PBS Washington Week with The Atlantic - Full Show Washington Week with The Atlantic full episode, 12/26/25
10 snips
Dec 27, 2025 
This discussion features Peter Baker, Chief White House correspondent for The New York Times, who delves into the implications of Project 2025 on presidential authority. David Graham, a staff writer at The Atlantic, outlines its social conservative goals and strategic architects. Leigh Ann Caldwell from Puck highlights shifting congressional power and immigration enforcement changes. The panel critiques Trump’s contradictory stance on Project 2025, revealing internal conservative divisions and predicting future socio-political moves related to civil rights and immigration.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Blueprint For Executive Domination
- Project 2025 is a blueprint for concentrated presidential power and a socially conservative reordering of government functions.
- Its authors aim to sideline Congress, reshape agencies, and impose a traditionalist cultural vision across policy areas.
Immigration As Central Policy Priority
- Project 2025 prioritizes immigration restriction, presidential authority over agencies, and a traditionalist social order.
- The plan seeks to reverse immigration effects, curb visas, and denaturalize individuals to close off the U.S.
Public Disavowal, Private Adoption
- Trump publicly disavowed Project 2025 during the campaign but promptly installed its architect, Russell Vought, in a powerful OMB role.
- Panelists call this conscious gaslighting to hide alignment while implementing the plan from inside government.