Overview
- A federal judge in North Carolina, who conditionally agreed Thursday to cancel James Comey’s Greenville hearing, said the change takes effect if he files a waiver by Friday after he already appeared before a judge in Virginia.
- Comey faces two federal charges over a photo of seashells arranged as “86 47,” which prosecutors say threatened President Donald Trump, while Comey says he saw it as a political message and deleted it once some read it as violent.
- Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche says the indictment stems from an 11‑month investigation with evidence beyond the Instagram post, a stance that drew criticism from former DOJ officials who say public hints about undisclosed evidence flout department norms.
- First Amendment scholars say the post is likely protected political hyperbole because “86” commonly means to get rid of something, and Merriam‑Webster notes the “to kill” sense is recent and sparsely used, which makes proving a “true threat” especially hard.
- The case lands as the White House presses ABC over a Jimmy Kimmel joke and the FCC launches an early review of ABC licenses, with right‑leaning outlets split between touting possible hidden evidence and warning that the prosecution chills dissent.