Welcome back!
Everything you listed makes sense to me, especially when compared with some things others have had to say. The above stood out simply because I don't think I could agree with it more. Granted, I'm not connected to anything in Washington except for routine trips to the voting booth, but what you're describing defines both the deep state and the swamp, at least as I understand them to be.
This is exactly the reason that I am free of any party affiliation, and it's also why L v R and R v D politics has been reduced to little more than a rivalry in team sports.
This is also why I've been pleasantly surprised by 45, because he seems to genuinely be doing something about it.