Former FBI director James Comey briefly posted a photo to Instagram, saying federal officials said the official called for violence against President Trump, a claim that Comey withdrew the request.
According to screenshots shared by Trump administration officials, the images shared by Comey - the long-term Trump enemy (Trump Trump) enemy (Trump Oe) show that the shells are arranged to form the "86 47" figure.
He did not explicitly state his meaning, but administration officials and some of his supporters interpreted the numbers as referring to Mr. Trump's status as the 47th president, while the s-language is "eighty-six", which is usually used to mean "pop up" or "delete."
Comey later deleted the image. In a follow-up post to the Instagram post Thursday night, Comey wrote: "I posted earlier photos of some of the shells I saw on the beach walk today, and I think it's a political message. I didn't realize that some people associate these people with violence. I've never had violence, but I'm against any kind of violence, so I fell down the post."
CBS News has contacted Comey's attorney.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X that the issue is under investigation. Comey "just called for the assassination" of Mr. Trump, she said, adding that her agency and Secret Service were "investigating the threat and would respond appropriately."
"We are aware of the recent tweet from former FBI Director James Comey, targeting President Trump. We are communicating with Secret Service and Director (Sean) Curran. The primary jurisdiction is related to these issues with SS, we, the FBI, the FBI, will provide all necessary support."
A Secret Service spokesperson told CBS News in a statement: "A vigorous investigation has been made about anything that can be viewed as a potential threat to our protectors. We are aware of the social media posts of the former FBI director and we take such remarks very seriously. Apart from that, we have no comment on protective intelligence issues."
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich wrote in his own social media post that Comey’s message “can clearly interpret it as a “hot” for the current U.S. president and said “being taken seriously.”
Comey and Trump have been cheating for years. Comey has been a director of the FBI since 2013 He was fired Mr. Trump was in 2017 during the president's first White House term.
The final launch Robert Mueller's Special Adviser Investigation Make accusations Russian interference In the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Trump's campaign coordinated with the Kremlin. Mr. Trump has repeatedly condemned the allegations as "scam".
Comey has been a voice critic of Mr. Trump since Trump's firing, calling him "morally unfit" In an interview in 2018.
Mr. Trump is the goal Two attempts to assassinate During his presidential campaign last year. At a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, a 20-year-old gunman opened fire at Mr. Trump and grazed his ears with bullets. One rally participant was killed and two others were injured.
September 14, a man Arrested On the charges, he attempted to assassinate Trump on a golf course in West Palm Beach by passing a rifle through the bushes.
It is not clear what Comey means in the Instagram post, but according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, "eighty-six" means "throw away" or "get rid of" something.
Merriam-Webster said it originated in the Taiwanese soda cabinet in the 1930s, which means an item was sold out. The dictionary says that the word can also refer to people: "eighty-six" a messy bar patron is driving them out or denying their service.