Secret Service agents questioned former FBI Director James Comey at a Washington field office on Friday about a social media post he made that sparked concerns that it called for violence against President Donald Trump.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed the interview on Friday, saying: “Today, federal agents from Secret Service inter disgraced former FBI Director Comey regarding a social media post calling for the assassination of President Trump. I will continue to take all measures necessary to ensure the protection of @POTUS Trump. This is an ongoing investigation.”
Comey posted a picture on Instagram of the numbers “8647” spelled out in the sand with seashells. The term “86” is defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “get rid of” or “throw out,” and “47” refers to Trump being the 47th president of the United States.
Comey later deleted the picture, which he thought was a “political message,” saying he didn’t realize it could be interpreted as a call to 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.”
However, Trump shared on Fox News that Comey knew the message meant assassination.
“He knew exactly what that meant,” Trump said. “A child knows what that meant. If you’re the FBI director and you don’t know what that meant. That meant assassination, and it says it loud and clear.”
Comey’s post received staunch opposition from Republicans on social media, especially because Trump has already faced two assassination attempts.
“The Secret Service vigorously investigates anything that can be taken as a potential threat against our protectees,” a Secret Service spokesperson told the Washington Examiner earlier on Friday. “We are aware of the social media posts by the former FBI director and we take rhetoric like this very seriously.”
