With former President Donald Trump on the stage for this Thursday’s debate, no one should expect a deep dive into the issues. Inevitably, the theatrics of the event will overshadow the substance.
But it’s important not to be distracted by the sound and fury, because Trump and the GOP are telling us quite clearly what they intend to do on everything from tariffs to mass deportations, to banning abortion pills and implementing Project 2025.
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Their agenda is neither secret nor subtle. So, cut through the bluster and take a moment to pay attention to what a Trump 2.0 presidency would mean.
• Deporting millions of migrants. On MSNBC this weekend, Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts — one of the architects of Project 2025 — explained: “We need to have the biggest mass deportation system ever in the history of America because it is unjust, illegal and evil that more than 10 million illegal aliens have come to this country.”
• Imposing huge financial burdens on the middle class. Trump is floating the idea of eliminating the income tax and replacing it with trillions of dollars in new tariffs — most of which would be passed onto American consumers. The result would be massive tax cuts for the ultra-rich at the expense of middle- and lower-class Americans.
• Turning the Department of Justice into a weapon of political retribution, against his critics and the news media.
• Pardoning the Jan. 6 insurrectionists, including rioters who attacked police officers defending the Capitol.
• Invoking the Comstock Act to criminalize abortion, even without a federal ban.
• Appointing two more justices to the Supreme Court, solidifying conservative control for decades.








