STRANGE Eisenhower's Farewell Address (1961)
On January 17, 1961, Eisenhower warned Americans to 'guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence... by the military-industrial complex' — he never said 'deep state.'
'In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.' He also warned policy could become 'captive of a scientific-technological elite.' He never said 'deep state' — a 21st-century term (from Turkish 'derin devlet').
Evidence status: Confirmed by primary sources — court records, government reports, declassified documents.
AI DOCUMENT REVIEW
Generated from the primary source document. How we review.
AI review of the National Archives milestone-documents page (intro + full transcript), read in full: - Delivered from the Oval Office on national television on January 17, 1961, in a speech of under 10 minutes; cited to Eisenhower Library papers, Box 38, Speech Series. - The famous passage verified verbatim: 'In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.' - Also verified: the second warning that 'public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite.' - Context given: 3.5 million people directly engaged in the defense establishment; annual military spending exceeding the net income of all US corporations; a 'permanent armaments industry of vast proportions' new in the American experience. - Record summary verified accurate against the document, including that he never used the term 'deep state.'