74% Of Americans Believe The "Deep State" Is Running The Country | Zero Hedge
Description: "...there’s an ominous feeling by Democrats and Republicans alike that a ‘Deep State’ of unelected operatives are pulling the levers of power."

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# 74% Of Americans Believe The "Deep State" Is Running The Country

For the past two years, the long-running narrative, at least that promulgated by the mainstream media which continues to "explain away" Hillary Clinton's loss to Donald Trump, is that Americans had fallen for a massive, long-running fake news scam (in part aided and abetted by the likes of Facebook), which boosted Trump's popularity at the expense of Hillary's as part of some giant "Russian collusion" conspiracy theory between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin (which Mueller was supposed to uncover, but has instead shifted to investigating obstruction, seemingly unable to find anything).

But what if that entire narrative is dead wrong: what if Americans have become so skeptical in the government process and structure, they never needed a "fake news" boost to vote for an establishment outsider?

According to a new poll, that's precisely the case because a supermajority of Americans believes the faction of unelected officials, known as the deep state, is orchestrating policy in Washington, D.C. and effectively running the nation.

The Monmouth University Polling Institute found that no less than 74% of Americans believe in a "deep state" when it is described as a collection of unelected officials running policy. Only 21% do not believe this kind of group exists.

As a result of countless "conspiracy theories" being proven as facts in recent years, chief among which the Edwards Snowden revelations which exposed the NSA as nothing short of "big brother", and the Wikileaks disclosures which revealed how the Democratic Party colluded against Bernie Sanders to promote Clinton's candidacy and countless more such examples, fully 8-in-10 believe that the U.S. government currently monitors or spies on the activities of American citizens, including a majority (53%) who say this activity is widespread and another 29% who say such monitoring happens but is not widespread. Just 14% say this monitoring does not happen at all. Shockinly, there were no substantial partisan differences in these results.

What is even more surprising, is that the poll found than 7 out of 10 Americans polled in each political group, not just Republicans but Democrats and independents as well, believe in a deep state.

31% of Republicans and 33% of independents say they believe a deep state “definitely exists,” while 19% of Democrats believe this.

"We usually expect opinions on the operation of government to shift depending on which party is in charge,” Monmouth University Polling Institute Director Patrick Murray said in a statement. “But there’s an ominous feeling by Democrats and Republicans alike that a ‘Deep State’ of unelected operatives are pulling the levers of power.”

While there is general partisan agreement on concerns about government overreach, there are some notable differences in the level of concern by two very different demographic metrics: race and membership in the National Rifle Association.

> Americans of black, Latino and Asian backgrounds (35%) are more likely than non-Hispanic whites (23%) to say that the Deep State definitely exists. Non-whites (60%) are also somewhat more likely than whites (50%) to worry about the government monitoring them and similarly more likely to believe there is already widespread government monitoring of U.S. citizens (60% and 49%, respectively). More non-whites (35%) than whites (23%) say that such monitoring is rarely or never justified.

The Monmouth University Poll also found that NRA members (43%) are significantly more likely than other Americans (25%) to definitely believe in the existence of a Deep State operation in DC. In a Monmouth poll released earlier this month, NRA members voiced opposition to the establishment of a national gun registry database in part because of their fear it would be used to track other activities of gun owners. NRA members (63%) are somewhat more likely than other Americans (51%) to worry about the government monitoring them and similarly are more likely to believe there is already widespread government monitoring of U.S. citizens (61% and 51%, respectively). However, there are no significant differences between NRA members (30%) and others (26%) on whether such monitoring is rarely or never justified when it does occur. The opinion of gun owners who are not NRA members are more similar to non-gun owners than they are to NRA members on these questions.

“Anxiety about a possible ‘Deep State’ is prevalent in both parties, but each has key constituent groups who express even greater concerns about the potential for government overreach. This includes racial and ethnic groups who still experience the effects of historical prejudice as well as gun owners who fear their constitutional rights are being threatened,” said Murray. “Can those fears be allayed or will they intensify and spread? Or is this just the new normal? This is something we will have to keep tracking.”

Ironically, the poll also found that a majority of those polled, 63%, said they were “not familiar” with the term "deep state," however. Thirteen percent said they were “very familiar,” while 24 percent said they were “somewhat familiar.” In other words, someone else is running the country, just not those who are supposed to be.

“This is a worrisome finding. The strength of our government relies on public faith in protecting our freedoms, which is not particularly robust. And it’s not a Democratic or Republican issue. These concerns span the political spectrum,” said Murray.

It also means that if it was indeed Russia that wanted to brainwash America (spoiler alert: America has been quite successful in doing to itself for generations without Russian influence), it has already succeeded, and that if Putin plans to run for re-election in 2024 he may have to do so in the US.

