NYC Mayor Eric Adams admits the deep state is 'real,' credits Kash Patel's book for getting it right
New York City Mayor Eric Adams admitted during a podcast on Wednesday that he believes the "deep state" is real.
"I don't want to sound [like a] conspiracy theor[ist], but there's a permanent government," Adams told Andrew Schulz on his "Flagrant" podcast. "There are people that see presidents and mayors come and go. Their attitude is, 'We'll wait you out.'"
Adams, who said on Monday that he is leaving the Democratic Party to run as an independent in his reelection campaign, praised FBI director Kash Patel's 2023 book, "Government Gangsters: The Deep State, the Truth, and the Battle for Our Democracy."
After Schulz said the term "deep state" is used too much, Adams told him, "It's not used too much. It's real, brother."
"Kash was in the [Department of Defense]. He was in the FBI. He prosecuted terrorists. So he comes with this wealth of knowledge, and the way he breaks it down, it's just unbelievable. What this 'deep state' is about and why it's so important for Americans that we cannot have a weaponizing of our prosecutorial powers," Adams said.
Adams also brought up the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY), which prosecuted him for bribery under the Biden administration. The charges alleged Adams used his title to get illicit campaign donations and opulent travel from Turkish foreign nationals and others.
Trump's Justice Department requested the charges be dropped and the case was dismissed with prejudice Tuesday, meaning the charges can't be brought again.
"Now imagine the Southern District of New York - that's one of the most powerful U.S. attorney's offices. In their mind, they said, 'We're sovereign.' You know what that means," Adams told Schulz. "They don't have to answer to anyone … they don't have to answer to the president, they don't have to answer to the U.S. attorney in Washington, the attorney general in Washington. They believe they're a sovereign entity."
"You're not elected," Adams said of the SDNY. "You know what I'm saying? Imagine an entity believing they don't have to answer to anyone."
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