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Bruni: The deep state is on a roll

Photo by Susan Walsh of The Associated Press / In this Nov. 19, 2020, file photo Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a briefing with the coronavirus task force at the White House in Washington.
Photo by Susan Walsh of The Associated Press / In this Nov. 19, 2020, file photo Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a briefing with the coronavirus task force at the White House in Washington. Photo by Susan Walsh of The Associated Press / In this Nov. 19, 2020, file photo Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a briefing with the coronavirus task force at the White House in Washington.

By Frank Bruni / The New York Times 5 min read

President Donald Trump was right about the “deep state” – sort of. There exist, in government, people and forces rigged to foil disruption.

And he has exposed that. Just not in the manner he intended.

The deep state isn’t a reflexive defense of a corrupt status quo. It’s a righteous defense against the corruption of democracy, which is what Trump continues to attempt.

And that defense is holding. Three cheers for the deep state, which has been on a roll these past three weeks.

I’m thinking of Brad Raffensperger, Georgia’s Republican secretary of state, who supervises its elections. He refused to cry foul and fraud just because others in his party couldn’t abide Joe Biden’s victory in the Peach State.