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.
“If this whole case is based on a picture in the sand of a North Carolina beach, it again makes no sense to me,” Tillis said on CNN’s State of the Union. “I used to work in the restaurant industry, and I think ’86’ actually has its roots as a cook. It has its roots at ’86ing’ the menu or ’86ing’ the product.”
Debate over the meaning of the term “86” was renewed after Comey posted an image of seashells on a beach in the formation “86 47” in May 2025. Critics of Comey and supporters of President Donald Trump have argued that the term called for violence against Trump and was a call “to get rid of” him. The term has become popular on the Left, and the Department of Justice released an indictment of Comey, who has denied it was a call to violence, over the incident.
The term “86,” according to Merriam-Webster, means “to throw out,” “to get rid of,” or “to refuse service to,” but had its roots in 1930s restaurant industry slang to mean something was “nixed” or sold out.
“I can’t find any evidence where ’86’ is used to as a call for violence,” Tillis said. “And again, if it’s more than just the picture — it reminds me of the two minutes of testimony against [Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome] Powell — it better be more than just the picture. There have to be facts and circumstances beyond that to convince me.”
Tillis, a Republican, has often disagreed with the Trump administration on its investigations, standing against the inquiry into Powell over the Federal Reserve renovations.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said earlier on Sunday that there was more to the investigation that led to the indictment than just the seashell photo.
“Rest assured that the career assistant United States attorneys in North Carolina, the career FBI agents, the career Secret Service agents that investigated this case didn’t just look at the Instagram post and walk away,” Blanche said.
Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), a frequent critic of the Trump administration and perceived political enemy of Trump, also had choice words for the indictment of Comey in a Sunday morning interview on NBC’s Meet the Press.
BLANCHE SAYS IT WAS ‘NOT JUST’ COMEY’S ’86 47′ SEASHELL POST THAT LED TO INDICTMENT
“I was a prosecutor for almost six years; I never saw such a weak case,” Schiff told NBC’s Kristen Welker. “I think, Kristen, in the future in the Department of Justice, if anyone ever suggests bringing a case this week, they’ll be a new name for it. They’ll be called ‘seashells cases.’”
The Trump DOJ has also investigated Schiff in relation to mortgage fraud allegations, but has not indicted the California senator.