Former FBI Director James Comey under investigation for post seen as a potential threat to Trump's life
Source: NBC News
WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security and Secret Service are investigating a social media post by former FBI Director James Comey that several U.S. officials interpreted as calling for the assassination of President Donald Trump, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Thursday.
In a now-deleted post on Instagram, Comey shared a photo of what he described as a "shell formation" on a beach that formed the numbers "8647." The post was swiftly condemned by administration officials, Republican lawmakers and Trump allies who said it blatantly targeted Trump, the 47th president of the United States.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, "eighty-six" can informally mean "to get rid of."
"Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey just called for the assassination of @POTUS Trump," Noem wrote on X. "DHS and Secret Service is investigating this threat and will respond appropriately."
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Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/james-comey-investigation-instagram-post-threat-trump-8647-rcna207167
Idea for a protest t-shirt?
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JBTaurus83
(529 posts)“Getting rid of” doesn’t have to mean kill. Far more incendiary garbage spews out of the right wing.
Eugene
(65,434 posts)It does not automatically exclude constitutional means and advocate violence. It was also in at least one DUer's sig.
radical noodle
(10,272 posts)but this is nothing. You can get rid of a president without doing him physical harm.
BTW, I've seen 8647 T-shirts somewhere. Google search will probably bring up a multitude of styles.
Ms. Toad
(37,102 posts)
rurallib
(63,821 posts)
Ponietz
(3,935 posts)Same cheap trick Comey used to shiv Democrats in 2016 — dox us by announcing an investigation. Doesn’t feel good, Jim? Don’t put turds in punch bowls.
Bluetus
(1,170 posts)It is as close to 100% certainty as imaginable that had Comey not torpedoed Clinton the last weeks of the campaign, she would have been elected.
And that means that Trump very likely never would have accumulated the power to bully the rest of the Republican Party, and therefore probably would not have been a viable candidate in 2020.
And, in turn, Comey would not be in the crosshairs of this fascist regime now.
Karma is a bitch, but unfortunately, we are all suffering because of Comey's karma.
Karasu
(1,372 posts)popular vote doesn't ultimately matter, only nonsensical, obsolete electoral college BS.
Response to Karasu (Reply #14)
Bluetus This message was self-deleted by its author.
Bluetus
(1,170 posts)Is that the founders put that in place because they were concerned that the public would not educate itself enough to make wise choices about politicians. And here we are today.
What we have today with the Electoral College, is in anachronism where we have an obsolete structure that no longer performs its original purpose. It isn't helping, but the original concern remains. Is it even possible for a country to make an informed decision on a democratic basis in today's world?
And let us be honest about the pitfalls of a popular vote. With a pure popular vote system we would then be exposed to the possibility of a million fraudulent votes emerging from, say Mississippi, just in time to tip the election. How would we deal with that, considering that we allow the states to run their own elections?
Iamscrewed
(411 posts)Come after me for suggestions that someone should kill the orange menace.
Historic NY
(39,038 posts)
muriel_volestrangler
(103,925 posts)1
informal
a
: to refuse to serve (a customer)
b
: to eject or ban (a customer)
2
informal
a
: to remove (an item) from a menu : to no longer offer (an item) to customers
b
: to reject, discontinue, or get rid of (something)
If you work in a restaurant or bar, you might eighty-six (or “eliminate”) a menu item when you run out of it, or you might eighty-six (or “cut off”) a customer who should no longer be served. Eighty-six is still used in this specific context, but it has also entered the general language. These days, you don't have to be a worker in a restaurant or bar to eighty-six something—you just have to have something to get rid of or discard. There are many popular but unsubstantiated theories about the origin of eighty-six. The explanation judged most probable according to Merriam-Webster's research is that the word was created as a rhyming slang word for nix, which means “to veto” or “to reject.”
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/eighty-six
AntiFascist
(13,361 posts)
Initech
(105,313 posts)And yes, I'm accusing Kash Patel of abusing his power, because he is a MAGA psychopath.
https://www.advocate.com/politics/dems-say-kash-patel-unfit
cstanleytech
(27,677 posts)cadoman
(1,346 posts)TLDR: the repukes have used the term as well
https://x.com/edkrassen
My apologies for the link, but I figure it's good counterpoint to have on hand for mAGATs.
madamesilverspurs
(16,279 posts)Waaaay back in my bartending days (1970s) "86" was common shorthand for having an unruly customer removed, nothing more.
