Trump embraces Project 2025 after disavowing it during 2024 campaign

President Trump referenced Project 2025 Thursday despite distancing himself from it during his 2024 campaign.Why it matters: Project 2025 became a political flashpoint during last year's presidential campaign because of its controversial outline for reshaping American life.Project 2025, never an official Trump platform, was built by some Trump allies and echoes moves from the early days of Trump's second presidency.Some of Trump's MAGA allies called Project 2025 the next-term agenda after Trump's win.Driving the news: Trump said Tuesday he planned to meet with Russ Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, to discuss agency cuts amid the government shutdown.Trump identified Vought as "of Project 2025 fame" in his Truth Social post on the meeting."I can't believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity," he wrote.What they're saying: When asked about Trump's mention of Project 2025, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson didn't directly respond to Axios' question.Russ Vought's ties to Project 2025Zoom in: Vought was a co-architect of the Heritage Foundation's initiative, largely seen as a roadmap for Trump's agenda.Vought was vice president of Heritage Action for America, a sister organization to the Heritage Foundation, which produced Project 2025. He wrote a section on the executive office.Other Trump allies — including Tom Homan, John Ratcliffe and Pete Hoekstra — also had a role in the plan's development.Worthy of your time: After one X user linked the FCC's threats to ABC over Jimmy Kimmel's suspension to Project 2025, FCC chairman Brendan Carr, who also contributed to the agenda's text, posted a GIF of Jack Nicholson nodding menacingly.Trump on Project 2025Flashback: Trump repeatedly distanced himself from the plan during the 2024 election campaign as Democrats repeatedly linked him to it."I have nothing to do with Project 2025," Trump said during a contentious presidential debate with Kamala Harris last year."That's out there. I haven't read it. I don't want to read it, purposely. I'm not going to read it," he said.At a campaign rally in July 2024, Trump called the plan "seriously extreme" and was conceived by people on the "severe right."Project 2025 main pointsProject 2025, deemed a blueprint for reshaping life for millions of Americans, proposes massive expansion of executive branch power and control of the federal bureaucracy. Many of Trump's executive orders signed at the start of his presidency echo the project's agenda.The plan calls for hardline positions on issues like abortion, as well as urged the expansion of oil and gas drilling in Alaska.It also includes recommendations for slashing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), minimizing the social safety net, cutting student debt relief and deporting immigrants.More from Axios:Trump's MAGA allies gloat Project 2025 "is the agenda"How Project 2025 would change American lifeProject 2025 director steps down at Heritage FoundationEditor's note: This story has been updated with a response from the White House.