Kristi Noem, who is in charge of Homeland Security, said on Thursday that the police are checking a social media message. James Comey, who used to be the boss of the FBI, wrote it. She and other Republicans think the message is asking people to be violent against President Donald Trump.

Comey put a photo of shells on Instagram that looked like the numbers "86 47," and he wrote that he saw a "cool shell shape" while walking on the beach.

Some people who worked for President Trump, like Noem, said that Comey was suggesting that someone should kill Mr. Trump. Noem said that the police and Secret Service were checking this threat and would act if needed.

Merriam-Webster dictionary says that "86" is a slang word. It can mean "to throw away" or "to not serve someone." It also says that recently, some people have started using it to mean "to kill," but this meaning is not very common yet.

The post is now gone. Comey later wrote: "I shared a photo of shells I saw on the beach today. I thought they looked like a political message. I didn't know some people connect those numbers to violence."

Comey's message made some people on social media, especially conservatives, very angry. Donald Trump Jr. even said that Comey wanted his father to be killed.

The current head of the FBI, Kash Patel, said he knew about the message. He is talking to the Secret Service and its leader about it.

James Blair, who works at the White House, said this job is happening at a difficult time because Trump is visiting the Middle East.

Blair wrote on X that Jim Comey's words could make terrorists or enemies want to hurt the President while he is visiting the Middle East.

Comey was the head of the FBI from 2013 to 2017. Trump fired him while he was president because the FBI was looking into possible links between Russia and Trump's 2016 campaign. Comey also wrote a popular book about his work called “A Higher Loyalty.”

He writes crime books now and is telling people about his new book, “FDR Drive,” which comes out on Tuesday.