Representative Jim Jordan's effort to prove that President Joe Biden's Department of Justice (DOJ) is weaponizing the government against his political rivals may be paying off, a new poll shows.
House Republicans have fiercely attacked the Biden family since taking control of the chamber in January, and the years-long tax investigation into Hunter Biden, the president's son, has been one of the GOP's favorite targets. When the DOJ announced it had reached a plea deal with the younger Biden last month, Republicans criticized the agreement, contending that he received special treatment because of his familial ties.
Jordan, who leads the House Judiciary Committee and the newly formed House Weaponization of the Federal Government Committee, has lionized two Internal Revenue Service (IRS) whistleblowers in recent weeks, inviting them to testify before Congress and repeatedly using their testimonies against top DOJ officials.
A July survey from Harvard University CAPS/Harris Poll shows that the majority of Americans, regardless of political affiliation, think the IRS agents who have made damning accusations against the DOJ are credible. Democrats were even more likely to trust the whistleblowers, with 64 percent finding them credible, compared to 60 percent of Republicans and 61 percent of independents.
Newsweek reached out to the DOJ for comment.
Last week, IRS special agent Joe Ziegler, previously known as "Whistleblower X," revealed his identity during a House hearing. Ziegler, appearing alongside former IRS investigation supervisor Gary Shapley, alleged that the federal tax investigation into Hunter Biden should have resulted in more serious criminal charges than the misdemeanor tax charges to which he is expected to plead guilty, saying that "we all agreed" there should be felony charges in the case. Ziegler and Shapley are veteran agency officials.
Shapley previously testified that U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who is overseeing the Hunter Biden probe, said he does not make final charging decisions. Attorney General Merrick Garland has denied the allegations, insisting that Weiss was given full authority over the investigation.
Although most Americans think Ziegler and Shapley are credible, voters are more divided when it comes to believing their allegations. The poll found that 72 percent of Republicans and 66 percent of independents believe the DOJ steered the Hunter Biden investigation to protect him and his father, but that the majority of Democrats, 52 percent, did not believe the claims.
Democrats were also more likely to say they think the DOJ and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is operating fairly, with 73 percent agreeing, compared to only 17 percent of Republicans and 35 percent of independents. Comparably, 83 percent of Republicans and 65 percent of independents think federal prosecutors are protecting the Bidens from a full investigation.
Jordan's whistleblower strategy may be persuading Americans. Last month, before the IRS whistleblower hearing, only 76 percent of Republicans and 58 percent of independents said the FBI is not really investigating the allegations against the president.
Still, July's poll showed that only 46 percent Americans have heard about the IRS whistleblowers, meaning Jordan's efforts to get them on the radar of voters has still not reached the majority of the public.
The survey was conducted between July 19 and 20 among 2,068 registered voters.
