Conspiracism in power simultaneously denigrates institutions and enlists them to validate claims.

Evidence

The feat of exploiting and corrupting critical institutions and the officials who run them is repeated over and over. The president accuses key government agencies of engaging in conspiracy and at the same time commissions them to affirm his charges and to expose and punish the alleged conspirators. … “Then why doesn’t the secretary of homeland security know them and why doesn’t the president share them? And … why are you on television … saying the President has reasons but not saying what they are? That’s how a morally bankrupt president soils everyone around him, even such a good man.” — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 172

Categorization

• XREF: Builds on the ‘malignant normality’ concept from Lifton quoted a couple paragraphs earlier. — connects to: Only new conspiracism causes both delegitimation and disorientation simultaneously; Institutional honesty is often compromised to preserve the status quo. — Nicholson Baker, Baseless- My Search for Secrets in the…, 1134; A fictitious world conspiracy ideologically suits totalitarian claims to world rule. — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 55 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Conspiracism functions as a political explanation of hidden power #expands (0.80) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 1077
• A fictitious world conspiracy ideologically suits totalitarian claims to world rule. #expands (0.75) — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 55
• Institutional honesty is often compromised to preserve the status quo. #corroborates (0.72) — Nicholson Baker, Baseless- My Search for Secrets in the…, 1134
• Conspiratorial accusations against a party rise the longer it holds power #exemplifies (0.70) — Joseph E. Uscinski and Joseph M. Parent, American Conspiracy Theories, 734