OPINION:
Former FBI Chief James B. Comey is a smug, arrogant creature of elitist inside-the-bubble politicking and way, way back, when he pretended his stupid memos from his early meetings with President Trump meant something more than napkin doodles — that they were actually official recordings, to be regarded as sacrosanct — well, that’s when the nation should have recognized him as a Swampy McSwamp Face, and from that day forward, treated him accordingly.
But for years, even as he led the country into an oh-so-costly-on-many-counts investigation of Trump, he was treated as if his hands were squeaky clean of dirty politicking. Comey was above the fray! — as they said.
Live and learn, as they say.
Now he’s indicted for a photo he posted on Instagram of seashells in the sand in the shape of “8647,” code for get rid of Trump; in this day and political age, code for kill the president. This is the second time he’s being indicted by this administration. And the media, just like last time, are rushing to run cover for him.
NBC, for instance, bills the indictment this way: “A fresh attempt to prosecute a figure the president publicly targeted for retribution.”
Yes. Poor Comey. He had no idea, as he said on Instagram after backlash arose over his initial seashell post, that “some folks associate those numbers with violence.” He was, after all, only the FBI director. He was, after all, only in charge of the federal agency that has a national gang intelligence center, called the National Gang Intelligence Center, that sifts through the coded language of gang-bangers and other like-scum to discern the truthful meanings of things like, oh, let’s see, “86.”
Anyhow.
Live and learn, once more.
And what the nation has honestly lived and can learn about Comey is that he’s a disgraced former law enforcement official, unworthy of trust, unrepentant in his arrogance. A Swampy McSwamp Face to the end.
But that doesn’t mean conservatives should take his bait and run with it in a direction that destroys the Constitution.
When Rep. Dan Meuser, Pennsylvania Republican, was asked by The Hill’s Blake Burman to give an opinion on the Justice Department’s indictment against Comey over the seashell message, he said: “Hey, look, you know, when the former FBI director writes in the sand, 86-47, which means, kill the 47th president, that’s concerning. So, see what the intent is? You know something, Blake? There’s something called dangerous speak. Dangerous speak means it’s worse than hate speak. It means it invokes in others the desire to carry out violent acts. And what James Comey put out, yeah, that could certainly be interpreted to mean to carry out violent acts.”
But there isn’t a constitutional reference to dangerous speak, or dangerous speech. Neither is there one for hate speak, or hate speech. These are terms that were fabricated by the left to censor speech they deem as dangerous or hateful, with an end game of stifling political dissent.
Republicans shouldn’t play into that effort, no matter how tempting.
Comey no doubt knew exactly what message he was posting, and exactly what kind of reaction it would bring. He also no doubt knew the kinds of legal arguments his post would generate, and made a calculated determination to test the boundaries of free speech — to hide behind the provisions of the First Amendment. More than that, he no doubt had some good chuckles over the rock and hard place his post put MAGAs, knowing full well they’d agonize and twist over free speech versus pro-Trump. He’s a swamp rat, pure and simple.
But that still doesn’t make it proper for conservatives, for Republicans, for MAGAs to toss around terms like “dangerous speech” and “hate speech” in the context of making a case for criminal conduct.
The Constitution is the standard. More so, the foundation of God-given rights and liberties.
Comey is no innocent. But conservatives need to tread lightly before walking a path frequented by the censorship-loving left. It never ends well for the individual when freedoms are compromised for causes of political expediency.
• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley. Listen to her podcast “Bold and Blunt” by clicking HERE. And never miss her column; subscribe to her newsletter and podcast by clicking HERE. Her latest book, “God-Given Or Bust: Defeating Marxism and Saving America With Biblical Truths,” is available by clicking HERE.
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