questionantiquity on Instagram: "John McAfee, the late tech entrepreneur and antivirus pioneer, was outspoken in his belief that the President of the United States …"
John McAfee, the late tech entrepreneur and antivirus pioneer, was outspoken in his belief that the President of the United States holds little real power. He claimed the office is mostly symbolic—a public-facing role meant to pacify the population—while true authority lies with a hidden network of intelligence agencies, corporate lobbyists, unelected bureaucrats, and global financial elites. McAfee often referred to this hidden control structure as the “deep state,” suggesting it operates independently of elections or party politics.He emphasized that agencies like the CIA and NSA have the tools, influence, and data to manipulate or control elected officials. According to McAfee, any president who tries to step outside their control is quickly “corrected,” whether by pressure, blackmail, or worse. He pointed to the continuity of foreign policy and mass surveillance across administrations as proof that real decisions aren’t made in the White House. In interviews, McAfee said newly elected presidents are immediately “briefed” in ways that make it clear where true power resides—and it’s not with them.To McAfee, the President serves mainly as a distraction, giving the illusion of choice while an unelected apparatus operates in the background. He didn’t frame this as conspiracy, but as self-evident through decades of consistent policy and growing corporate-government ties. For him, reclaiming freedom required decentralization, encryption, and personal resistance to surveillance—not participation in a rigged system where the figurehead has no real control.