74 percent of Republicans think Trump Tower was wiretapped. There is zero evidence of this.
Though no evidence has been offered to back President Trump's baseless claim that former President Barack Obama wiretapped his phones at Trump Tower during the presidential election, an overwhelming majority of Republicans think it's likely. A CBS News poll released Wednesday found that 74 percent of Republicans believe it's "very likely" or "somewhat likely" that Trump's offices were wiretapped. Just 21 percent of Democrats think it's a possibility, while 49 percent of independents deemed it likely.
When Trump leveled the allegation on Twitter weeks ago, he offered no supporting evidence, and he has yet to come forward with any as he's continued to defend the claim. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), the Senate and House Intelligence Committees, the Justice Department, and FBI Director James Comey have all said they have not uncovered any evidence whatsoever that backs Trump's allegation. Comey even noted during a hearing before the House Intelligence Committee earlier this month that it's impossible for a president to "unilaterally" order a wiretap, as Trump has claimed Obama did.
The poll was conducted by phone from March 25-28 among 1,088 adults. Its margin of error for the entire sample is plus or minus 4 percentage points.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Why Saudi Arabia is muscling in on the world of animeUnder the Radar The anime industry is the latest focus of the kingdom’s ‘soft power’ portfolio
-
Scoundrels, spies and squires in January TVthe week recommends This month’s new releases include ‘The Pitt,’ ‘Industry,’ ‘Ponies’ and ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’
-
Venezuela: The ‘Donroe doctrine’ takes shapeFeature President Trump wants to impose “American dominance”
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
-
Trump says US ‘in charge’ of Venezuela after Maduro grabSpeed Read The American president claims the US will ‘run’ Venezuela for an unspecified amount of time, contradicting a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio
-
Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one reportIN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
-
CBS pulls ‘60 Minutes’ report on Trump deporteesSpeed Read An investigation into the deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious prison was scrapped
-
Trump administration posts sliver of Epstein filesSpeed Read Many of the Justice Department documents were heavily redacted, though new photos of both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton emerged
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’