The massive leaks coming out President Donald Trump's administration carry with them symptoms that are concerning to experts knowledgeable with the condition called a deep state, according to analysis in The New York Times.
Deep state defined — "where shadowy networks within government bureaucracies, often referred to as 'deep states,' undermine and coerce elected governments," according to The Times.
Think recent examples in Turkey, Egypt and Pakistan, The Times reported.
While some leaks have a positive upside in the checks and balances of power within the executive branch, the types and frequency of leaks afflicting Trump's short tenure thus far are alarming.
"You want these people to be fighting like cats and dogs over what the best policy is, airing their views, making their case and then, when it's over, accepting the decision and implementing it,” political scientist Elizabeth Saunders told The Times.
"Leaking is not new, but this level of leaking is pretty unprecedented."
Trump has vowed to find the leakers and punish them, a "political witch hunt" that experts liken to "pouring gasoline on the fire," experts tell the Times.
But Trump has also blamed the leaks on the leftovers of President Obama's administration, a situation he blames on Democrats for stalling his ability to get his own people in there, Trump said Thursday.
"Those are criminal leaks. They're put out by people either in agencies — I think you'll see it stopping because now we have our people in," Trump said at his Thursday press conference.
"We don't have our people in because we can't get them approved by the Senate," Trump said.
While experts tell The Times it's not nearly as bad as the cases in Egypt or Turkey, which had to fight off a coup, the early signs are not encouraging.
"This war between the intelligence community and the White House is bad for the intelligence community, bad for the White House, and bad for the nation's security," Amy Zegart, co-director of the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University, told The Times.
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