Despite the utter lack of evidence, the mainstream media continue to prop up a theory that there was collusion between Donald Trump’s campaign and the Russians, and any rumor or unfounded suggestion is reported as fact. However, a far greater problem than the alleged Trump-Russia connection (and the only one supported by evidence) is the leaks coming from the White House and from within the intelligence community. They are without question damaging our national security and undermining the president.

The impression created by the media is that Trump is so inherently incompetent that members of his own staff are doing the leaking. The image is one of utter chaos in the West Wing. In reality, many of the leaks are likely coming from political appointees of Barack Obama who remain in the White House. In the waning days of his presidency, Obama transferred these political appointees to civil servant status in order to make it harder for them to be terminated by the incoming president.

Remember when candidate Obama used to rail against the cynicism in our politics? Turns out he was right.

As The Daily Signal revealed last December, “After President Barack Obama exits office, at least 88 of his political appointees will likely remain working in the federal government under a Donald Trump administration, according to numbers from the Office of Personnel Management.”

It’s not atypical for employees under a former president to carry over to the new administration. But Obama clearly went out of his way to ensure that key individuals would retain their status long after Trump took office. It’s not their status that’s the problem, but the likelihood that they’re using their access within the government to leak information to the media.

Dan Coats, Director of National Intelligence, told the Senate Armed Services Committee earlier this week, “The release of information not only undermines the confidence in our allies, but our ability to maintain secure information we share with them, and they jeopardize sources and methods that are invaluable in finding out what’s going on and what threats are.”

The seriousness of the leaks became even more evident after the bombing of a concert venue in Manchester, England. Shortly afterward, the New York Times published an article containing leaked intelligence information about an ongoing investigation — and then slammed Trump for the leaks.

Consequently, the British announced that they would no longer cooperate with American intelligence officials on the investigation. Moreover, Prime Minister Teresa May even suggested that the special relationship between Great Britain at the United States was at risk. Trump was able to reassure our allies at the NATO summit in Brussels on Thursday. At least for now.

But the problem isn’t going away as long as his administration is infested with Obama-era vermin. These individuals are leaking information to the media with the sole intent of damaging the president and undermining his ability to govern. Now that’s collusion.

As for collusion with the Russians, numerous public officials have conceded that there’s no evidence. This includes former Obama CIA Director John Brennan and Democrat Senator Dianne Feinstein.

Feinstein is a member of the Gang of Eight, a select group of House and Senate intelligence committee members briefed on FBI and CIA investigations. “There are all kinds of rumors around,” she stated. “There are newspaper stories, but that’s not necessarily evidence.”

Upon reviewing information at the CIA and being asked whether she saw any evidence of collusion, Feinstein said, plainly, “Not at this time.” Again, this isn’t just coming from the unhinged likes of Rep. Maxine Waters, but a high-ranking Democrat senator with access to the latest intelligence information.

Not that we can necessarily trust the FBI to conduct an honest investigation…

Meanwhile, despite Brennan’s unrevealing congressional testimony earlier this week, prominent Democrats such as Rep. Adam Schiff, a ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee, responded as though Brennan had revealed some critical evidence.

Byron York writes in the Washington Examiner, “Brennan gave the committee old information — he frankly admitted it was old — that did not take into account what has been learned in recent months from other sources.”

What Brennan did say is that leaks are deadly. “What I have found appalling is the number of leaks that have taken place over the last several months,” he said last week. “The real damage to national security is the leaks. These individuals who still stay within the government and are leaking this stuff to the press need to be brought to task.”

As for York’s reporting, it’s a truthful outlier amid an anti-Trump media onslaught. For all the stories about Trump being a threat to national security, the real threat is the collusion between Obama-appointed informants and the likes of the Washington Post, New York Times and CNN.