'Shellshock': One group 'didn’t think it was going to be this bad' in Trump's second term

Many US government workers are surprised by the lengths President Donald Trump is going to exact revenge on his political adversaries, The Guardian reports insiders say.

Per the report, while some officials resigned ahead of Trump's inauguration, some remained in their positions, hoping for the best.

"The most common refrain I’m hearing from people who have left but are still talking to people on the inside is: 'I knew it was going to be bad but I didn’t think it was going to be this bad,'" longtime Democratic lawyer Mark Bergman told The Guardian.

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The news outlet notes that Bergman "has been in contact with some of those who fear being targets of the retribution Trump repeatedly vowed" during his campaign.

Although Trump — in less than two weeks — has already snatched Secret Service protection from former Trump national security adviser John Bolton, ex-Trump CIA director and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and former Assistant Secretary of State Brian Hook, "more intense vengeance may have been felt by anonymous civil servants who were less prepared," the Guardian emphasizes.

"There’s certainly shellshock," Bergman told the news outlet.

"My view is that Trump is animated by his revenge and retribution agenda."

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The Democratic attorney also noted, "People are being moved, reassigned, fired or otherwise [put] under pressure, if they are not able to say that they are mission-aligned, which is the phrase being used by the transition team to mean you will carry out the orders of the president regardless of whether they’re lawful or not."

The Guardian's full report is available here.