Among the trio of controversies that’s consumed Washington’s focus as of late, the Department of Justice’s seizure of Associated Press phone records draws the lowest public interest, according to new findings from Pew Research Center released Monday.
The survey found that the public is much more engaged in the stories involving the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of conservative groups and the investigation into last year’s deadly attack in Benghazi, Libya. About a quarter of Americans said they are following each story very closely, compared with just 16 percent who said the same of the DOJ’s subpoena.
Republicans, whose leaders in Washington have assailed the administration over all three controversies, are also more interested in Benghazi and the IRS. Thirty-seven percent of GOPers said they are following the IRS scandal very closely, while 34 percent said they are following the Benghazi investigation very closely. But only 20 percent of Republicans said they are following the DOJ/AP story with the same level of interest.
