Former FBI Director James Comey was interviewed by the Secret Service on Friday about a social media post that Republicans insisted was a call for violence against President Donald Trump.
The interview was part of an ongoing Trump administration investigation and was expected to help authorities assess the purpose and intent of the post and whether Comey intended to communicate a threat to the president, which he has flatly denied. Any decision on whether charges should be filed would be up to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Trump said Friday, though there's a high bar in proving that comments or posts amount to direct threats of violence.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed in a post on X that Comey had been interviewed and said she would "take all measures necessary to ensure the protection" of Trump. The Secret Service is part of the Department of Homeland Security. An interview is a standard part of an investigation into comments perceived as potentially threatening but does not suggest that charges are being considered.
At issue is an Instagram post from Thursday in which Comey wrote "cool shell formation on my beach walk" under a picture of seashells that appeared to form the shapes for "86 47."
Merriam-Webster, the dictionary used by The Associated Press, says 86 is slang meaning "to throw out," "to get rid of" or "to refuse service to." It notes: "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."