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Kayman Mon, 03/19/2018 - 10:56 Permalink

Mob. The Deep State doesn't describe what really is going on.

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Leakanthrophy Kayman Mon, 03/19/2018 - 10:58 Permalink

Therefore Democrats are only 26%.

And imbeciles.

Nothing new I guess.

In reply to Mob by Kayman

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TahoeBilly2012 Leakanthrophy Mon, 03/19/2018 - 10:58 Permalink

But only 18% think it's the "Deep Jew State".

In reply to Therefore Democrats are only… by Leakanthrophy

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skbull44 TahoeBilly2012 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 10:59 Permalink

Governments have always been by, for, and of the ruling caste elite (and run for the maintenance and expansion of their wealth and power). This is nothing new. The fact that more and more people are realizing this may be what's new (and perhaps one of the 'unintended' consequences of the Internet).

https://Olduvai.ca

In reply to But only 18% think it's the … by TahoeBilly2012

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Déjà view skbull44 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:02 Permalink

"Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people."

—Theodore Roosevelt

In reply to Governments have always been… by skbull44

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DownWithYogaPants Déjà view Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:03 Permalink

You have to give this point to Trump. This is his centerpiece accomplishment to bring this into the frontal lobes of so many. Quite in fact he may accomplish nothing else and I will feel it was a success. Just give us another wrench to toss in the gears each election.

Things were smooth with puppet Obama because he did as he was told like a good little boy. The Deep State had its way with that butt boy.

Trump did this and it is EXACTLY why I voted for him. Yet the lefties can't see the forest for the trees. They think things will change if they get the right soy boy in office. That is of course laughable.

In reply to Behind the ostensible… by Déjà view

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pier DownWithYogaPants Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:11 Permalink

Meet the DEEP STATE

In reply to adsf by DownWithYogaPants

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eforce pier Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:12 Permalink

Once Tether stopped printing around end of december bitcoin and other cryptos started to tank, perhaps something similar happens with fiat...the people remove the Fed and then the house of cards collapses, establishment then this spins this to their advantage to create a global reserve of some sort, maybe gold at first but then devolving back into fiat.

In reply to Meet the DEEP STATE https:/… by pier

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JimmyJones eforce Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:19 Permalink

Listen to this pod cast and learn about an entire level of the Deep State that only gets reported on from the Feds every 4 years, its eye opening. https://youtu.be/p3sBsF0B7Tk

In reply to Once Tether stopped printing… by eforce

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NumbersUsa JimmyJones Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:23 Permalink

The deep state are the jew supremacists-Period

try this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20APOyN12E4

In reply to Listen to this pod cast and… by JimmyJones

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Bone-Machine NumbersUsa Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:27 Permalink

Bone looking to relocate to Shallow State.

There is no room for compassion or empathy in the practice of Capitalism. The ultimate goal is to profit, even at the expense of forfeiting any moral or ethical compass. The similarities between Capitalism and psychopathy are striking.

Slaves who complain will have their electrons reformatted.

In reply to The deep state are the jew… by NumbersUsa

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JimmyJones Bone-Machine Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:29 Permalink

Government, "we are protecting your freedoms by taking them away".

The people, "That doesn't make any sense".

Government, "YouTube, Facebook, Google, silence the non-believers".

In reply to Not even. by Bone-Machine

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ClickNLook JimmyJones Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:45 Permalink

Government is trying to keep our concience clear by making sure we never use it.

In reply to Government, "we are… by JimmyJones

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Shemp 4 Victory ClickNLook Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:56 Permalink

Dictatorship of the Bureaucratariat.

In reply to Government is trying to keep… by ClickNLook

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bshirley1968 ClickNLook Mon, 03/19/2018 - 12:01 Permalink

The problem is no one can agree on just what the "Deep State" is or who is in charge of it.

This is by design. If you can constantly muddy the waters so that no one can get a clear image or direction, it makes it very difficult to bring a coordinated assault. "Divide and conquer."

To me, the deep state is the Federal Reserve. Always has been and always will be. There can be no "power" out of reach of the people once the UNLIMITED FREAKIN' MONEY is removed. As long as they can print what they need to buy off who they need to buy off, they have unlimited control. They can corrupt a good system. We have a great system but the system has been corrupted by men who can be BOUGHT OFF by unlimited money. Men will always be corrupt and greedy. The answer is to remove the unlimited money that is controlling them.

Federal Reserve = the Deep State.....or at least the power of the Deep State.

In reply to Government is trying to keep… by ClickNLook

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stacking12321 JimmyJones Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:23 Permalink

Silly Americans.

whats the solution?

obviously, you just need to VOTE HARDER!

