General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsRegardless of what you think of James Comey, his indictment and order for arrest....
... is a threat to us all.
How many DUers have written anything as threatening as "8647"? Probably everyone of us?
It shows that there are no boundaries with this White House and that free speech is under attack.
This ordered arrest for Comey is different. It is dangerous.
And we should take it very seriously.
MustLoveBeagles
(17,094 posts)Vinca
(54,257 posts)They're going to have to turn all those detention warehouses into prisons for tee shirt vendors.
IA8IT
(6,443 posts)magicarpet
(19,218 posts)This march towards Fascism,...
Is getting, louder, clearer, and more incidious as time goes on.
They don't come more vindictive or retaliatory thanTeam trDUMP.
To relentlessly go after Comey as they have shows that they possess a thick Nazi crust ,.. thinking that makes them invincible and untouchable. This is what America voted themselves into, now we have this royal mess that was once a thriving Democracy.
To be scorned the world around.
SheilaAnn
(10,763 posts)"revenge" indictments. He's capable of being this small and petty.
dem4decades
(14,284 posts)pat_k
(13,785 posts)1:38
The Judge says "No, because you didn't fire here under the Civil Service Reform Act...You fired here under Article II. She gets to stay in federal court...
3:00
5:00
So now, in discovery, they'll start getting all the documents and documentation about why she was terminated... what was the thought process behind Todd Blanche approving the firing before his interview with Ghislaine Maxwell?
Trump STUNNED as EPSTEIN PROSECUTOR Calls HIS BLUFF!!!
13:00
...The timing of her termination speaks directly to the deployment of Todd Blanche to meet with Ghislaine Maxwell because he went less than a week after she was fired. And Maurene Comey was the lead trial prosecutor in the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, and in the criminal case of Jeffrey Epstein. She know those cases. She knew that evidence better than anybody. And she would have been the natural, logical person to send to do the limited immunity, "queen for a day" meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell, because she wuold have known -- her bullshit meter would have been so powerful, right? And she would have been able to say "You're lying, Ghislaine. I know what the evidence is." Right? But they intentionally sent dumbass Blanche because Todd is the perfect patsy for it, because he knows that if he goes in blind, he doesn't sit there -- he can't gauge the truth. He's just going to like sit there and, like I said, do each other's nails and braid each other's hair...
Which is why I like this illegal termination lawsuit because I think there's a colorable argument that Comey's lawyers could explore -- the Why of it - Right? And maybe there's an Epstein link to it. I think it exists. I think all roads are leading back to Epstein on this one.
Michael Popok:
Look, you and I have agreed from the very beginning. She was the sacrificial lamb to get her out of the way so that when -- as you said -- when Blanche went and did the interview, he didn't have her as an earworm in his ear saying "She's lying to you." Because he didn't want to know if she was lying to him because that's not his purpose of going to interview. You know, the five-year prosecutor of the case who knows every document like the back of her hand and every witness statement -- you don't bring to the meeting?!?
Top line, Maurene Comey has an interesting employment litigation matter.
Get down to the nitty-gritty -- the molecular level -- Maurene Comey is the key, because if she starts going after the Department of Justice, where she worked, for all the documents between the Department of Justice and the White House -- between Trump and Todd Blanche, and the rest, about Ghislaine Maxwell, about Epstein, about Maurene Comey's role as prosecutor of those two, about the rationale for her firing. Now we're litigating in open court the Epstein scandal. Right? See? As I said at the top, Trump maybe should worry less about James Comey and indicting him for some sea shell conversation and more about Maurene Comey, who's now a partner at a great firm in Manhattan, Patterson Bellnap...
LetMyPeopleVote
(181,437 posts)The latest indictment of the former FBI director is ridiculous, but its part of an unsubtle pattern from the acting attorney general.
The indefensible second Comey indictment is obviously evidence of a weaponized and corrupted Justice Department.
— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-04-28T19:39:33.394Z
But itâs also one of many unsubtle steps Todd Blanche has taken lately to delight Trump and try to nail down an AG nomination.
www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/comeys-second-indictment-shows-the-lengths-blanche-will-go-to-please-trump
In theory, Trumps DOJ should have been chastened by the condemnations and by the cases failure. In practice, the shamelessly weaponized department decided to give it another try. MS NOW reported:
The Trump Justice Department has charged former FBI Director James Comey again, following the dismissal of his first indictment due to the illegal appointment of the prosecutor who secured it.
The new indictment involves allegations that Comey made threats against President Donald Trump in a May 2025 social media posting of a picture of shells on the beach that spelled out 8647, a source familiar with the matter told MS NOW.
I can appreciate why this might seem like an unfortunate attempt at humor, but its apparently quite real. While plenty of political figures from both parties have used 86 over the years as a shorthand for rejecting foes, the president and his team argued in apparent seriousness last spring that the former FBI director had used Instagram to call for violence against Trump by way of a seashell-related code.....
Over the course of a few weeks, the Blanche-led DOJ has prosecuted a progressive group the president hates, intensified a politically motivated purge, advocated firing squads as a method of federal execution while slamming Joe Biden in gratuitous ways, intervened in support of Trumps ballroom crusade and indicted a former aide to Dr. Anthony Fauci (a leading figure on the White Houses enemies list) before indicting Comey (another leading figure on the White Houses enemies list.)
At an official event this week, the acting attorney general offered such sycophantic praise for the president he seemed to be auditioning to star in a Trump campaign ad.
Acting Attorney General Blanche is now doing a campaign-style promo for Trump
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2026-04-27T19:42:41.239Z
No one should want to be an attorney general nominee this badly (under Trump, its not even an especially good job anyway), but Blanches actions are about as subtle as a sledgehammer.
LetMyPeopleVote
(181,437 posts)This case is so stupid that Blanche, Patel and the attorney who signed the indictment need to be disbarred or sanctioned. There is existing SCOTUS authority that this statement is protected by the First Amendment. The SCOTUS opinion dealt with a less ambiguous compared to the 8647 being used here
https://firstamendment.mtsu.edu/article/watts-v-united-states/
On further appeal, the Supreme Court reversed in a 5-4 per curiam opinion. The majority determined that the federal statute prohibiting threats against the president was constitutional and that true threats receive no First Amendment protection.
However, the majority also determined that Wattss crude statements were political hyperbole rather than true threats. What is a threat must be distinguished from what is constitutionally protected speech, the majority wrote. The language of the political arena is often vituperative, abusive, and inexact.
The Court agreed with Wattss counsels characterization of Wattss speech as a kind of very crude offensive method of stating a political opposition to the President that did not qualify as a true threat.
Justice William O. Douglas concurred in an opinion that would have gone further than the per curiam majority opinion and invalidated the federal statute. Suppression of speech as an effective police measure is an old, old device, outlawed by our Constitution, he concluded. Justice Abe Fortas, joined by John Marshall Harlan, dissented in a very short opinion questioning whether the Court should have taken the case.

rzemanfl
(31,446 posts)Last edited Wed Apr 29, 2026, 09:14 AM - Edit history (1)
to do any research or just bent over and kissed ass.
OldBaldy1701E
(11,418 posts)
But, anything is possible.
rzemanfl
(31,446 posts)had nothing to do with these bogus federal charges. Your response puzzles me. This is the U.S. Attorney I spoke of-
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ednc/meet-us-attorney
OldBaldy1701E
(11,418 posts)My mistake.
rzemanfl
(31,446 posts)Too much to keep track of. No harm done. Thanks for your response.
rzemanfl
(31,446 posts)Roman numerals in my signature line. Am I a criminal?
RedWhiteBlueIsRacist
(2,193 posts)to the ballgame!
johnp3907
(4,330 posts)samsingh
(18,468 posts)3825-87867
(2,005 posts)Can you tell me where he's gone?
Hopefully, no were, DOJ!
Thought I saw him walkin' along the beach,
with my old friend John!
MustLoveBeagles
(17,094 posts)🤭
BidenRocks
(3,453 posts)Q: Is there any violence brought on by 86ing someone, that they don't cause?
A: No. It means no more alcohol and/or please leave!