Yeesh.
.
FakeNoose
(37,610 posts)It's a common term in the restaurant workers' vocabulary.
mzmolly
(52,289 posts)
AntiFascist
(13,361 posts)a well-regulated militia (the local police) could have been used to protect the security and freedom of a citizen of a free State (New Jersey mayor) against the unconstitutional actions of Federal agents, but instead they chose to collaborate with them.
Karasu
(1,372 posts)is and has been clearly threatening to execute high-profile Dems. To what should be no one's surprise. No one loves death threats more than fascists.
Fuck the GOP and anyone who still supports it for any reason. This is what you are enabling.
GoodRaisin
(10,254 posts)Impeach and remove him. Lots of people want that.
truthisfreedom
(23,418 posts)Which can’t happen yet but after the midterms, look out!
Hekate
(98,186 posts)
no_hypocrisy
(51,894 posts)assassinate TSF. I've seen worse on this board and we're still here.
HAB911
(9,698 posts)
sinkingfeeling
(55,609 posts)
FarPoint
(14,024 posts)He played the game and was lousy at it...Let's not forget, he hurt Hillary and he hurt all of use for many, many years...we still suffer from his arrogant acts...
Moostache
(10,607 posts)Kash, Tulsi? 86 you too!!!
Jim__
(14,771 posts)JohnSJ
(98,883 posts)before the general election, a direct violation of the Hatch Act, which opened the distortion and LIE that the email investigation had been reopened. THAT WAS A LIE. It was not reopened, it only was determining if there was any new information on a laptop computer.
There wasn't, and it took them until late Friday, the weekend before the general for the ass Comey to come out and quietly announce there was not any new information, and no need to reopen the investigation. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done. The illustrious U.S. media for the following 11 days before the election, paraded every right wing pundit across their outlets propagating the LIE that the email investigation had been reopened, and the complete unhinged and false characterizations how this was the worst security failure in the history of the U.S.
If these fascists threw comey into GITMO for the rest of his worthless life, who cares.
LetMyPeopleVote
(164,956 posts)Last edited Fri May 16, 2025, 05:48 PM - Edit history (2)
It’s possible that Republicans are sincerely outraged by the former FBI director's seashell code, but recent history suggests some skepticism is in order.
https://bsky.app/profile/stevebenen.com
His "8647" seashells on Instagram simply gave Team Trump an excuse to do it wanted to do anyway.
Link to tweet
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/team-trump-finds-excuse-s-long-wanted-investigate-james-comey-rcna207219
The Department of Homeland Security and Secret Service are investigating a social media post by former FBI Director James Comey that several U.S. officials interpreted as calling for the assassination of President Donald Trump, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Thursday.
Evidently, Comey shared a photo on Instagram showing seashells arranged to form the numbers “8647.” Republican officials soon after responded with apoplexy, at which point the former FBI director — himself a lifelong Republican — deleted the post and said, “I didn’t realize some folks associate it with violence. That didn’t occur to me when I saw it but I am opposed to violence in all circumstances so I took it down.”
Comey added soon after that he simply assumed that the numbers “were a political message.”....
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard appeared on Fox News and said she wants to see Comey “put behind bars for this.” A variety of GOP lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, scrambled to toe the party line and condemn the former FBI director.
Trump himself ultimately joined the parade, in predictably Trumpian fashion.
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4llrhdclvdlmmynkwsmg5tdc/post/3lpc47zkqk22g
Link to tweet
......When the president first arrived in the White House eight years ago, he saw Comey as an ally — Trump appeared to literally blow a kiss at the then-FBI director at a White House event in January 2017 — thanks in part to Comey’s role in undermining Hillary Clinton’s 2016 candidacy. In time, however, Trump soured on Comey, and ultimately fired him in the hopes of derailing the FBI’s investigation into the president’s Russia scandal.
In the years that followed, Trump continued to target the former FBI director, accusing Comey of “treason,” and even calling for his prosecution over unidentified crimes.
