Blanche, asked if DOJ will now prosecute every post of '86 47,' says 'every case is different'
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Wednesday that the Justice Department's decision to seek an indictment against former FBI Director James Comey for his Instagram post showing seashells forming the numbers "86 47" does not mean that everyone who posts or displays those numbers would be prosecuted.
A federal grand jury in North Carolina on Tuesday indicted Comey over the 2025 social media post on the grounds that "86" -- which is slang for "remove" or "get rid of" -- constitutes a threat on the life of Trump, who is the 47th president.
Comey made his initial court appearance Wednesday at the courthouse in the Eastern District of Virginia.
Asked if the DOJ would pursue charges against anybody who posts "86 47" and whether that would impinge their First Amendment rights, Blanche said that "every case is different" and it "would be ill advised for anybody to compare a particular statement to another statement that appears similar."
"Every time that's posted, that number is posted, you know that every time there's a threat against the president, it doesn't necessarily lead to an indictment. It depends on the investigation. It depends on all kinds of factors," said Blanche, who was previously Trump's personal attorney and was elevated this month to acting attorney general following Trump's ouster of Pam Bondi.
"People should be very wary of threatening the life of President Trump, because that is a crime, full stop. OK?" Blanche said. "Now whether it's a crime that we will ultimately charge, depending on you know, you mentioned the First Amendment -- sure, or other cases, other investigative steps, or things that we learned, or things that we, that we uncover from talking to witnesses, from reviewing evidence ... there should be no doubt you cannot threaten the life of the president of the United States. Can't do it, OK? And so beyond that, I'm not going to comment."
The interpretation that the numbers constitute an actual threat against Trump's life or safety will be a large part of the defense put on by Comey's legal team as they seek to have the indictment tossed out before trial.
They will also likely seek to argue that Comey is being selectively prosecuted on the basis that no other federal cases have been brought in connection with the posting of the numbers, including against Trump supporters who during Joe Biden's presidency posted "86 46."
Prosecutors will likely face a high legal bar to prove that Comey's Instagram post constituted a "true threat" -- which the Supreme Court said in 2023 requires showing that an individual understood that their message would be perceived as threatening.
The indictment of Comey came three days after authorities say a gunman attacked the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner that Trump was attending -- the third threat to Trump's life following incidents two years ago in Butler, Pennsylvania, and at Trump's Florida golf course. Cole Allen, 31, was charged Monday with attempting to assassinate Trump at Saturday's event, and did not enter a plea.
