Heritage Foundation urges Trump to prioritize marriage, proposes 'marriage bootcamp'

Released at the start of the 2026 midterm election year and first reported by The Washington Post, the report marks Heritage’s continued evolution from its small-government roots into a pillar of the populist right, and signals an organized push to place domestic family formation at the center of conservative federal policy under President Donald Trump’s second term.

The Heritage Foundation on Thursday released a policy report urging the Trump administration to make marriage and family formation a federal priority, calling for executive orders that would require every federal grant, contract, policy, regulation, research project, and enforcement action to measure its effect on American families.

The report, led by Roger Severino, Heritage’s vice president of economic and domestic policy, marks what the organization describes as a push to “save and restore the American family.” It was first reported by The Washington Post. The White House did not immediately comment Thursday on the report, or on whether anyone in the administration had collaborated on it.

“The government’s primary role is to clear the weeds and prevent its policies and programs from poisoning the ground,” Severino and his co-authors wrote. “Unfortunately, except for radically redefining the institution, marriage is not currently a federal priority.”

What the report proposes

Among its recommendations, the report calls for a “marriage bootcamp” designed to prepare cohabitating couples for marriage; a “universal day of rest” that would build upon blue laws that limit alcohol sales in some municipalities; and a discouragement of online dating, citing research showing that “couples who meet online are also less likely to get married in the first place.”

The document also calls for tax codes that “should not penalize marriage and encourage single parenthood” and education policy that “should not coax young Americans to delay marriage while pursuing needless credentials.”

The report calls on Trump to issue executive orders directing every federal program to “explicitly measure how it helps or harms marriage and family, block actions that discriminate against family formation, and give preference to actions that support American families.” Its overarching standard is that U.S. policy should “encourage and protect the formation of families, not mere fertility.”

A mixed reaction

Eric Rosswood, author of “Journey to Parenthood: The Ultimate Guide for Same-Sex Couples,” said he concurs with some of Heritage’s arguments — among them, concerns about food insecurity and the lack of affordable childcare. But he disagreed with the report’s recommendation that subsidies go toward married families and its position that children are best suited to being raised by their biological parents.

“I think what’s due to them is a family that’s going to provide for the children and take care of the children, make sure they have a roof over their head that they have meals, they’re getting to school, parents that support their hobbies and motivate them,” said Rosswood, who is raising two children with his husband.

“I don’t think that those are gender-based. I don’t think that that’s tied to biological genetics. I think that’s what a parent does, regardless of who they are.”

IVF outside marriage

The report acknowledges that in vitro fertilization has its benefits but argues against the procedure outside of marriage.

“A babies-at-all-costs mentality would come at too great a cost, and not just financially, but morally and spiritually,” Heritage wrote, adding that IVF performed outside of marriage “intentionally denies a right due to every child conceived — to be born and grow in relationship with his or her mother and father bound in marriage.”

In his first month of his second term, Trump signed an executive order aiming to reduce IVF costs, requesting policy recommendations on protecting IVF access and “aggressively reducing out-of-pocket and health plan costs for IVF treatment.” In October, Trump issued new federal guidance allowing companies to offer fertility benefits separate from major medical insurance plans.

IVF emerged as a major political issue during the 2024 presidential campaign after Alabama agreed to protect IVF providers from legal liability, a move that followed a state Supreme Court ruling that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law.

Heritage separately commended Trump for promising “to address the ‘root causes’ of infertility.”

Heritage’s growing influence

The new report reflects Heritage’s evolution from its small-government origins toward the populist right. During Trump’s second term, Heritage has demonstrated its influence through Project 2025 — a nearly 900-page policy guidebook written by many conservatives who worked in or with Trump’s first administration. Trump distanced himself from Project 2025 during the 2024 campaign, but some of its tenets have become hallmarks of his second term, including the establishment of the Department of Government Efficiency and the dissolution of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Vice President JD Vance praised Heritage President Kevin Roberts’ vision during the 2024 campaign in the foreword of Roberts’ forthcoming book “Dawn’s Early Light,” calling Heritage “the most influential engine of ideas for Republicans from Ronald Reagan to Donald Trump.” Vance has long made family formation a policy priority, proposing ideas such as allowing parents to vote on behalf of their children or giving low-interest loans to married couples with children.

Heritage has faced internal turbulence. Roberts drew outrage last year after he defended conservative commentator Tucker Carlson’s friendly podcast interview with Nick Fuentes, a far-right activist known for his antisemitic views. The comments sparked the resignations of Heritage board members, staffers, and executives.