What is the Deep State?

In this episode, we dig into the idea of the “deep state,” the supposed shadowy cabal of clandestine organizations and individuals who run the show behind the scenes, controlling the US and other governments. The QAnon movement and Donald Trump himself repopularized the idea around the 2016 election, claiming that Trump was a victim of forces attempting to prevent him from “draining the swamp.” In August 2022, he said at an event “to remove rogue bureaucrats and root out the deep state, Congress should pass groundbreaking reform empowering the President to ensure that any federal employee who is corrupt, incompetent, or unnecessary for the job can be told ‘you’re fired’”

Early on in his first campaign, Trump referred to “draining the swamp.” And the QAnon movement seized on the idea, claiming that Trump was fighting a powerful cabal of child traffickers who controlled everything about the government - except him.

The idea of the deep state isn’t new and isn’t the exclusive territory of the far right. Today, we’ll dive deep into the idea of the deep state and look at what the reality is - yes, there is a conspiracy, but it’s not a shadowy underground second government - it’s right in front of us. For that discussion, we’re joined by Brian Becker, host of the podcast The Socialist Program, a long-time socialist organizer, and the national coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition.