Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Thursday that federal law enforcement is investigating a social media post made by former FBI Director James Comey that she and other Republicans claim is a call for violence against President Donald Trump.
In an Instagram post earlier in the day, Comey wrote "cool shell formation on my beach walk" under a picture of seashells that appeared to form the shapes for "86 47."
Numerous Trump administration officials, including Noem, claimed that Comey was advocating for the assassination of Trump, the 47th president.
"Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey just called for the assassination of @POTUS Trump," Noem wrote in a post on X. "DHS and Secret Service is investigating this threat and will respond appropriately."
The post has since been deleted. Comey subsequently wrote, "I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message. I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me, but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down."
According to Merriam-Webster, "86" is slang meaning "to throw out," "to get rid of" or "to refuse service to." It noted: "Among the most recent senses adopted is a logical extension of the previous ones, with the meaning of 'to kill.' We do not enter this sense, due to its relative recency and sparseness of use."
Comey's original post sparked outrage on social media, with Donald Trump Jr. accusing Comey of calling for his father’s killing.
"Just James Comey causally calling for my dad to be murdered," the president's oldest son posted on X. "This is who the Dem-Media worships. Demented!!!!"
FBI Director Kash Patel wrote in a post on X he was aware of Comey's post and was conferring with the Secret Service and its director, James Curran.
"Primary jurisdiction is with [the Secret Service] on these matters and we, the FBI, will provide all necessary support," Patel wrote.
James Blair, White House deputy chief of staff for legislative, political and public affairs, noted that the post came at a delicate time given that Trump is traveling in the Middle East.
"This is a Clarion Call from Jim Comey to terrorists & hostile regimes to kill the President of the United States as he travels in the Middle East," Blair wrote in a post on X. "Any Democrat or Media Outlet who fails to condemn this clear Incitement of Violence is complicit and must be described as such."
Comey, who was FBI director from 2013 to 2017, was fired by Trump during the president's first term.
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