Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche went on national television Sunday and made a simple point: the federal indictment of former FBI Director James Comey was the product of an 11-month investigation, and reducing the case to a single deleted Instagram photo misrepresents what prosecutors actually have.
Blanche appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press on May 3 and addressed the widespread criticism that Comey was charged over a beach photo showing seashells arranged as “86 47.” Critics of President Donald Trump interpreted the post as a harmless political statement. Supporters of the president viewed it as a veiled threat against the 47th president of the United States. Comey deleted the image.
Blanche said investigators developed a far broader evidentiary record than a screenshot.
BREAKING
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche says the DOJ’s indictment against former FBI director James Comey is NOT solely based on his “8647” social media post – there is more evidence yet to be revealed:
“This is not just about a single Instagram post. This is about a body… pic.twitter.com/d8FTyUuiqH
— Conservative Brief (@ConservBrief) May 3, 2026
The timeline alone tells part of the story. Comey posted the image in May 2025. The indictment arrived in late April 2026. Blanche said what happened in between involved career prosecutors, FBI agents, and Secret Service agents doing investigative work that extended well beyond the photo itself.
Washington Examiner reported on the substance of Blanche’s television remarks and the broader context of the case:
Blanche told NBC that career assistant U.S. attorneys in North Carolina, FBI agents, and Secret Service agents examined the matter before deciding to bring charges against Comey. He emphasized that investigators did more than view the deleted Instagram post and walk away. The social media image showed shells arranged as “86 47,” with Comey presenting it as something he stumbled upon during a beach walk. Critics viewed it as a threatening reference to President Trump.
Blanche pointed to the timeline as central to his argument: Comey posted the image in May 2025, while the indictment came in late April 2026 after an 11-month investigation. He also acknowledged that the phrase “86 47” appears widely online, including on merchandise, and said ordinary uses of the phrase do not automatically lead to charges. Blanche said there are constantly men and women who choose to make threatening statements against President Trump, and those individual examples do not all produce indictments. He said facts, circumstances, and investigations have to take place before prosecutors move forward, and that is exactly what happened in the Comey case.
𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐆 𝐁𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐇𝐄: 𝐖𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝟏𝟏 𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐇𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐎𝐍 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐘, 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐉𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐀𝐍 𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐌 𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐓.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to Fox News: the Comey indictment is not about a single 8647 social media post. The… pic.twitter.com/woEYZXzQgJ
— M.A. Rothman (@MichaelARothman) May 3, 2026
Blanche’s argument boils down to something straightforward: the Department of Justice is drawing a clear line between a political phrase floating around the internet and the specific evidentiary record it says exists against Comey. He is telling the public that evidence remains under seal and that the full picture will emerge at trial.
Notably, some Republicans are also asking to see that fuller picture. Senator Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, appeared on CNN the same day and said a prosecution built solely on a beach photo would fail to persuade him.
Washington Examiner covered Tillis’s reaction and the broader debate over what “86” actually means:
Tillis told CNN that he worked in the restaurant industry and understood “86” as slang tied to removing an item from the menu, refusing service to a patron, or marking something as unavailable. He pointed to common dictionary-style usage of the term as meaning to throw out, get rid of, or discard. His concern was straightforward: a federal prosecution built solely on a picture in the sand would be difficult to justify, especially given the phrase’s long-standing nonviolent uses in restaurants and ordinary speech.
At the same time, Tillis left room for a broader evidentiary record. He said the case would need facts and circumstances beyond the beach picture for him to be satisfied, which put his reaction directly beside Blanche’s public explanation. Skeptics are demanding evidence beyond the image, while the Justice Department’s top public spokesperson for the case is saying that a broader record exists and that investigators spent months developing it. Tillis’s position amounts to a conditional green light rather than outright opposition: if the government has more than the photo, that evidence will have to carry the case.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said on Sunday that he believes posting “86 47” is not a crime in light of the indictment against former FBI Director James Comey, arguing that the term “86” has its roots in the restaurant industry. https://t.co/3YhFdAaTew
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) May 3, 2026
Tillis is right that the phrase “86” has benign restaurant-industry roots. Blanche is right that a single photo, standing alone, would be a thin basis for a federal prosecution. Both men seem to agree on the underlying principle: the strength of this case depends entirely on the sealed evidence that career prosecutors spent 11 months assembling. If that evidence is as substantial as Blanche says it is, the Instagram post becomes one exhibit in a larger file rather than the entire foundation. The public will find out soon enough whether the Department of Justice can deliver.