James Comey Indicted Again: Federal Charges Stem from Cryptic 2025 Social Media Post

Former FBI Director James Comey testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on June 8, 2017. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

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What Happened?

On Tuesday, former FBI Director James Comey was indicted for a second time on new federal charges. Prosecutors allege that a 2025 social media post by Comey, showing seashells arranged to read “86 47,” constituted “a threat to take the life of, and to inflict bodily harm upon,” Donald Trump.

Donald Trump is the 47th U.S. president, and “86” is widely recognized as service industry slang for rejecting or removing someone or something. However, prosecutors and some Republicans have instead interpreted the phrase as a call for Trump’s assassination.

Comey stated at the time that he was unaware of any violent connotations and deleted the post in response to public backlash.

Why Comey?

Donald Trump has long sought to punish Comey for his role in investigating potential ties between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

The latest indictment closely mirrors a previous attempt last year, when the Trump administration briefly filed flimsy charges against Comey. Those charges were later dismissed as baseless.

Notably, this is not the only such action taken by the administration on Tuesday. The Trump administration also escalated its attacks on ABC and late-night host Jimmy Kimmel after both the president and First Lady Melania Trump criticized Kimmel for a joke. Kimmel was previously forced off the air by the administration in the fall.

What’s the Bigger Picture?

Earlier this month, Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi, replacing her with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, a former member of Trump’s personal legal team.

Trump’s frustrations with Bondi were well-documented. In September, he publicly complained that “Nothing is being done” against his political opponents. Blanche, who is up for the permanent Attorney General position, appears to be accelerating these efforts, regardless of the legal merits of the cases.

With this latest indictment, the Trump administration continues its pattern of targeting perceived adversaries through legally dubious means.

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