You can tell who is not like the rest of us 'dive bar' drinkers! Not a clue!
LetMyPeopleVote
(181,437 posts)Again, this is more proof that this is a political decision/prosecution to make trump happy
Link to tweet
Link to tweet
LetMyPeopleVote
(181,437 posts)Within the last 24 hours, the DOJ has demanded the courts reverse course on President Donald Trumps ballroom, executed search warrants in Minnesota and indicted a former top aide to Dr. Anthony Fauci.
Link to tweet
https://www.ms.now/news/the-comey-indictment-is-just-one-way-the-doj-is-being-newly-weaponized
On Tuesday, those rumors became reality when the DOJ indicted Comey in the Eastern District of North Carolina because of his May 2025 social media post of a picture of seashells arranged to read 86 47. For that, the DOJ has indicted Comey for threatening the life of a president and further, for making a threat to injure another person also the president via interstate communications. Each count is punishable by a sizable fine, no more than five years in prison or both. ....
Consider other DOJ developments within the last 24 hours:
Late Monday night, in a filing that read like a Trump-written social media screed, not a legal argument, the DOJ demanded that the federal judge overseeing the White House ballroom case reverse a ruling blocking above-ground construction on the ballroom. The DOJ filing was both curious and unnecessary because a federal appeals court has stayed that ruling for at least several weeks, meaning construction can resume as the appeal continues. Nonetheless, the DOJ filing rife with capitalized words, exclamation points, political epithets and unsupported factual assertions not only suggested Trump cannot continue construction, but framed the ballroom project as vital to our National Security, and the Safety of all Presidents of the United States, both current and future, their families, staff, and cabinet members.
Then, early Tuesday, multiple media outlets reported that the FBI and the DOJ executed search warrants on 20-plus businesses in Minneapolis as part of a wide-reaching federal fraud investigation into the use of federal social services funds. Trump himself has not only commented on that investigation, a departure from usual presidential protocol, but he has also publicly accused several of the states top Democratic officials Gov. Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison and Rep. Ilhan Omar all of whom have been his political foils, if not his electoral opponents, of being complicit in that fraud.
Later, in Maryland federal court, the DOJ indicted a former senior aide to the former National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases head, Dr. Anthony Fauci. There, the government alleged not only that David M. Morens destroyed and/or evaded creating government records by using personal emails, but also that he conspired with Chinese researchers to counter the emerging thesis that Covid-19 was unleashed through a lab leak, thereby limiting the information available to decision-makers, including Trump. In a press release announcing the charges, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche alleged that the aide deliberately concealed information and falsified records in an effort to suppress alternative theories regarding the origins of COVID-19 before giving a hint about what has really undergirded the case: His belief that NIH officials were obligated to provide honest, well-ground facts and advice, not advance their own personal or ideological agendas.
And finally, on Tuesday afternoon, the DOJ unsealed the bare-bones, three-page Comey indictment.
Collectively, these developments highlight that there is a new sheriff in town. And indeed,Blanche, who appears to be publicly auditioning to become Trumps permanent attorney general, has advanced investigations and cases against the presidents enemies and detractors as rapidly as he has aggressively.
Against that backdrop, the new indictment against Comey hardly seems to be a slam dunk for the DOJ or Blanche.
But if the process itself is the punishment, and the thing the man Blanche has described as the DOJs boss craves, Blanche achieved multiple wins and not just a new Comey indictment on a random Tuesday in April.
And days like this might be enough to keep him at the attorney generals desk.
Blanche is making Bondi look ethical in comparison. Blanche really wants the AG job and is going all out to get the nomination
aeromanKC
(3,954 posts)wiggs
(8,848 posts)Sogo
(7,290 posts)Would you get a knock at your door by the SS?
rzemanfl
(31,446 posts)It would be a safe house!
LetMyPeopleVote
(181,437 posts)HappyH
(249 posts)The only question is does he want the full spectacle. Will Comey be thrown to the ground and dogpiled before being cuffed and arrested?
malaise
(297,554 posts)taller than him.
