CNN Poll: 80% of Democrats Support DOJ’s Probe into Biden’s Classified Doc Scandal

A full 80 percent of Democrats support the Justice Department’s appointment of a special counsel to investigate President Joe Biden’s mishandling of classified documents, a CNN poll found Wednesday.

The special counsel is supported by 80 percent of Democrats, 88 percent of Republicans, and 84 percent of independents.

A special counsel was appointed on January 12 to investigate the scandal after it was leaked to the public on January 9th through a leak to CBS. The DOJ and White House had known about the scandal for weeks. Biden’s personal attorneys found the documents on November 2, just a few days before the midterm election.

Independents are more likely to disapprove of the way in which Biden’s classified documents were found than Democrats. Sixty-two percent disapproved of the classified document discovery process, while 74 percent of Democrats approved. Eighty-five percent of Republicans disapproved.

Only 18 percent of Americans (1 in 6) believe Biden holds no blame for stashing troves of classified documents at the Penn Biden Center and his Wilmington home. Eighty-one percent said the president acted unethically. CNN reported:

Most Democrats say Biden’s actions were unethical but not illegal (55%), while most Republicans say he’s acted illegally (64%). Independents tilt toward saying it was unethical rather than illegal (47% unethical, 39% illegal, 14% nothing wrong).

But the poll also suggests that news about the discovery of the documents has had little impact thus far on baseline views of the president. Biden’s approval rating in the new survey stands at 45% approve to 55% disapprove, little changed from CNN’s December poll, in which 46% approved of his handling of the presidency.

And overall views of Biden personally also haven’t shifted much. The new poll pegs his favorability rating at 40% favorable to 54% unfavorable, about the same as the 42% favorable to 52% unfavorable read in December.

The poll surveyed 1,004 Americans from January 19-22 with a 4 point margin of error.

The mishandling of classified documents has turned into a scandal. The White House has stonewalled members of the press from receiving key information. Legal experts suggest Jean-Pierre’s refusal to answer questions lacks any legal or logical reason.

White House officials have reportedly become suspicious about how the scandal was leaked to the press after only a select group of White House and DOJ officials knew about the violation. The American people would not know of the scandal if it was not leaked, many Republican lawmakers believe.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.