For weeks, I’ve hesitated to write another one of these posts, however I don’t think I can ignore the situation any longer. I tried burying my head in the sand – it doesn’t work.
So where are we? As many of you know, my theme has been Project 2025 and how the Trump regime has responded to that document, or perhaps we should call it a mission to recast America as a right-wing, Christian-Nationalist dictatorship. Project 2025 doesn’t talk about a dictatorship per see, but that’s how things seem to be unfolding.
Going to war with Iran was not in Project 2025. And the consequences of this war are, and will continue to be, profound. So I wonder if the ‘backroom boys of P2025’ are apoplectic that this war might derail their objectives. A woman can hope, can’t she?
In February I wrote The Pillars are Under Attack, a look at Project 2025’s intention to reshape America with a Christian-Nationalist agenda at its heart. At the end, I used a post from John Pavlovitz, writer, pastor, and activist to highlight the stakes.
Full-blown theocracy. Hang on a minute. Isn’t that what they have in Iran? Different religion but definitely a theocracy with the mullahs in charge So what’s it like to live in Iran? I’m going to save some time and use a few extracts from ChatGPT to answer that question. I’ll highlight in red when I do.
People do live ‘ordinary lives’ in Iran (I have personal experience with two people from Iran). They work, study (occasionally overseas), marry, have children, get promoted, build their own businesses and so on. At the same time, the state imposes extensive religious, political, and social controls that shape daily life in ways many outsiders would find restrictive. One example of social controls that we are all familiar with is the hijab – the headscarf that women are forced to wear. Not the full black garb we often see in news photos but a simple headscarf. Women are also expected to dress modestly with both arms and legs covered. And by the way, they have ‘morality police’ to enforce this and many women have been jailed for failing to obey. Some have been killed.
On the political/governance front, Iran is governed by a hybrid system:
- there are elections for president and parliament,
- but ultimate authority rests with unelected religious institutions, especially the Supreme Leader and bodies such as the Guardian Council. I would add that the IRGC – the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps – now, more than ever, has wide authority. Thanks to Trump and Netanyahu wiping out many of the old leadership.
Candidates can be barred from running if they are viewed as insufficiently loyal to the Islamic system. Dissent is tightly constrained, and journalists, activists, lawyers, and protesters can face arrest, surveillance, imprisonment, or worse. Doesn’t this sound familiar? The very recent Republican election in Texas is an example of Trump punishing someone who wasn’t sufficiently loyal. And that’s not the only political example. Stephen Colbert is an example of targeting journalists. Ice protestors are an example of dissent being punished. Trump’s lawsuits against universities and other institutions are an example of targeting opposing voices.
In Iran, political repression and surveillance have always been and remain intense. What was one of the first actions taken by the Iranian government when attacked by US and Israel? Shut down the internet. The internet not only allows connection for a wide range of activities outside Iran (like research, connecting with family living in other countries, applying for jobs, attending conferences), it also facilitates business and connectivity within Iran. The Iranian internet has been down for 88 days. May 27, 2026 was the first day Iranians could connect since February 28th and, of course, there is no guarantee that it will remain open.
The internet is also shut down during protests – remember the protests in December 2025 and January 2026? Or the protests in the fall of 2022 after a young woman was killed in prison for not wearing her hijab! Even when the Internet is available, Iran heavily censors the internet as well as other media. Many global platforms are blocked or filtered, and people commonly use VPNs to access them.
Religion has been politicized and imposed by the state. Laws and governance are based on Shi’a Islamic principles. Other religions – Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Bahai can exist but are limited and controlled by the state.
Economic life is difficult for many Iranians due to sanctions, corruption, inflation, unemployment, and government mismanagement. These factors have contributed to an inflation rate of over 65%! Having spoken to Iranians, I’ve learned that they keep much of their wealth (such as it is) in gold and property to mitigate inflation. The present war makes all this worse.
You might be thinking that this can’t happen in America. I suspect the people in Hungary felt the same way before Viktor Orban was elected and imposed a Christian nationalist agenda. 16 years (!!) later they have finally voted him out of office.
Am I seriously comparing America to Iran? No. And don’t forget that the mullahs have been in charge for around 40 years. But there are some ominous signs of what Jon Pavlovitz called ‘full-blown theocracy’.
On the website ‘What Does Project 2025 Say‘, dismantle the government is one of the first things highlighted by the author E.T. Parker. I’ve written about this topic before, but here’s the author’s take (and remember, he has read, analyzed, and synthesized every word of the 920-page document.)
“Dismantle the government as we know it, removing experts from positions of power and installing Trump loyalists whose allegiance is to the Project 2025 agenda, not to the country. The authors argue for removing the Congressional approval requirement for federal officials in top positions. The authors explicitly argue for removing checks and balances for the President by the other branches of government. This creates a de facto King/Dictator. (Highlights added.)
I searched for the word ‘dictatorship’ on E.T. Parker’s website. Here’s a few examples of language that imply autocratic intent:
“There are scores of fine diplomats who serve the President’s agenda, often helping to shape and interpret that agenda. At the same time, however, in all Administrations, there is a tug-of-war between Presidents and bureaucracies – and that resistance is much starker under conservative Presidents, due largely to the fact that large swaths of the State Department’s workforce are left-wing and predisposed to disagree with a conservative President’s policy agenda and vision.” (Project 2025, Section 2.3: Department of State, Kiron Skinner, page 203, paragraph 3.)
Trump has clashed with the State Department during his first administration and this time has fired numerous people (replacing them with loyalists) as well as cleared out whole departments. The above statement suggests that anyone representing the United States on foreign policy or as part of the state department must be a loyalist to the President, not to the country.
“Reboot Ambassadors Worldwide. All ambassadors are required to submit letters of resignation at the start of a new Administration.” (Project 2025, Section 2.3: Department of State, Kiron Skinner, page 206, paragraph 2.) Another example of intent to replace experienced diplomats with Trump loyalists.
“Political ambassadors with strong personal relationships with the President should be prioritized for key strategic posts such as Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United Nations, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).”(Project 2025, Section 2.3: Department of State, Kiron Skinner, page 206, paragraph 3.)
I could go on, because E.T. Skinner has more examples, but you get the point. If you’re so inclined, you can read a whole section on Christian Nationalism on Parker’s website. And, let’s not forget some of the key architects of Project 2025 are fervent Christian Nationalists and some of them have important roles in Trump’s administration.
What about American citizens? Do they support Christian Nationalism? Back in 2022 – seems like ages ago, doesn’t it – Politico surveyed Americans on that question.
My conclusion: the seeds for a Christian Nationalist state have already been sown. To continue with the analogy: the plant is setting down roots and poking above the ground. As the headline says, this regime is a clear and present danger to American democracy.
PS: Tom Clancy wrote a book titled Clear and Present Danger. Almost 145K people have given it a 4.2 rating.
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M.K. Tod writes historical fiction. Her latest novel THAT WAS THEN is a contemporary thriller. Mary’s other novels, THE ADMIRAL’S WIFE, PARIS IN RUINS, TIME AND REGRET, LIES TOLD IN SILENCE and UNRAVELLED are available from Amazon, Nook, Kobo, Google Play and iTunes. She can be contacted on Facebook or on her website www.mktod.com.
