This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A new poll by Rasmussen Reports finds that nearly two-thirds of those polled believe the FBI has been "weaponized, starting from the top in Washington."
Rasmussen said in a press release Friday: "Former FBI Special Agent Nicole Parker testified to a House subcommittee last month that the FBI has become 'politically weaponized, starting from the top in Washington.' Sixty-four percent of voters agree with that statement, including 44% who Strongly Agree that the FBI has been “politically weaponized. Thirty percent disagree, including 17% who Strongly Disagree."
Half of those polled said they have a favorable impression of the FBI, while "45 percent now view the FBI unfavorably, including 24% who have a 'very unfavorable' impression of the bureau" — findings similar to what Rasmussen reported last October.
Nevertheless, Rasmussen's head pollster Mark Mitchell said the poll's results are "down incredibly" from 2020 when 60 percent of "likely voters" polled said they viewed the FBI favorably.
The poll also asked about the support of FBI Director Christopher Wray, a Republican appointee, and found that strong supporters of President Joe Biden were the most likely to strongly back Wray.
Rasmussen tweeted: "Who rates @fbi Director Christopher Wray best? Voters who strongly approve of @JoeBiden.
They are 4 times more likely to say Wray is better than his predecessors than worse."
Rasmussen tweeted: "18-39 year-olds think Chris Wray is pretty great. Older voters don't:
Better/Worse than predecessors:
In a previous Rasmussen poll in December, a majority of those surveyed agreed with the statement: "There is a group of politicized thugs at the top of the FBI who are using the FBI ... as Joe Biden's personal Gestapo."
The survey reflects rising doubts, especially among conservatives and Trump supporters, about the agency's professed neutrality, following the FBI's raid on former President Donald Trump's home in Mar-a-Lago; continued outrage over the FBI's and Big Tech's role in squelching Hunter Biden's "laptop from hell" (per Miranda Divine) as alleged "Russian disinformation"; and questions over whether the Bureau planted agents in the Jan. 6 protesters and actually helped instigate the melee.
In an exchange that went viral, Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. and chair of the House Republican Conference, grilled FBI Director Chris Wray as he testified before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Stefanik even asked "if Wray was aware the FBI was in possession of Hunter Biden's laptop since December 2019," Fox News reported.
The poll of 950 likely voters between March 6 and March 8 has a margin of error of +/- 3 percent, according to Rasmussen.
