Earlier this month, it was discovered that President Joe Biden had improperly stored classified documents from his time as Vice President at several locations, including his home in Connecticut.
Following Attorney General Merrick Garland’s move to appoint a special counsel to investigate Biden’s mishandling, Americans have shared how they feel about Biden’s actions.
A poll conducted by Quinnipiac University, released on Wednesday, looked at several aspects of what Americans think of the president’s recent scandal, and 60% shared that they viewed his actions as inappropriate, while 22% said the opposite.
In addition, 71% of Americans said they viewed Biden’s actions as either “very serious” or “somewhat serious.”
In the poll, 1,380 US adults were asked what they thought about Biden having classified documents. While the majority said it was serious for him to mishandle the documents, 46% said he should not face criminal charges for his actions. However, the poll did find that 37% think criminal charges should be on the table.
Thoughts on the potential prosecution of Biden are not the same as what Americans thought should be done in the case of former President Donald Trump and his own classified documents scandal.
A poll from Quinnipiac at the time of the FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago last summer found that 50% of respondents thought Trump should face prosecution, and 41% thought he should not.
Part of the difference in opinions on both cases could be because of how the discovery of the documents was handled. In Trump’s case, the FBI was forced to issue a search warrant to retrieve the materials, while White House counsel has shared that Biden turned over documents willingly and immediately after they were discovered. Though some details surrounding both cases remains unclear.
The survey showed that party lines once again play a role in how Americans are viewing Biden’s case, with 84% of Republicans and 60% of independents thinking he handled the documents inappropriately, while only 38% of Democrats believed the same.
On the other hand, 41% of Democrats and 24% of independents think there was no issue with how he handled the documents, and only 5% of Republicans thought the same, the poll found.
Quinnipiac polling analyst Tim Malloy shared in a press release that results from the poll show most Americans don’t think this is a criminal case.
“Roughly two-thirds of Americans are aware of and troubled by the misplaced classified documents found in President Biden’s home and private office. But is it a criminal case? No,” Malloy said in the press release.
The pollsters shared that the questions involving the documents had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.6 points.
Along with being asked about the classified documents, respondents were also polled on their thoughts on Biden’s current job as commander-in-chief.
The poll found that 36% approved of the work he was doing, while 53% disapproved.
According to the poll, a majority of Americans think the president isn’t handling key issues well.
When it comes to the economy, only 34% approve of what he is doing, while 61% disapprove. Other issues that Americans think Biden is handling poorly include immigration (22% to 65%), foreign policy (36% to 54%), and the Russian invasion of Ukraine (44% to 47%).
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