In-depth: The Truth About the FBI, CIA, and the American "Deep State"

Key Chapter Titles

1. Introduction: The Whistleblower
2. The Church Committee
3. Ford, Cheney, and Rumsfeld
4. Carter Strengthens Oversight
5. Reagan, Meese, and Iran-Contra
6. Bush, Barr, and Presidential Power
7. Clinton, Reno, and Impeachment
8. George W. Bush, 9/11, and the Return of the Imperial Presidency
9. Obama, Snowden, and Drones

Document Introduction

This report systematically examines the decades-long tension and interplay between U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies (centered on the FBI and CIA) and presidential power since the Watergate scandal. Using the controversial concept of the "deep state" as its central theme, the report aims to investigate, through historical facts, whether a secret government network manipulated by unelected bureaucrats exists in the United States, and how this narrative has been politicized and profoundly influenced contemporary American politics.

The first part of the report focuses on the historical evolution from the Ford to the Obama administrations. Starting with the landmark Church Committee investigations, which exposed the FBI and CIA's large-scale illegal surveillance and civil rights violations against American citizens during the Cold War and spurred oversight reforms such as the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). However, the report notes that a backlash against these reforms emerged almost immediately. Proponents of expanded executive power, represented by Antonin Scalia, Dick Cheney, and Donald Rumsfeld, viewed congressional oversight as a distortion of the constitutional order. Subsequent presidents, whether attempting to strengthen oversight mechanisms through human rights diplomacy (like Carter), challenging congressional authority through covert actions (like Reagan during Iran-Contra), or significantly expanding executive power by leveraging national security crises (like George W. Bush after 9/11), all demonstrated the ongoing power struggle between the president, the bureaucracy, and Congress. The report analyzes how the Iran-Contra affair tested the post-Watergate system of checks and balances, and how intensified partisan conflict during the Clinton era led to the political abuse of the independent counsel system and public distrust.

The second part of the report delves into the Trump era, analyzing how the "deep state" evolved from a fringe term into a core political narrative. President Trump and his supporters portrayed the "deep state" as a conspiratorial cabal of disgruntled career bureaucrats, intelligence officials, and media aiming to subvert his elected government. By examining Trump's intense conflicts with Congress, the FBI (particularly the Russia investigation), and the CIA, as well as the role of William Barr as Attorney General acting as the "president's political shield and sword," the report reveals an unprecedented level of political polarization in the United States. The report also presents the perspective of career civil servants such as FBI agents and CIA officers, who view themselves as apolitical professionals executing policy according to the law. Their internal culture of caution and loyalty to the institution stands in stark contrast to the president's demand for absolute personal loyalty.

This report is based on extensive historical archives, congressional hearing records, and interviews with key figures (including former intelligence chief James Clapper, former FBI General Counsel James Baker, and CIA officer Richard Blee, who hunted Osama bin Laden). It is not only a record of intelligence agency history but also a deep examination of the resilience of American democratic institutions, the crisis of public trust, and the political utility of conspiracy theories. Ultimately, the report reveals that the core of the "deep state" debate is, in fact, a perennial debate about the separation of powers within the U.S. constitutional system, the role of the professional bureaucracy, and the relationship between political leaders and state institutions.