Stunning number of Americans fear ‘weaponization’ of government as a threat

In a massive rebuke to the Barack Obama and Joe Biden administration officials who weaponized the power of the federal government against those they hated, including President Donald Trump, J6 protesters, conservative parents battling LGBT agendas in schools and more, a new survey reveals the deep fear in America to that “weaponization” of government.

According to Rasmussen: “The use of government power to punish political enemies is a big problem for America, according to a majority of voters. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 82% of Likely U.S. Voters consider the ‘weaponization’ of government to be a serious threat to our Republic, including 58% who say the practice is a Very Serious threat.

“These findings come amid reports that the Department of Justice has ‘effectively shut down’ its Weaponization Working Group that was established in February 2025 to review instances of politicized prosecutions by the DOJ. Sixty-eight percent (68%) of voters believe it is important that past instances of government weaponization be properly addressed and victims compensated, including 42% who think it’s Very Important. Only 18% don’t consider it important to address prior incidents of weaponization, while 15% are not sure.”

Weaponization Story Summary

The use of government power to punish political enemies is a big problem for America, according to a majority of voters.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 82% of Likely U.S. Voters consider the… https://t.co/wIagaBnEmI

— Rasmussen Reports (@Rasmussen_Poll) April 13, 2026

The survey of 1,111 U.S. Likely Voters was conducted on April 6-8, 2026 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.

It was the under the Obama administration that the government turned political against Trump with the agenda by failed Democrat presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton to tie Trump’s 2016 campaign to Russian influence operations through lies.

Multiple federal agencies, offices and departments, up to an including the Oval Office, weaponized themselves against Trump.

Biden continued the agenda in a long list of ways, including schemes that tried to build unsupported legal cases against Trump and his supporters, including wild claims of organized crime activities creatively pursued by one Democrat.

A column from Joe Hoft explained, “Rasmussen shows that Americans are waking up and now more than 4 out of 5 Americans believe that the weaponization of government is a serious threat.”

He explained some “specifics” behind the poll:

“1. The phrase ‘weaponization of government’ is commonly used to refer to the strategic manipulation of governmental institutions into tools to punish opposing political views and/or to gain a political advantage. How serious a threat to our Republic is the weaponization of government?”

He also raised the question about Trump’s order ending the practice, the status of the DOJ’s Weaponization Working Group, and new threats from Democrats who now say when they regain power, they will return to weaponization of government against those who oppose them.