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President Trump said former FBI Director James B. Comey knew what the message was behind the social media post showing shells that said “8647.”
“He knew exactly what that meant. A child knows what that meant,” Mr. Trump said in a clip of an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier released Friday.
“If you’re the FBI director and you don’t know what that meant, that meant assassination,” the president said. “And it says it loud and clear.”
Mr. Comey posted the image on Instagram Thursday, then took it down. It was a seashell formation that said “8647” that he described as a “cool formation.”
“86” is sometimes used as slang for “get rid of” something or someone. Mr. Trump is the 47th president.
After removing the post, Mr. Comey said in a separate post that he assumed the formation was a political message but that “it never occurred” to him that it was a call to assassinate the president.
SEE ALSO: Secret Service, FBI investigating Comey’s ‘8647’ post
“I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence,” he said.
Many took the message as a call to murder Mr. Trump. The Secret Service and FBI are investigating the image.
“Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey just called for the assassination of @POTUS Trump,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted on X.
She said the Secret Service, which is under her department’s jurisdiction, “is investigating this threat and will respond appropriately.”
FBI Director Kash Patel said his agency “will provide all necessary support.”
“We vigorously investigate anything that can be taken as a potential threat against our protectees. We are aware of the social media posts by the former FBI Director & we take rhetoric like this very seriously,” Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi posted on X.
“Beyond that, we do not comment on protective intelligence matters,” he added.
Mr. Comey was fired from his position by Mr. Trump in 2017 for how he handled former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s email scandal and how the FBI probed the Russia hoax.
Mr. Trump told Mr. Baier that regarding the “8647” post, Mr. Comey “wasn’t very competent, but he was competent enough to know what that meant.”
“He did it for a reason. And he was hit so hard because people like me. And they like what’s happening with our country,” the president said. “Our country’s become respected again. And all this. And he’s calling for the assassination of the president.”
He said he doesn’t want to say what should happen next and that it should be up to Attorney General Pam Bondi.
“But I will say this: I think it’s a terrible thing. And when you add his history to that, if he had a clean history, he doesn’t,” Mr. Trump said. “He’s a dirty cop. … And if he had a clean history, I could understand if there was a leniency, but I’m going to let them make that decision.”
• Lindsey McPherson contributed to this story.
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