Former FBI Director James Comey faces a Secret Service investigation after posting a cryptic “86 47” seashell image on Instagram that many interpreted as a threat against President Trump.
At a Glance
- The Secret Service is investigating Comey’s Instagram post showing seashells arranged as “86 47,” widely interpreted as a threat against Trump
- Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem publicly condemned the post as a call for assassination
- Comey claims he found the arrangement on a beach walk, didn’t arrange it himself, and didn’t understand its threatening connotation
- The term “86” in restaurant slang means “to get rid of” while “47” appears to reference Trump as the 47th president
- Comey later deleted the post and attempted to explain himself on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”
The Controversial Instagram Post
The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Secret Service have launched an investigation into former FBI Director James Comey after he shared what many interpreted as a threatening post against President Donald Trump. The image, posted to Comey’s Instagram account, showed seashells arranged to form the numbers “86” and “47” on a beach. The combination raised immediate alarm because “86” is commonly understood as slang meaning “to get rid of” or “eliminate,” while “47” appeared to reference Trump as the 47th president of the United States.
The post quickly generated backlash from government officials and Trump allies. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was among the first high-profile figures to condemn the image, writing on social media: “Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey just called for the assassination of @POTUS Trump.” The timing of the post was particularly concerning given that Trump has already survived two assassination attempts during his 2024 campaign.
Official Response and Investigation
The Secret Service promptly acknowledged awareness of the post and confirmed they were taking the matter seriously. Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi stated: “We are aware of the social media posts by the former FBI director and we take rhetoric like this very seriously. Beyond that, we do not comment on protective intelligence matters.” This response underscores the seriousness with which threats against presidents and presidential candidates are treated, especially in the current climate of heightened political tensions.
“This is deeply concerning to all of us and is being taken seriously,” said Taylor Budowich, head of the pro-Trump super PAC MAGA Inc. The FBI has also become involved, with FBI Director Kash Patel offering full support to the Secret Service for their investigation. Some Republican lawmakers went further, with Rep. Tim Burchett and Trump campaign co-manager Chris LaCivita suggesting that Comey’s home should be raided or that he should face arrest for the perceived threat.
Comey’s Explanation and Damage Control
As criticism mounted, Comey deleted the post and later appeared on CBS’s “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” to explain himself. During the interview, he insisted that he neither arranged the shells nor initially understood the potential threatening interpretation. “My wife and I were walking on the beach, and saw those numbers in shells on the beach. Somebody else did it!” Comey claimed during his appearance.
“We were on a walk, preparing for this week. And she said, ‘Why’d somebody put their address in the sand?’ We looked at it, trying to figure out what it was. She’d long been a server in restaurants. She said, ‘You know what I think it is? A reference to restaurants. When you’d 86 something at a restaurant.’ I said, ‘No, I remember as a kid, you’d say ’86’ to get out of a place. This place stinks, let’s 86 it.’ So I said, ‘I think it’s a clever political message.'” – James Comey.
Comey further explained that his wife encouraged him to photograph the arrangement and post it to Instagram, saying, “She said, ‘You should take a picture.’ I said, ‘Sure.’ She said, ‘You should Instagram that.’ And then, boom.” The former FBI director, who now works as a fiction writer, was promoting his new novel on the same Instagram account where he posted the controversial image.
Historical Context
The incident carries additional weight given Comey’s history with Trump. Comey was fired by Trump in 2017 after the FBI opened an investigation into alleged Russian contacts with Trump’s 2016 campaign. Although the White House initially cited Comey’s handling of Hillary Clinton’s email investigation as justification for his dismissal, Trump later acknowledged in a television interview that the Russia investigation was on his mind when making the decision.
Comey has been a controversial figure for both Republicans and Democrats. Many conservatives believe he was unfairly targeting Trump during his FBI tenure, while many Democrats blame his last-minute reopening of the Clinton email investigation for her 2016 election loss. This latest controversy has only heightened tensions, coming at a time when political rhetoric is under intense scrutiny following two attempts on Trump’s life during the campaign season.
