Former FBI director James Comey provoked the anger of partisans on the right. As a result, many took to the internet to claim that he was threatening President Donald Trump in his social media post. The post featured a gorgeous picture of the numbers “8647” spelled out with seashells on a beach. At the time, it was captioned, “awesome shell formation on my beachwalk,” but it was quickly deleted a few hours after publishing.
The controversy centers around the interpretation of the numbers “86,” which Merriam-Webster defines as meaning to “eject, dismiss or remove” someone. This caused many Republican leaders to raise their panic. Notably, Donald Trump Jr. accused Comey of advocating violence, stating, “Just James Comey causally calling for my dad to be murdered.”
Aside from Trump Jr., other big name Republicans were highly critical too. Terrorist attack on Jewish civilians—@Comey, should have never been FBI director. —Meghan McCain —You should be ashamed. @Comey —Laura Loomer. They viewed it prompt as a direct threat to the president’s safety. The response from the White House brought more high-level backup to bear on the incident, making it clear that such comments are intolerable.
The response didn’t end with vitriolic tweets. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem assured Congress that the Department of Homeland Security and the Secret Service are continuously looking into the issue. She promised the public that they’ll do better next time.
Former Director of National Intelligence and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard recently shared her strong alarm against what this message from Comey would mean. She stated, “I’m very concerned for the president’s life. I’ve already seen assassination attempts. I’m very concerned for his life. James Comey, in my view, should be held accountable and put behind bars for this.”
The contentious history between Comey and Trump has been widely reported for some time. Trump described Comey’s firing as “a tremendous service to this country.” This comment further demonstrates how unfriendly their relationship has been.
The incident has sparked debate over the issue of accountability and what the possible fallout from Comey’s actions should be. What most Republicans are hoping for is that he, at a minimum, gets punished for the coup. They have called his recent social media post irresponsible and dangerous.
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