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An Obama-appointed federal judge temporarily blocked the National Park Service from removing an anti-Trump “86 47” flag near the National Mall, delivering a win to a progressive activist group and drawing sharp pushback from President Donald Trump’s Department of the Interior.
“This opinion is from an Obama-appointed judge. In what world have we lost all decency, to demand that any threat against the President be taken very seriously,” said a DOI spokesperson to Fox News Digital. “While the Department shall and does comply with the Court’s orders, this type of behavior should not be tolerated.”
Progressive group Accountability Now USA flew the flag near the National Mall alleging that the National Park Service violated their First Amendment rights by threatening to revoke their permit. U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss in Washington, D.C., granted a temporary restraining order Monday allowing the flag to remain displayed for now.
The dispute comes amid heightened administration scrutiny of “86 47” messages after the Department of Justice charged former FBI Director James Comey over a similar message.
CALIFORNIA BEACH ‘RESIST!’ PROTEST PUSHES ‘KINDNESS’ WHILE CALLING TO ‘86 47’ IN ANTI-TRUMP MESSAGE
A D.C. district judge permits activists to fly “86 47” flag near the National Mall. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
Comey was charged with two federal counts over an Instagram post last year showing seashells arranged to read “86 47,” and faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
The administration has interpreted the number “86” as a political threat, pointing to its common use in the restaurant industry to mean removing or refusing service and its perceived connection to Trump as the 47th president.
Comey has denied he intended any violent threat toward Trump, explaining he understood it meant leave or ditch.
LEGAL EXPERTS WARN COMEY ‘8647’ INDICTMENT FACES FIRST AMENDMENT HURDLES
James Comey is facing…
