Former FBI Director James Comey is in hot water for a social media post he made that many have taken as a threat against President Trump.
On his Instagram, Comey posted the picture you see above, and claimed it was a "shell formation."
However, social media users took is as a threat to kill the President, with '86' possibly meaning to eliminate and 47 being the fact that Trump is the 47th President in American history. Comey later deleted the post.
“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,” he wrote in a later post.
Current FBI Director reacted on X, saying, "We are in communication with the Secret Service and Director Curran," Patel said. "Primary jurisdiction is with SS on these matters and we, the FBI, will provide all necessary support."
In response to Comey's post, the White House swiftly condemned Comey's actions, and White House deputy chief of staff and Cabinet Secretary Taylor Budowich called the move "deeply concerning."
"While President Trump is currently on an international trip to the Middle East, the former FBI Director puts out what can clearly be interpreted as ‘a hit’ on the sitting President of the United States — a message etched in the sand," Budowich wrote on X. "This is deeply concerning to all of us and is being taken seriously."