Conservatives vs California
For many years now, California has become the punching bag for various conservatives and Republicans in the United States.
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As California is often considered the — if not one of the — most progressive and liberal states in the country, it isn’t too surprising to see conservatives often attack the West Coast state.
Project 2025 and Another Trump Term
However, some conservatives on the far right have seemingly become fixated on changing California to fit their own purposes.
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Enter Project 2025. This Heritage Foundation agenda, which is a more than 900-page document, outlines how many conservative policies can be put in place if former President Donald Trump beats President Joe Biden in November’s election.
What Is Project 2025?
Project 2025 focuses on pushing through many far-right conservative policies. However, much of the document envisions the overhauling of the U.S. government by enhancing the president’s power — and dismantling much of the justice department.
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The document also goes after LGBTQ+ Americans and their rights, policies and efforts to deal with the ongoing climate crisis, immigration, and abortion.
Attacking Abortion Rights
California is one of the most liberal states when it comes to one’s abortion rights. After the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, the Golden State became a haven for many women seeking abortions when their own state had outlawed them.
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Project 2025 attacks California for this stance. Noticing that many women have traveled to California for an abortion if their own state has illegalized it, the document analyzes what they call “abortion tourism.”
Tracking Women
Because of this so-called abortion tourism, Project 2025 proposes that women who travel to the Golden State should be tracked, especially as their home states may have abortion banned.
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Project 2025 also details how the federal government could withhold Medicaid, as well as other forms of federal funding, if California continues to include abortion in insurance companies’ healthcare coverage.
Cracking Down on Immigration
Abortion isn’t the only issue that Project 2025 targets. Immigration is also a large issue within the document — and the writers focus on how to crack down on immigrants in America in a large scale way.
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California is heavily reliant on immigrant labor, especially in areas of the state where agricultural jobs are plenty. Therefore, a crackdown on immigration could deeply hurt California’s overall economy.
Deporting Millions of Immigrants
Many have become increasingly concerned that, if Trump wins the presidency, he could truly enact a deportation plan that results in millions of immigrants being expelled from the country.
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If Trump does exactly what he says he wants to, this could further harm California and its economy, as well as deeply affect many immigrants and their families who live in the Golden State.
Going After Electric Vehicles
Project 2025 also rails against any policy that attempts to help with the effects of the ongoing climate crisis. In particular, the document wants to get rid of electric vehicles and how these cars are pushed in some states.
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The document explains that it wants to get rid of California’s new law that will ban all sales of new gasoline-powered vehicles by 2035. California has passed this law in an attempt to combat climate change.
California’s Fuel Efficiency Standards
Project 2025 also wants to go after California’s legal waiver that has allowed the state to set up its own fuel efficiency standards. For about the past half century, California has done this.
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However, Project 2025 now wants to ensure this legal waiver is taken away — which will halt California’s ability to set its own standards for itself.
California Can Fight Back
Though many parts of Project 2025 specifically target California, analysts have stated that the Golden State still has a lot of ammunition to fight back against these attempts.
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For example, many have pointed to the legal system to help California. Already, various courts have ruled in California’s favor after Republican-led states have tried to bring up a suit revolving around California setting its own fuel efficiency standards.
A Dystopian California
Regardless, many in California are worried about what Project 2025 has planned.
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California Congressman Jared Huffman warned, “Project 2025 is more than an idea. It’s a dystopian plot that’s already in motion to dismantle our democratic institutions, abolish checks and balances, chip away at church-state separation, and impose a far-right agenda that infringes on basic liberties and violates public will.”