'Information Civil War' Underway Between US Intelligence, Trump Administration

The resignation of General Michael Flynn from his post as the Trump administration’s national security advisor has sparked vivid public and media discussions in the United States. The resignation was preceded by a massive information campaign against Flynn. Experts stressed the growing role of media leaks in the power struggle in the US.

The scandal over Flynn’s resignation once again put deep divisions with the American establishment in the spotlight. Apparently, many of those opposing President Trump are trying to undermine his presidency.

Double Standards and Witch Hunting 

"Technologies used by Hillary Clinton in her presidential campaign resulted in major shifts within the establishment. So many of Trump’s opponents still cannot accept the fact he won the White House," Alexei Mukhin, director of the Center for Political Information, told RT.

Currently, the main tool of political struggle against Trump and his administration is information leaks. The situation with Flynn proves the efficiency of this instrument.

Meanwhile, during the presidency of Barack Obama, information leaks and media exposure did not result in the resignation of high-profile officials. Revelations by Edward Snowden, Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning about crimes committed by US troops in Iraq, massive illegal surveillance and corruption in the US power elite backfired on the whistleblowers themselves.

"Such a situation is an example of double standards and ethical relativism and cynicism of the US establishment," political analyst Oleg Matveichev said.

Many experts said that during Obama’s presidency Washington launched an unprecedented crackdown on whistleblowers.

Former executive editor of The Washington Post Leonard Downie wrote: "The [Obama] administration’s war on leaks and other efforts to control information are the most aggressive I’ve seen since the Nixon administration."

"Impunity in the cases of [former Director of National Intelligence James] Clapper, [former Secretary of State Colin] Powell and many others was typical for the US at the time when the establishment was not divided and controlled all media. But now the media establishment is trying to impose its will on the government," Matveichev pointed out.

Trump’s Reaction

It is almost no secret that US intelligence was involved in the scandal over Flynn and his resignation.

According to former intelligence officials who spoke with Daily Caller, Flynn was the victim of a "hit job" launched by intelligence operatives and security officials loyal to Obama.

Commenting on the scandal, Flynn described the leak as a crime.

"You call them leaks. It's a criminal act. This is a crime. It's not just a wink and a nod," he said, according to The Daily Caller.

On his Twitter, President Trump wrote: "The real story here is why are there so many illegal leaks coming out of Washington?"

The real story here is why are there so many illegal leaks coming out of Washington? Will these leaks be happening as I deal on N.Korea etc?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 14 февраля 2017 г.

​Then, Trump blamed US intelligence agency for leaking information to the media.

Information is being illegally given to the failing @nytimes & @washingtonpost by the intelligence community (NSA and FBI?).Just like Russia

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 15 февраля 2017 г.

​In turn, the whistleblowing organization WikiLeaks called to make public an audio recording between Flynn and Russian Ambassador to the US Sergei Kislyak. The website also put the blame for Flynn’s resignation on "US spies, Democrats and press."

Trump's National Security Advisor Michael Flynn resigns after destabilization campaign by US spies, Democrats, press https://t.co/vKlX1Tqek1

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) 14 февраля 2017 г.

​Intelligence vs. Trump

In all countries, there are written and unwritten regulations banning security services from spying on the political leadership and wiretapping on conversations by high-profile officials.

However, legal norms are often put on the backburner when it comes to intelligence, according to Pavel Zolotarev, deputy director of the Institute for American and Canadian Studies, at the Russian Academy of Sciences.

In any state, the intelligence community has a certain scope for independent and uncontrolled actions. When it comes to US intelligence agencies this scope is tremendous.

"The reputation of the US intelligence community is already too bad. So, they don't take care of observing laws," Mukhin said.

"US intelligence agencies were spoiled by the Patriot Act and other similar moves. They act like some kind of an enfant terrible and don’t bother to observe any laws," he added.

Moreover, Mukhin suggested that Flynn’s case is only the first shot in a major information war against Trump, which is currently gaining momentum. The majority of US media supports the Democrats and will continue attacks on the president.

"There will be new incidents. They will continue and multiply. This looks like an information civil war. Actually, this is what it is," the expert added.

Flynn’s resignation was a heavy blow to the Trump administration. According to experts, at the moment Trump is losing to his opponents in media and in the intelligence community.

Mukhin suggested that Trump was not ready for such a turn of events, but he will be able to deal with it.

In turn, Matveichev assumed that a serious of harsh administrative measures by the Trump administration would change the situation in favor of the new president.

"After a series of landmark resignations the US intelligence community will get more flexible," he concluded.

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