In response to reporting on Donald Trump choosing Project 2025 architect Russ Vought as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: 

“After months of lies to the American people, Donald Trump is taking off the mask: He’s plotting a Project 2025 Cabinet to enact his dangerous vision starting on day one — and bringing back the ‘chief architect’ of this toxic blueprint, Russ Vought, to execute his disastrous plans. Vought is just the latest Project 2025-linked addition to the dangerous slate of MAGA extremists Trump is recruiting to staff his administration. Democrats have called out the close ties between Trump and Project 2025 every step of the way — and we’re ready to keep fighting back against Vought and the rest of the bad faith creeps Trump picks no matter what attacks they launch on our democracy.”

NEW: Donald Trump lied and said he has “no idea who is behind” Project 2025. Now, reporting reveals he’s tapping one of its chief architects, Russ Vought, as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget — a job Vought held during Trump’s first term. 

CNN: “‘I have no idea who is behind [Project 2025],’ the former president recently claimed on social media.

“Many people Trump knows quite well are behind it.”

PBS: “A chief architect of Project 2025 — the controversial conservative blueprint to remake the federal government — Vought is likely to be appointed to a high-ranking post in a second Trump administration.”

Washington Post: “Vought, who also led the White House Office of Management and Budget during Trump’s first administration. … Vought wrote a chapter of Project 2025 on transforming the executive office of the presidency, but even though Trump repeatedly disavowed the Heritage Foundation project during his campaign, that does not appear likely to stop Trump from returning one of its architects to the White House.”

ABC News: “During his campaign for president, Donald Trump and his advisers worked to vehemently distance themselves from Project 2025, the controversial plan to overhaul the federal government proposed by a closely aligned conservative group. But several individuals connected to the plan have already received posts in the new administration, and one of the plan’s top architects is under consideration for a top position, according to multiple sources familiar with the discussions.

“Russ Vought, who authored a chapter on ‘Executive Office of the President’ for Project 2025’s ‘Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise,’ which Project 2025 describes as ‘a comprehensive policy guide for the next conservative U.S. president,’ is under consideration for a cabinet-level position in the next administration and has been vetted by Trump’s transition team, sources said.

“Vought not only authored a chapter in the 922-page Project 2025 plan, but he was also deeply involved in drafting Project 2025’s playbook for the first 180 days of a new Trump administration. His Center for Renewing American is also listed as a member of Project 2025’s advisory board, according to the plan’s website.

“Vought — who has been seen at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in recent days meeting with Trump’s top advisers — served in Trump’s first administration as the director of the Office of Management and Budget, and has been in active discussions to return to the next administration, sources familiar with the matter said.”

FACT: Vought himself previously said he expects to be in Trump’s inner circle if he wins, and that Trump has “blessed” his work.

CNN: “Hidden-camera video shows Project 2025 co-author discussing his secret work preparing for a second Trump term”

“Vought said his group, the Center for Renewing America, was secretly drafting hundreds of executive orders, regulations, and memos that would lay the groundwork for rapid action on Trump’s plans if he wins, describing his work as creating ‘shadow’ agencies. He claimed that Trump has ‘blessed’ his organization and ‘he’s very supportive of what we do.’ […]

“In discussing Trump’s plan to carry out the largest deportation in US history – which the former president has called for publicly – Vought said the expulsion of millions of undocumented immigrants could help ‘save the country.’ […]

“Vought served as the director of the Office of Management and Budget under Trump, where he made a name for himself as a policy wonk committed to the MAGA movement. In public, Trump repeatedly praised Vought for doing an ‘incredible’ and ‘fantastic’ job at OMB […] 

“Vought also served as the policy director of the Republican National Convention committee that rewrote the GOP’s official platform this year – a sign of how central he is to Republicans’ policy goals […] 

“‘I see what [Trump is] doing is just very, very conscious distancing himself from a brand,’ Vought said. ‘It’s interesting, he’s in fact not even opposing himself to a particular policy.’ […]

“Trump and Vought have spoken at various times since leaving office, and the former president has adopted some of Vought’s ideas […]

“Vought said in the meeting that he had a team of staffers working to draft regulations and executive orders that would translate Trump’s campaign speeches into government policy […] 

“Those plans will not be made public, Vought said, but instead will be ‘very, very close hold.’

“[Micah Meadowcroft, the research director for the Center for Renewing America] described Vought’s work preparing executive orders and policy playbooks as ‘the second phase’ of Project 2025 […]

“The Washington Post and Associated Press previously reported that Vought was drafting a playbook for the first 180 days of a new Trump administration […]

“Asked if he had been offered a job in a second Trump administration, Vought said no, but added, ‘I think there’s an expectation that I would go in.’”

Vought joins a list of many other Project 2025-tied allies Trump is rewarding with jobs in his administration, including Project 2025 authors and contributors like Tom Homan and John Ratcliffe. 

ABC News: “On Sunday, Trump’s team said that Brendan Carr will serve as the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission — a selection that places one of tech billionaire Elon Musk’s active defenders in charge of regulating the nation’s airwaves. Carr, who has used his position to defend Musk’s companies, authored the chapter of Project 2025 that detailed how he intended to run the agency.

“Former ICE Director Tom Homan has been picked to serve as ‘border czar’ for the incoming administration, overseeing the mass deportations that have been promised by Trump throughout his 2024 campaign, and immigration hard-liner and top adviser Stephen Miller will serve as Trump’s deputy chief of staff for policy. Both Homan and Miller have ties to Project 2025.”

ABC News: “President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that John Ratcliffe, his former director of national intelligence who has been listed as a ‘contributor’ to Project 2025, is his pick to lead the CIA.”