Andrew Napolitano
Former New Jersey Superior Court Judge and Fox News legal analyst who defines the deep state as permanent, unelected government components that do not change with elections and are not answerable to voters.
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Andrew Peter Napolitano |
| Role | Former Judge / Legal Analyst / Author |
| Platform | Fox News (former), Judging Freedom podcast, syndicated columns |
| Notable Works | Suicide Pact: The Radical Expansion of Presidential Powers and the Lethal Threat to American Liberty (2014), A Nation of Sheep (2007), Constitutional Chaos (2004) |
Their Deep State Definition
Judge Napolitano defines the deep state as "those parts of government that do not change in response to elections and are not transparent or answerable to voters." His definition is rooted in constitutional law and encompasses several specific categories:
- Intelligence agencies — CIA, NSA, DIA, and the 17+ member intelligence community
- Law enforcement bureaucracy — Senior FBI officials, DOJ career staff
- Military establishment — Pentagon leadership, defense contractors, career military planners
- Diplomatic corps — State Department career officials, foreign policy establishment
- Central bankers — The Federal Reserve and its board of governors
Notably, Napolitano explicitly excludes the judiciary from the deep state, arguing that federal judges, while unelected and serving lifetime appointments, operate transparently through published opinions and are constrained by constitutional requirements for open proceedings.
His analysis focuses on the legal and constitutional dimensions: the deep state's power derives from its ability to operate in secrecy, classify information, and claim national security exemptions from democratic oversight. He sees this as a fundamental violation of constitutional governance.
Key Quotes
"The deep state consists of those parts of government that do not change in response to elections and are not transparent or answerable to voters."
"The deep state is not a conspiracy theory. It is a reality that every president since Eisenhower has confronted."
"When the intelligence community can spy on Americans without warrants, lie to Congress without consequences, and classify its crimes as state secrets, you have a deep state."
"The Constitution was written to prevent exactly what the deep state has become — unaccountable power exercised in secret."
Key Arguments & Evidence They Cite
- The intelligence community operates with "black budgets" that Congress does not fully review or understand
- FISA courts operate in secret, approving nearly every surveillance request, creating a parallel justice system
- The NSA's mass surveillance programs (revealed by Snowden) violated the Fourth Amendment on an industrial scale
- Career bureaucrats in the DOJ and FBI have repeatedly acted to undermine elected officials they disagree with
- The classification system is used not to protect national security but to hide government misconduct
- Executive orders have expanded presidential power far beyond constitutional limits, creating a permanent executive bureaucracy
- The Patriot Act and its successors institutionalized deep state surveillance powers
- Central bankers at the Federal Reserve make monetary policy decisions affecting every American without democratic accountability
Where They've Said It
- Judging Freedom podcast — regular episodes analyzing deep state legal issues (2022-present)
- Fox News appearances as Senior Judicial Analyst (2006-2023)
- Suicide Pact (2014) — book on executive overreach and constitutional erosion
- A Nation of Sheep (2007) — book on government surveillance and civil liberties
- Syndicated columns for the Washington Times and Reason magazine
- Interviews with Glenn Greenwald on System Update
- Congressional testimony on surveillance reform
- Appearances on The Tom Woods Show and other libertarian podcasts
Related Perspectives
- Edward_Snowden — Napolitano strongly defended Snowden's revelations as exposing deep state crimes
- John_Whitehead — shares constitutional and civil liberties focus
- Dennis_Kucinich — bipartisan concern about permanent governance
- G_Edward_Griffin — shares critique of Federal Reserve as unaccountable power
- Robert_F_Kennedy_Jr — shares institutional/structural analysis
Other Coverage Worth Reading
- Naomi Wolf: Author and former Clinton adviser who warns of a corporate-government merger forming a deep state that systematically dismantles...
- Thomas Massie: US Congressman from Kentucky who has spoken publicly about AIPAC's pervasive control over Congress and the way foreign...
- Regulatory Capture: Regulatory capture is the process by which regulatory agencies, created to act in the public interest, come to...
- Chris Hedges: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who argues the deep state IS the government itself — the security and surveillance apparatus...
Sources
- Napolitano, Andrew. Suicide Pact: The Radical Expansion of Presidential Powers and the Lethal Threat to American Liberty. Thomas Nelson, 2014.
- Napolitano, Andrew. A Nation of Sheep. Thomas Nelson, 2007.
- Judging Freedom podcast, various episodes, 2022-present.
- Napolitano, Andrew. "The Deep State and the Constitution." Washington Times columns, various dates.
- Fox News transcripts, Senior Judicial Analyst appearances, 2006-2023.
This information was compiled by Claude AI research.