Secret Service agents spoke with former FBI director James Comey on Friday about his “8647” social media post, which administration officials labeled a death threat against President Trump, whereas Comey insisted it was merely a political statement.

“Today, federal agents from @SecretService interviewed disgraced former FBI Director Comey regarding a social media post calling for the assassination of President Trump,” tweeted DHS Secretary Kristi Noem on Friday. “I will continue to take all measures necessary to ensure the protection of @POTUS Trump. This is an ongoing investigation.”

A lawyer for Comey declined to comment.

Comey, a long-standing critic of Trump, quickly removed the photo depicting seashells arranged as “8647.” He clarified that it was intended to convey a political message, not a threat of violence.

“I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence,” Comey wrote on Instagram. “It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.” 

In an interview with Fox News on Friday, Trump said that he believes Comey “knew exactly what he meant.”

“A child knows what that meant… that meant ‘assassination,’” Trump said. “And it says it loud and clear. He wasn’t very competent, but he was competent enough to know what that meant.”

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said on Thursday that Comey should be jailed. 

“I’m very concerned for the president’s life; we’ve already seen assassination attempts,” Gabbard said on Fox News. “I’m very concerned for his life and James Comey, in my view, should be held accountable and put behind bars for this.”

Trump survived two assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign. In July, he was wounded in the ear at a campaign rally in Butler, PA, after a gunman shot at him from a nearby rooftop before being killed by Secret Service snipers.

Two months later, a man aimed a rifle at Trump’s security detail while he was golfing in Florida. The man fled, was arrested and charged with attempting to assassinate a presidential candidate.

Meaning of “eighty-six” 

The term “eighty-six” is an expression used in restaurants that means to “refuse to serve” or “reject or ban” a customer, to “remove (an item) from a menu,” or to “reject, discontinue, or get rid of (something),” according to Merriam-Webster. It dates back to the 1930s. 

Republican politicians have used “86” in social media posts themselves in the past. Last year, former Florida Republican congressman Matt Gaetz posted on X, “We’ve now 86’d: McCarthy McDaniel McConnell Better days are ahead for the Republican Party.” 

The tweet referred to former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, former Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel, and former Senator majority leader Mitch McConnell, who had all left leadership posts in the Republican party. 

On Friday, Gaetz told the Independent that his used of “86” was different than Comey’s. “I was speaking in the past tense about things that had already happened,” Gaetz said. “Comey was putting out a call for future action. These are distinct.”

In 2022, conservative activist Jack Posobiec posted on X, “86 46,” an apparent reference to Joe Biden, the 46th president. Posobiec did not respond to a request for comment, according to the Independent.

For months, the 8647 number sequence has been used and seen on anti-Trump t-shirts, buttons and other merchandise sold on Amazon and Etsy—some of which are still available for purchase—as well as signage on “Hands Off” protests across the country. Amazon and Etsy also sell items with the terms “8646” on them, referring to Biden. 

During Trump’s first term, the numerical sequence was used as well. In 2020, Gretchen Whitmer, the Democratic governor of Michigan, was criticized after a pin with the numbers “8645” appeared on a table behind her during a television interview. 

At the time, Trump was the 45th president. Whitmer denied that the term meant “assassinate.”

After staffers in a Virginia restaurant asked White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to leave in 2018, staffers wrote “86 — Sarah Huckabee Sanders,” in their overnight note, Politifact reported.  

A former federal prosecutor who has investigated multiple threat cases against government officials said that Comey had not committed a crime. He said the federal criminal statute banning death threats against the president requires an individual to “knowingly and willingly” make an explicit threat “to take the life of, to kidnap, or to inflict bodily harm.” 

The former prosecutor, who spoke on condition of anonymity, citing fear of retaliation, said Comey’s post does not come close to meeting that legal threshold. 

“He didn’t commit a crime, “the former prosecutor said. “He gave his enemies an opening.”