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By Khaleda Rahman
National Correspondent
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The Ford employee who was flipped off by President Donald Trump after he heckled him said he has “no regrets” about calling the president out.
TJ Sabula, a 40-year-old United Auto Workers Local 600 line worker at the Ford F-150 plant in Dearborn, Michigan, told The Washington Post that he was the one who shouted at Trump during his tour. A spokesperson for United Auto Workers confirmed to Newsweek that Sabula had been suspended pending an investigation.
Newsweek has contacted Sabula for further comment via United Auto Workers.
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Video obtained by TMZ shows Trump at the plant while a person out of frame can be heard yelling “pedophile protector” at him. The video shows the president appearing to mouth an expletive in response and then raising his middle finger toward the heckler.
White House director of communications Steven Cheung told Newsweek that Trump gave “an appropriate and unambiguous response” to the worker, who he called a “lunatic.”
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Why It Matters
The Trump administration has faced criticism for the slow and incomplete release of files relating to Jeffrey Epstein, the late convicted sex offender and wealthy financier known for his connections to some of the world’s most powerful people, including Trump.
The delay in the release of the materials has sparked frustration among lawmakers and victims, as well as calls for investigations and potential penalties against the Department of Justice and its leadership.
Trump, who was friends with Epstein for years before they had a falling out, has said he did not know about Epstein's crimes. He has not been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with Epstein. For months, the president repeatedly described the public interest in the case as the result of a Democratic hoax before reversing his position after there was enough support for the measure for it to pass it in the House and signing the Epstein Files Transparency Act into law.
What To Know
Sabula told the Post that he was specifically referring to Trump’s handling of the Epstein case.
“I don’t feel as though fate looks upon you often, and when it does, you better be ready to seize the opportunity,” he said. “And today I think I did that.”
But he expressed concern about the future of his job and said he believes he has been “targeted for political retribution” for “embarrassing Trump in front of his friends.”
He said he identifies as politically independent and never voted for Trump, but has supported other Republicans.
A spokesperson for Ford did not provide details about the disciplinary action Sabula might face, but told TMZ that the company doesn’t “condone anyone saying anything inappropriate like that within our facilities” and ‘When that happens, we have a process to deal with it.”
Newsweek has contacted Ford for comment via an email sent outside regular business hours.
On a Facebook account that appears to belong to Sabula, the profile picture was updated late Tuesday to what seems to be an AI-enhanced screenshot from the video of Trump giving the middle finger. Newsweek has messaged the account for comment.
Meanwhile, a GoFundMe page set up for Sabula late on Tuesday has raised more than $200,000 in donations in the hours since.
“Please help us raise funds for patriot TJ Sabula!! TJ was suspended from his job at the Ford Automotive Company for correctly calling President Donald J Trump a Pedophile Protector!!” Sean Williams, the organizer, wrote on the page.
“Let’s rally and support TJ and help him pay some bills (and force DJT to release the Trump/Epstein Files).”
Newsweek has contacted the organizer for further comment via a contact form on the website and GoFundMe via email.
What People Are Saying
White House communications director Steven Cheung said in a statement to Newsweek: “A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response.”
A Ford spokesperson told TMZ: ”We had a great event today and we’re proud of how our employees represented Ford. We’ve seen the clip you’re referring to. One of our core values is respect and we don’t condone anyone saying anything inappropriate like that within our facilities. When that happens, we have a process to deal with it but we don’t get into specific personnel matters.”
UAW’s Ford Department Director Laura Dickerson said in a statement to Newsweek: “The autoworker at the Dearborn Truck Plant is a proud member of a strong and fighting union—the UAW. He believes in freedom of speech, a principle we wholeheartedly embrace, and we stand with our membership in protecting their voice on the job.
"The UAW will ensure that our member receives the full protection of all negotiated contract language safeguarding his job and his rights as a union member. Workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behavior by anyone—including the president of the United States.”
Representative Rashida Tlaib, a Michigan Democrat, told the Michigan Advance new outlet: “Ford said they can’t talk about it because it’s a human resources issue. In the past, when President [Barack] Obama [went] onto the plant floor and other times people have said some terrible things, they didn’t get fired.”
Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin wrote on X in response to the clip of Trump: “Protecting pedophiles and saying f*** you to American workers.”
What Happens Next
It remains unclear how long Sabula may remain suspended from his role or whether he could face further disciplinary action.
Update 1/14/26, 9:05 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
Update 1/15/26, 7 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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