In reply to Listen to this pod cast and… by JimmyJones

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ClickNLook stacking12321 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:46 Permalink

Voting and blogging: modern idea of revolution.

In reply to Silly Americans… by stacking12321

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Cloud9.5 stacking12321 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 12:01 Permalink

It’s either ballots or bullets. I prefer ballots. What is clear is that the majority has come to understand that the government is not theirs and it cannot be trusted. The ramifications of this phase change are far from over. I expect both political parties to collapse. No matter what color hat the candidate wears if he is part of the club then vote him out.

What is new is an open in your face counter coupe attempt by the losing factions. If this is not squelched, this trend will only become more prominent. At some point an actual shooting war will breakout within the factions if this trend continues.

The false flag thing has pretty much run its course. Each one has triggered massive gun sales. This is counterproductive for a deep state intent on disarming the populace. Some elements of the left are coming to understand that they too have no guarantee of controlling the leviathan. With this new realization the left is arming up. Disarming the populace is simply not possible.

In reply to Silly Americans… by stacking12321

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HippieHaulers stacking12321 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 12:04 Permalink

We voted hard for Trump and it's paying off. 2014 called and it wants it's conventional wisdom back.

In reply to Silly Americans… by stacking12321

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OpTwoMistic JimmyJones Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:37 Permalink

Deep state includes the uniparty you have been voting for and the fed.

That is why they hate Trump.

In reply to Listen to this pod cast and… by JimmyJones

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Stuck on Zero OpTwoMistic Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:46 Permalink

A Princeton study showed that 95% of legislation by Congress was special interest - targeting the top 0.01% of the population. Any wonder people are miffed?

In reply to Deep state includes the… by OpTwoMistic

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Chupacabra-322 OpTwoMistic Mon, 03/19/2018 - 12:04 Permalink

At the Highest Compartmentalized Levels of every Agency it’s Criminal & Tyrannically Lawless

In reply to Deep state includes the… by OpTwoMistic

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knotjammin2 pier Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:13 Permalink

Looks like the deep state took down your link.

URL Shortener

404: Page not found – the page https://goo.gl/bFYusM%C2%A0%C2%A0 does not exist.

If you typed in or copied/pasted this URL, make sure you included all the characters, with no extra punctuation.

In reply to Meet the DEEP STATE https:/… by pier

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NumbersUsa pier Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:50 Permalink

bad link Pier, Please fix it.

In reply to Meet the DEEP STATE https:/… by pier

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ZeroSpam pier Mon, 03/19/2018 - 12:14 Permalink

....

In reply to Meet the DEEP STATE https:/… by pier

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y3maxx DownWithYogaPants Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:11 Permalink

The non believers of this conspiracy are amazingly naive.

In reply to adsf by DownWithYogaPants

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Deep Snorkeler y3maxx Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:39 Permalink

You have been singled out for further observation.

In reply to The non believers are… by y3maxx

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loveyajimbo DownWithYogaPants Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:49 Permalink

As long as Trump allows the mega-maggot Hillary to walk free... he is part of the Deep State.

The new Tax law was a massive gift to corporations, the appallingly bloated budget was a gift to the MIC.

In reply to adsf by DownWithYogaPants

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Endgame Napoleon DownWithYogaPants Mon, 03/19/2018 - 12:08 Permalink

That is not the primary reason I voted for him, although it was an ancillary reason. There is way too much focus on factional groups in this country, but just to see how deeply the Deep State aversion has soaked into various parts of the electorate, Republicans should poll the minorities who voted for Trump. He got like 2% more of the Black and Hispanic vote than Romney. They should poll the 2%, trying to gauge how much fears of Deep State overreach motivated them. For former Cubans who sought citizenship here to escape a dictatorship, and for many naturalized citizens of Asian extraction, too, Deep State maneuvering is probably more predictive of their voting patterns, whereas I would guess that many Hispanic and Black citizens voted for Trump for the same reason that I, a white woman, did: to put a reasonable lid on the oversupply of low-wage legal / illegal / welfare-boosted immigrant workers, competing for jobs in a nation with tons of underemployed, non-welfare-eligible citizens.

In reply to adsf by DownWithYogaPants

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Blue Steel 309 Déjà view Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:20 Permalink

Good 'ole Teddy would know. He fought in Cuba on behalf of Oligarchy interests. And big Sugar Cane had nothing on today's Oligarchs.

In reply to Behind the ostensible… by Déjà view

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Cardinal Fang Blue Steel 309 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:50 Permalink

Hmmm...

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fanjul_brothers

In reply to Good 'ole Teddy would know… by Blue Steel 309

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NumbersUsa Déjà view Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:25 Permalink

Hey DV,

"Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people."

—Theodore Roosevelt

They are not invisible now and they were not invisible then, he was just too scared to name them:

((( filthy jew supremacists)))

​​​​​​​The sooner the goy of the world settle this the better this world will be.

