasting damage to our economy and environment.”
The research shows how Project 2025’s MAGA loyalist and right-wing extremist authors are pandering to billionaires at the expense of Americans. Key highlights include:
- Project 2025 keeps investors out of the driver’s seat: The extreme doctrine recommends leveraging Congressional power to prevent the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from enforcing transparency and accountability in the financial system.
- Project 2025 is bad for business: The initiative calls upon the Federal Trade Commission to create a task force solely dedicated to framing corporate ESG and DEI efforts as “collusion.” It also calls upon Congress to investigate ESG practices as anti-trust.
- Project 2025 risks millions of Americans’ retirement savings: The initiative suggests removing federal pension funds from some of the world’s largest financial institutions, including BlackRock, and removing ESG considerations altogether.
Anti-ESG sections within Project 2025 were developed by four extremist authors with close ties to the MAGA movement, including three former Trump Administration political appointees and who all have close ties to the oil and gas industry.
- Bernard McNamee wrote the Department Of Energy Chapter Of Proiect 2025. McNamee is a former Trump administration official (former nominee to lead the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) who now works at a D.C. public affairs firm representing the oil and gas industries.
- Jonathan Berry wrote the Department Of Labor Section Of Project 2025. Berry is a former Trump administration official (former counsel to the assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice) and a practicing attorney who now leads a law firm focused on combatting ESG.
- Adam Candeub wrote the Federal Trade Commission Chapter Of Project 2025. Candeub is a former Trump administration official (former Deputy Associate Attorney General at the Department of Justice) and a senior fellow at a DC-based think tank affiliated with MAGA policies.
- David Burton wrote the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chapter Of Project 2025. Burton is a right-wing, career think tank staffer who spent several years at the Heritage Foundation.
You can read the full report here.