The winner!!
malaise
(297,554 posts)Iggo
(50,021 posts)Buckeyeblue
(6,419 posts)Doesn't seem like anyone is in a rush to take him into custody.
I wonder how they got a grand jury to indict him?
I cant imagine any jury convicting him. But as I've said in previous posts, I don't know how you prosecute this case.
spanone
(142,005 posts)PuraVidaDreamin
(4,676 posts)8-tea 47
Ocelot II
(131,081 posts)which, they said, makes his ridiculous, outrageous prosecution for posting 86-47 in sea shells somehow OK. He deserves it, some people said. And it made me wonder - sadly - whether some of us alleged liberals are just as eager as Trump to prosecute someone for a thing that isn't a crime but is clearly protected speech just because they don't like him and think he deserves punishment even if it's for something completely unrelated. But take that headline and just change the name to, say, Adam Schiff, and the same folks would be up in arms, as they should be. It shouldn't matter who it is.
So my question to those who think Comey deserves this sham, vindictive prosecution is, WTF is wrong with you? If you became the attorney general in some future Democratic administration, would you prosecute the truly loathsome Kash Patel for writing 86-48 in sea shells because statutes of limitations have run on any crimes he did commit so you can't bust him for those? If your answer is yes, then shame on you for wiping your ass on the same Constitution Trump used for the same thing.
First they came for Jim Comey and I spoke out because I know the rest of the fucking poem.
ecstatic
(35,128 posts)Even after being asked multiple times, he still hasn't expressed remorse for his actions in 2016. He's a very smug, self-righteous individual, in my opinion.
That said, you're right. tRump is engaging in a disgusting witch hunt that threatens all of our rights.
LetMyPeopleVote
(181,437 posts)The new indictment against the former FBI director checks a set of boxes for the president, none of which has anything to do with securing a conviction.
The case against Comey will obviously fail, but a conviction isnât the point. For Trump, the indictment:
— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-04-29T13:01:38.440Z
- makes clear that he can prosecute his enemies based on nothing but his whims, without regard for merit or evidence
- scares other prosecutors into obedience
- imposes hardships on a foe
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/the-case-against-comey-will-almost-certainly-fail-for-trump-thats-not-the-point
Even if the Justice Department cannot convict Comey, prosecutors can make his life miserable for several months by forcing him to pay for a lawyer, occupy his time and attention, emotionally exhaust his family and disparage his reputation.
To be sure, I dont doubt that the president and those who are doing his bidding would be delighted to see Comey found guilty, but given how pitiful the case is, thats unrealistic.
Theres no reason to assume, however, that a conviction is Trumps intended endpoint. On the contrary, given the broader context, the new indictment checks a different set of boxes for the Republican president.
First, Trump appears eager to make it clear that he can orchestrate federal prosecutions based entirely on his whims and petty desires, without regard for merit or evidence. There is, for all intents and purposes, a White House enemies list, and the president seems eager to intimidate and instill fear on those whose names appear on it.
Second, Trump is sending an unsubtle signal to other federal prosecutors who might be inclined to prioritize the rule of law over the White Houses wishes. Indeed, when it comes to the pursuit of the former FBI director, prosecutors who chose not to bring charges against Comey were replaced with those who would follow political instructions. As a second set of charges moves forward, the message to other prosecutors couldnt be clearer: Play along with the revenge campaign, or face unemployment.
And third, the Comey conviction allows the president to effectively argue that he can force his perceived enemies to endure legal, personal and financial hardships as a direct consequence of their defiance of him, even if the indictments are a joke, and even if the defendants are ultimately acquitted.
Trying to convict the former FBI director is largely irrelevant. The corruption is the point.
I will never forgive Comey for helping elect trump. I was training voter protection attorneys and poll watchers at a downtown law office when one of my firm's associates who was attending the class gave me a funny look. While I was in middle of the class, Comey had announced that they re-opened the Clinton investigation due to emails on Clinton's assistant computer. When I found out, I was shocked because the FBI and DOJ were not supposed to do anything political just before the election. Comey help get trump elected and now trump is persecuting Comey
malaise
(297,554 posts)Rec