Public trust in the FBI has fallen to its lowest level in decades in the wake of its raid on former President Donald Trump’s Palm Beach estate, according to a new poll.
Rasmussen Reports on Thursday said 53% of voters now agree with former Trump adviser Roger Stone’s 2021 criticism of the nation’s preeminent law enforcement agency as “Biden’s personal Gestapo” — up from 46% in December.
That goes for a lot of independents and Democrats, too. The polls said 49% of independents and 37% of Democrats now agree with Mr. Stone (while 72% of liberals disagree).
The poll also found that 44% of voters said they trust the FBI less since more than 30 armed agents swarmed Mr. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, rummaging through his office and Melania Trump’s clothes closet, seizing classified documents.
Only 29% of respondents said they trust the bureau more because of the Trump raid and 23% saying it did not make a difference.
Among political parties, 70% of Republicans say they now trust the FBI less than they used to, while 50% of Democrats say they trust it more.
The poll found that just 50% of all voters hold a favorable view of the FBI, but only 30% of Republicans and 45% of independents are positive about the bureau. That compares to 75% of Democrats and 81% of liberals, who say they have a positive view of the bureau.
In May 2020, 60% of likely voters held a favorable view of the FBI, according to the survey.
The poll surveyed 1,000 likely voters between August 15-16, 2022, the week following the FBI’s search of Mr. Trump’s estate.
A search warrant released last week revealed that Mr. Trump was under investigation for violations of the Espionage Act and other federal crimes related to the unlawful retention or mishandling of confidential government documents.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.