Trump Says Russell Vought Will Return As Omb Director

Russell Vought, a prominent contributor to the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025, will return as director of the Office of Management and Budget in Donald Trump's second administration, the president-elect announced Friday.

Vought will lead the powerful office tasked with reviewing federal regulations and developing the president’s budget, Trump said in a post on his social media platform.

“He did an excellent job serving in this role in my First Term,” the president-elect said. “We cut four Regulations for every new Regulation, and it was a Great Success!

Trump praised him as “an aggressive cost cutter and deregulator who will help us implement our America First Agenda across all Agencies.”

Vought played a significant role in Heritage's Project 2025, which Trump sought to distance himself from during the campaign as it became a target of Democratic criticism.

Vought's return to OMB solidifies a revival of the conservative blueprint for Trump’s second term. He is the third person closely involved in Project 2025 that Trump has named to his new administration.

Vought authored a chapter on the Executive Office of the President in the Project 2025 document. He will join Tom Homan, Trump’s incoming border czar, and Trump’s pick to helm the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr who were both involved in Project 2025.

“There is unfinished business on behalf of the American people, and it’s an honor of a lifetime to get the call again,” Vought posted Friday night after Trump’s announcement.

Vought started Trump’s first term in the deputy role at OMB after being confirmed in a tight 50-49 confirmation vote that relied on a tie-breaking vote by then-Vice President Mike Pence. He moved to the top job in an acting capacity when Mick Mulvaney was elevated to acting White House chief of staff in January 2019. He was confirmed as OMB director in July 2020 with a 51-45 vote.

Senate Republicans were quick with praise for the selection.

“Bureaucrats & Beltway Bandits Beware,” Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) posted on X calling him “an outstanding choice.”

Democrats, meanwhile, were preparing to fight against a familiar foe from the first Trump term.

“Donald Trump lied through his teeth to pretend he had nothing to do with Project 2025. But Trump named the lead architect of Project 2025 to oversee the budget office. … We’ll hold them accountable,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Budget Committee, wrote Friday night on X.

If confirmed again, Vought will work with Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk to carry out Trump’s campaign pledge to slash government spending and regulations. The pair are at the helm of a nongovernmental commission — the Department of Government Efficiency — that has its sights on massive federal spending and workforce cuts.

Earlier this week on Tucker Carlson’s political talk show on X, Vought said he expects to work alongside the commission and pursue a “massive deregulatory agenda.” They will also be “as radical or aggressive as you can” in reducing full-time federal employees and contractors, he added.

Gavin Bade, David Lim and Betsy Woodruff Swann contributed to this report.