In reply to Behind the ostensible… by Déjà view

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Deep Snorkeler Déjà view Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:30 Permalink

You cannot know what they know.

In reply to Behind the ostensible… by Déjà view

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cheech_wizard Deep Snorkeler Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:36 Permalink

And you know even less, as empty skulls have no gray matter.

In reply to You cannot know what they… by Deep Snorkeler

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GoingBig Déjà view Mon, 03/19/2018 - 12:09 Permalink

803 People surveyed? hardly a meaningful population size.

In reply to Behind the ostensible… by Déjà view

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house biscuit skbull44 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:03 Permalink

AAZog >> COG >> Gog & Magog

In reply to Governments have always been… by skbull44

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Ignatius skbull44 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:03 Permalink

So getting America addicted to opiates wasn't some stupid Congressional idea?

Geez, seemed like a perfect fit. I'll have to study this further.

In reply to Governments have always been… by skbull44

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D.T.Barnum Ignatius Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:15 Permalink

Yea, people say Marijuana is kept illegal for $$ purposes, and I'm sure that's partially true, but I think there is a social engineering aspect to it as well. Pot does make you paranoid, which in some cases, is a good thing [for you, not for (((them)))]. It also makes you question things, and it also makes you care less about materialism and consumerism. When you are stoned, not having that Ferrari doesn't seem to matter. Just taking a hike with a buddy seems a-ok.

Opioids on the other hand, just make you numb.

Hey, I don't smoke pot, makes me groggy and crave junk food, which is not cool. I'm just sayin...

In reply to So getting America addicted… by Ignatius

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Joe Davola D.T.Barnum Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:24 Permalink

You forgot the "Well, at least that's what my stoner acquaintance says."

In reply to Yea, people say keeping… by D.T.Barnum

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D.T.Barnum Joe Davola Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:34 Permalink

In my late teens/ early 20's I was a pot head. Big deal.

In reply to You forgot the "Well, at… by Joe Davola

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ktown D.T.Barnum Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:55 Permalink

Circus barker PHD?

In reply to In my late teens/ early 20's… by D.T.Barnum

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shovelhead D.T.Barnum Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:58 Permalink

Obviously something else was responsible for your stupidity.

College?

In reply to In my late teens/ early 20's… by D.T.Barnum

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Pollygotacracker Joe Davola Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:43 Permalink

Ex football great Joe Montana just came out endorsing pot for pain/healing. It's getting harder to demonize weed. I've been a 'light' user since I was 16. Never has hurt me. Again, a light user. You can abuse anything.

In reply to You forgot the "Well, at… by Joe Davola

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Bone-Machine D.T.Barnum Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:33 Permalink

Bone uses ancient Chinese herbs to offset grogginess.

Bone uses CBD for bone ache.

Bone would use Indica to relax, but it is rarely available, if ever.

Bone, like Trumpty, never touches alcohol.

Bone always knew alcohol was directly related to dementia. Duh!

In reply to Yea, people say keeping… by D.T.Barnum

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D.T.Barnum Bone-Machine Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:38 Permalink

A few fatsos died from taking Ephredra and working out too hard, and now it's illegal. That's UnAmerican goddammit.

In reply to Bone uses ancient Chinese… by Bone-Machine

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Bone-Machine D.T.Barnum Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:53 Permalink

Bone would never consider Ephredra, fat or not.

Bone has 45+ years experience with herbs and is never interested in some "branded" bone shit.

Bone has empathy for the "fatsos". They die young. Younger than smokers or drinkers or even doctors!

The overweight are victims of deep state programming. They represent part of the group of sacrificial lambs. Recent immigrants make up a huge part of the group of sacrificial lambs. It is their true purpose for the deep state.

In reply to A few fatsos died from… by D.T.Barnum

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Dindu Nuffins Bone-Machine Mon, 03/19/2018 - 12:02 Permalink

People who talk in the 3rd person have a lame try-hard schtick. FYI.

In reply to Bone would never consider… by Bone-Machine

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ktown D.T.Barnum Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:52 Permalink

I rarely hike with a burger but I guess I could slow the windmill so you can jump down?

In reply to Yea, people say keeping… by D.T.Barnum

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TahoeBilly2012 skbull44 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:04 Permalink

Wrong SKBull, not about wealth it's about society engineering. They plan to control the world with their means by a certain date for their agenda. It's not about yachts, while those are always nice.

In reply to Governments have always been… by skbull44

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skbull44 TahoeBilly2012 Mon, 03/19/2018 - 11:11 Permalink

I would argue that social engineering is part and parcel of the maintenance and expansion of power and wealth.

In reply to Wrong SKBull, not about… by TahoeBilly2012

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