By Steve Neavling
A quarter of Americans have fallen for the baseless conspiracy theory that the FBI “probably” or “definitely” orchestrated the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
The Washington Post-University of Maryland poll also found that 34% of Republicans and 44% of Trump voters still believe that FBI operatives organized and encouraged the attack.
By comparison, only 10% of voters who supported President Biden have bought into the conspiracy theory.
The findings offer a glimpse into the effectiveness of right-wing media to push false narratives to a receptive audience.
The poll found that 39% of Americans who rely primarily on Fox News for information believe the FBI organized and encouraged the attack, compared with 16% whose primary news source is CNN or MSNBC and 13% who rely on ABC, CBS or NBC.
Multiple investigations into the Capitol riot have revealed no evidence of the FBI playing even a remote part in the attack.
FBI leaders have also repeatedly denied any involvement.
“The people that went there to express their views, to support Trump, were peaceful,” Richard Baum, 61, an independent voter from Odessa, Tex., said. “The government implants were the violent ones: the FBI, the police people that were put in there, the antifa and BLM hired by George Soros; everybody knows that.”
About 700 people charged in the attack have pleaded guilty to federal crimes, ranging from trespassing to assaulting police. Another 130 have been found guilty during a trial.
