Trump, for all his good qualities, had no idea how mendacious the deep state was. Whom do you hire in the DOJ or the State Department the DOD, etc., that is both competent and experienced? Swampies, nine times out of ten. Who else is there? Giuliani was great in his day, but now he’s old. And instead you have these Obama holdovers, Bush holdovers, Clinton holdovers, Bush Sr. holdovers, and the Reaganites are mostly dead. I think his eyes are opened now. Fire them all, unless they can prove their worth.
And like all crime syndicates, it requires some crime to be committed by people who get money/favors so it--the syndicate--has something to hold over their heads if they start getting ideas about going straight or turning on them.
I think Trump (should he win in 2024) lost any opportunity to have competent cabinet secretaries when Mitch McConnell was reelected. Trump won’t get anyone through the senate that isn’t approved by McConnell and his fellow travelers. McConnell will do everything that he can to thwart Trump.