As recently as a few months ago, just days after Trump loyalist Kash Patel was sworn in as the FBI’s newest director, the conservative Washington Times reported that the bureau had opened an investigation into Comey’s role in the FBI’s investigation into Trump’s 2016 campaign.
In other words, Team Trump has long seen Comey as a villain who should be targeted and investigated. His since-deleted Instagram post appears to have given the president’s operation an excuse to do what it wanted to do anyway.
Comey is an idiot. Comey's press conference on the Clinton email investigation was unethical and got trump elected. Comey's stupidity may be a valid defense if charges are brought.
LetMyPeopleVote
(164,956 posts)The Trump administration accused the former FBI director of insinuating a call to violence in his Instagram post, which he denied. Any such charges will be bogus,
Decry weaponization of justice, pretend Musk didn't perform a Nazi salute, but accuse the former FBI of making a death threat.
— David Schatsky (@dschatsky.bsky.social) 2025-05-16T14:29:35.716Z
Ok.
Comey under investigation for ‘threat’ to Trump on social media, officials say
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
Link to tweet
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/16/james-comey-trump-86-fbi/
“Anyone who has studied any First Amendment law would realize this was protected speech," said Cole, the former national legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union. "It might not have been the most discreet or professional post, but it’s 100 percent protected. If anyone should understand the value of indiscreet and irresponsible but nonetheless protected posts on social media, it’s Donald Trump.”
Used as a verb, “86” originated in hospitality, meaning to refuse service to a customer or that a menu item was not available, and its use expanded over time to broadly refer to rejecting, dismissing or removing, according to its dictionary definition. It can also refer to killing something or someone......
And during the 2024 election, Trump shared a video on social media that showed a supporter’s pickup truck driving down a road with a graphic on its tailgate that depicted President Joe Biden tied up. In response, Biden’s campaign accused Trump of “regularly inciting political violence.”
At least one other well-known Republican official has used the term “86” before. In February 2024, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) boasted on X that his political allies had “86’d” three party leaders in recent months. He was responding to the news that Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell would step down from his leadership post in November of that year.
In 2022, the far-right activist Jack Posobiec wrote an X post that said only, “86 46.” Biden was serving as the 46th president at the time. Posobiec is a vocal Trump supporter who has been promoted by Trump on social media and invited to participate in a “new media” briefing at the White House during his second term.
LetMyPeopleVote
(164,956 posts)
LetMyPeopleVote
(164,956 posts)The Trump administration accused the former FBI director of insinuating a call to violence in his Instagram post, which he denied. Any such charges will be bogus,
Decry weaponization of justice, pretend Musk didn't perform a Nazi salute, but accuse the former FBI of making a death threat.
— David Schatsky (@dschatsky.bsky.social) 2025-05-16T14:29:35.716Z
Ok.
Comey under investigation for ‘threat’ to Trump on social media, officials say
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
Link to tweet
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/16/james-comey-trump-86-fbi/
“Anyone who has studied any First Amendment law would realize this was protected speech," said Cole, the former national legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union. "It might not have been the most discreet or professional post, but it’s 100 percent protected. If anyone should understand the value of indiscreet and irresponsible but nonetheless protected posts on social media, it’s Donald Trump.”
Used as a verb, “86” originated in hospitality, meaning to refuse service to a customer or that a menu item was not available, and its use expanded over time to broadly refer to rejecting, dismissing or removing, according to its dictionary definition. It can also refer to killing something or someone......
And during the 2024 election, Trump shared a video on social media that showed a supporter’s pickup truck driving down a road with a graphic on its tailgate that depicted President Joe Biden tied up. In response, Biden’s campaign accused Trump of “regularly inciting political violence.”
At least one other well-known Republican official has used the term “86” before. In February 2024, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) boasted on X that his political allies had “86’d” three party leaders in recent months. He was responding to the news that Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell would step down from his leadership post in November of that year.
In 2022, the far-right activist Jack Posobiec wrote an X post that said only, “86 46.” Biden was serving as the 46th president at the time. Posobiec is a vocal Trump supporter who has been promoted by Trump on social media and invited to participate in a “new media” briefing at the White House during his second term.
bluetexas
(50 posts)I have always thought that 86 meant to throw something in the trash. I used to run an "86 Report" on old computer system in the 1980's that cleared a set of data. I had no idea I was assassinating the data.