In July, an NBC News poll showed that American perception of the Federal Bureau of Investigation had soured considerably over a five-year period — and had done so partially along party lines.
Only 37 percent of registered voters held a positive view of the FBI, almost as many as said they had a negative view (35 percent). Furthermore, only 17 percent of Republicans polled held a positive view, compared with 56 percent negative. This was a stark change from 2018, when the bureau held a 52 percent positive rating with just 18 percent of registered voters viewing it negatively.
Well, the FBI has gotten the message loud and clear, apparently: Even after its involvement in the Russia hoax and the investigation that led to charges against former President Donald Trump, it still needs to do more to alienate roughly 17 percent of Republican voters. So, it’s reportedly made an important change, adding three letters to the LGBT acronym.
According to TheBlaze, a leaked email allegedly sent from the FBI’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion (rarely a good sign) announced that it was replacing LGBT+ with LGBTQIA+ as of Friday.
“The FBI has officially adopted the LGBTQIA+ acronym in place of LGBT+. This change was proposed by Bureau Equality, one of our nine Diversity Advisory Committees, and approved by FBI executive management to help promote a more welcoming workplace for members of our LGBTQIA+ community,” the reported email read.
Just in case you were wondering, “LGBTQIA+ stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, Intersex, Asexual/Aromantic, plus. The ‘+’ represents other gender, sexual and romantic identities not covered by the letters of the acronym.
“More than 30 federal agencies, including the Department of Justice, use a form of the expanded acronym.”
The email was first reported by former FBI agent and podcaster Kyle Seraphin.
🚨BREAKING:
Today’s ALL_FBI @FBI.gov email sent to ALL #FBI employees.“The FBI has OFFICIALLY adopted the LGBTQIA+ acronym in place of LGBT+. This change was proposed by Bureau Equality, one of our NINE Diversity Advisory Committees, and approved by FBI Executive Management…” pic.twitter.com/vG04RGrCwZ
— Kyle Seraphin (@KyleSeraphin) December 15, 2023
Do you trust the FBI?
So, my first thought — and I’m not alone, apparently — is, why even have a “plus” if the point of it is that people keep adding to it? After all, it remains materially the same: a laundry list of identity acronyms that get increasingly dubious the longer it gets:
What’s the point of the +, then, if you keep adding to the acronym?
And can’t you just come up with a word for whatever you think is the uniting theme of all the stuff this is supposed to cover? https://t.co/rbZnFmGCCQ
— Frank J. Fleming (@IMAO_) December 15, 2023
Illinois GOP Rep. Mary Miller, meanwhile, said that it showed the bureau “is focused on leftwing identity politics while we face the greatest threat of domestic terrorism since 9/11 because Biden opened our southern border.”
The FBI is focused on leftwing identity politics while we face the greatest threat of domestic terrorism since 9/11 because Biden opened our southern border. https://t.co/L0wm4StySP
— Rep. Mary Miller (@RepMaryMiller) December 16, 2023
However, more telling was how the move was met with derision on social media as evidence that the FBI would rather be woke than trustworthy.
“The LGBT cause has become one of the most valuable weapons for militaristic countries and repressive security state agencies to embrace as a means of convincing people they are noble and loving,” said Glenn Greenwald, co-founder of The Intercept and, for the record, a gay man.
The LGBT cause has become one of the most valuable weapons for militaristic countries and repressive security state agencies to embrace as a means of convincing people they are noble and loving: https://t.co/QAVnpRu0hs
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) December 15, 2023
“Apparently the FBI has 9 diversity committees, no wonder there was nobody available to investigate Hunter Biden,” wrote conservative commentator David Marcus:
Apparently the FBI has 9 diversity committees, no wonder there was nobody available to investigate Hunter Biden. https://t.co/2BxuWZBnaC
— David Marcus (@BlueBoxDave) December 15, 2023
“So relieved that when the FBI chases down moms at school board meetings, at least their pronouns will be respected by the officers,” said Chaya Raichik, the creator of the Libs of TikTok social media account:
So relieved that when the FBI chases down moms at school board meetings, at least their pronouns will be respected by the officers. https://t.co/0JM1YvegK9
— Chaya Raichik (@ChayaRaichik10) December 15, 2023
Notice one thing absent: a tone of surprised outrage at President Joe Biden’s FBI.
Outrage, after all, requires an element of shock and betrayal of trust; it’s difficult to keep up a tone of sustained indignation once flagrant and repeated breaches of confidence have occurred unless one is a buffoonish naïf.
Note that no one — not even Glenn Greenwald, who still maintains the ability to work himself into a huff over the perfidies of the official security state despite its multifarious abuses, something I consider more of an acquired talent than actual gullibility — seems particularly stunned that the same organization that fell for the Russia hoax and is currently doggedly pursuing the central figure of the political opposition, one Donald John Trump, while having mostly ignored the Biden family’s shadiness for years now, is now turning its focus, at least in some small way, on adding letters to the LGBT+ acronym.
Stay tuned for the next week where Hunter Biden commits what could be construed as contempt of Congress. Doubtlessly a few more letters will worm itself into the acronym then — just as public confidence in the bureau plummets even further.
