President-elect Donald Trump has promised to completely overhaul the US federal government and reverse Joe Biden’s policies.

The president-elect’s campaign pledges, if implemented, will transform American society.

Some of his repeated campaign promises include:

  • Mass deportation of 11 million undocumented immigrants
  • Closing the southern border and ending the granting of US citizenship to children born to parents who did not legally reside in the US
  • Unprecedented tariffs on foreign products from all countries, but especially China
  • Sweeping tax cuts to benefit corporations, wage earners, seniors on Social Security, Northeast property owners and more
  • Trillions in government spending cuts with the help of Elon Musk
  • Reforming the nation’s health and food systems with the help of vaccine skeptic Robert Kennedy Jr.
  • Reversing regulations aimed at tackling climate change
  • Creating a new missile shield with the help of former NFL player Herschel Walker
  • And many more

After winning the elections and taking over the US government, it remains to be seen which of Donald Trump’s promises were exaggerated and which were real, and whether it is possible to push them through on his own with the help of Congress without judicial intervention.

His promise to end Russia’s war in Ukraine “in 24 hours,” for example, seems exaggerated, to say the least.

Instead, his commitment to mass deportations is a stark reality that appears to be backed by some clear planning, though no details have been publicly presented.

Is there a master plan?

During the campaign, Trump sought to distance himself from Project 2025, the controversial and detailed plan to redesign the federal government published by conservatives at the Heritage Foundation in anticipation of a second Trump term.

While Trump may not want to be associated with this plan, it was brought up by his allies — at least 140 people connected to Project 2025 worked in the Trump administration, according to CNN. There’s certainly some overlap between much of what the 900-page Project 2025 proposes and what Trump has said he’ll do in a series of very simple “Agenda47” manifesto videos about his second-term positions.

In a video for Agenda47, for example, Trump promises to prepare an executive order to end citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants.

The 14th Amendment guarantees citizenship to those born in the country. If Trump goes ahead with the implementation of his commitment on immigration, it is certain that there will be legal disputes.

One of Protect 2025’s political masterminds, Russell Vought — who served as director of the Office of Management and Budget during Trump’s first term — was caught on hidden camera by reporters over the summer talking about an aggressive agenda he’s writing for the first 180 her days.

For the mass deportations

Trump’s most aggressive proclamation is rounding up and deporting millions of undocumented immigrants. Analysts estimate that Trump, immediately after taking office, will proceed to issue executive orders that have already been prepared to restore the border policies started by the Biden administration.

These include adopting a specific US immigration policy, given that Congress has been unable to pass meaningful reform for decades. What’s not clear is exactly how Trump will go about closing the U.S. border, and whether the process will involve the U.S. military, National Guard or local law enforcement agencies.

Trump adviser Stephen Miller told Fox News that he expects deportations to begin as soon as Trump is sworn in as president on January 20, 2025.
“They start on Inauguration Day,” he said.

But it is not yet clear how exactly the deportation process will take place. Florida Republican Rep. Carlos Jimenez said he expects every undocumented immigrant to be called to a hearing before being deported, which would require the hiring of a large number of additional state employees.

“I agree, it’s going to be a very, very big project,” Jimenez said. “And I hope, and I expect, that we’ll just follow the law.”

CNN reports that there are already discussions among Trump associates and some in the private sector to detain and deport immigrants on a large scale — though any undertaking would come at a high cost.

On the other hand, Tom Homan, who served as director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement during Trump’s first term, said deportation proceedings would begin with those charged with crimes. It is not clear what will happen to people who were brought to the US as children and have lived most of their lives in the country. Some are protected by an Obama-era program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which Trump tried unsuccessfully to end during his first term.

Layoffs of government employees and transfer of services from Washington

At the end of his first term, Trump planned to reclassify much of the federal civilian workforce to make it easier to fire federal workers. Commonly referred to as “Plan F,” Trump’s plan was to end protections for nonpartisan public employees.

The Biden administration has put up some roadblocks to prevent such a reclassification, but Trump said in an Agenda47 video that he would immediately start working on overturning them so he could “remove rogue bureaucrats.” He also said he would “clean out all the corrupt” in the national security and intelligence apparatus and “immediately” move federal agencies out of the nation’s capital.

John McEntee, who was director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel during Trump’s first administration, worked on Project 2025, listing Trump loyalists suitable for administration roles. He remains close to Trump.

Trump’s cabinet

Trump likes to associate himself and his programs with “big” names. Musk will have a role in government efficiency, but likely not a Cabinet position. Kennedy says he wants to give citizens more federal data to reject vaccines for their children, but that doesn’t mean he’ll have a Cabinet seat. At the same time, it remains a puzzle whether Walker will receive an official government position, in which Trump has promised to put him in charge of a missile defense program.

There are 26 people in President Joe Biden’s cabinet. Some, such as the director of the CIA or the US ambassador to the United Nations, can be added or removed depending on the administration. Only two of the names that will make up Trump’s cabinet are known.

Except for Vice President-elect Jay. D. Vance, the next name is that of Susie Wiles who was appointed White House Chief of Staff.

In his previous term, Trump switched four aides against, one of whom was retired Marine Gen. John Kelly, who in this election warned against electing Trump.

Trump can simply hire a chief of staff, but most Cabinet positions, such as the secretaries of defense and homeland security, require Senate approval. Trump will have a majority in the Senate, which will approve the nominees for the key positions, but each of the final Cabinet appointees will have to have a hearing before being put to a vote.

Trump’s eldest son, Donald Jr., told Fox News that Trump would reward loyalty and look for “people who believe in the president-elect of the United States.”

Stripping powers from Congress

Trump won’t have the 60 votes he needs to quickly pass legislation through Congress without bipartisan support in the Senate. It is not yet clear whether Republicans will control the House, but any majority will be small.

One of his big plans to overturn current governing rules that has received less attention is his promise to take some power from Congress over government spending. In an Agenda47 video, Trump says he will try to “reassert the principle of sequestration,” by which a president can override spending directives from Congress and use taxpayer money in other ways.

Congress has limited presidents by law since the Nixon administration, but Trump says he will challenge that and seek more power for the president.