'8645' means 'kill'

 

'Shorthand for killing someone': Trump campaign disturbed by Gretchen Whitmer displaying '8645' in background for interview

Washington Examiner,

18 October, 2020

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is getting attention for her choice of background features during her appearance Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press.

After including a bubble-text "8645" printout on a table behind her during her interview, the Trump War Room, one of the Trump campaign's verified Twitter accounts, accused the Democratic governor of "encouraging assassination attempts against President Trump."

"Whitmer is encouraging assassination attempts against President Trump just weeks after someone sent a ricin-laced package to the White House," the tweet said, adding, "86 can be shorthand for killing someone."

The term "8645" has made its way around the internet for some time already. An Urban Dictionary definition of the four-number sequence from 2017 defines it as "a sneaky way to illustrate one's support of getting rid of Trump."

In another tweet, the Trump campaign shared screenshots of more extreme definitions of the slang term from Wikipedia and Urban Dictionary, which mention it could be a reference to killing someone.

The first half of the sequence, 86, is a common restaurant industry term meaning to remove something from the menu — typically because the kitchen has run out of it. The second half, 45, is likely a reference to Trump, the 45th president.

The placement of the "8645" does not appear to be an accident. Tori Saylor, Whitmer's deputy digital director, retweeted an account who praised the digits' appearance in her background.

The Washington Examiner reached out to Whitmer's office and Saylor for comment. Saylor denied the request.

The accusations toward Whitmer come less than two weeks after the FBI announced that it had busted an alleged plot by a militia to kidnap the governor. Following that announcement, Whitmer said that Trump's rhetoric was to blame for encouraging violence from domestic terrorists against her and others.

"Just last week, the president of the United States stood before the American people and refused to condemn white supremacists and hate groups, like these two Michigan militia groups. 'Stand back and stand by,' he told them. 'Stand back and stand by.' Hate groups heard the president's words, not as a rebuke, but as a rallying cry, as a call to action," Whitmer said. "When our leaders speak, their words matter. They carry weight. When our leaders meet with, encourage, or fraternize with domestic terrorists, they legitimize their actions, and they are complicit."

"So let me say this loud and clear, hatred, bigotry, and violence have no place in the great state of Michigan. If you break the law or conspire to commit heinous acts of violence against anyone, we will find you, we will hold you accountable, and we will bring you to justice," she continued.

During her appearance on Meet the Press, the Democratic governor criticized Trump again for "inciting this kind of domestic terrorism" after attendees at Trump's rally in Michigan broke out into chants of, "Lock her up," to which he responded, "Lock them all up."

"It's incredibly disturbing that the president of the United States, 10 days after a plot to kidnap, put me on trial, and execute me — 10 days after that was uncovered — the president is at it again and inspiring and incentivizing and inciting this kind of domestic terrorism. It is wrong. It's got to end. It is dangerous," Whitmer said. "We do not tolerate actions like he is giving comfort to. And that's why we all have to be in this together."

Saylor also tweeted about the incident at Saturday's rally. "I am the Governor's Deputy Digital Director," she tweeted. "I see everything that is said about and to her online. Every single time the President does this at a rally, the violent rhetoric towards her immediately escalates on social media. It has to stop. It just has to."