UAW worker yells at Trump, suspended by Ford
President responds with 'f*** you' during visit to Dearborn factory
A UAW member who works at the Ford factory that builds the bestselling F-150 pickup truck in Dearborn, Mich., has been suspended from his job by Ford Motor Co. after yelling at President Donald Trump during his visit on Tuesday afternoon, UAW sources familiar with the situation confirmed to Shifting Gears.
“The ‘fired’ rumors are not accurate. They have taken disciplinary action and suspended the worker,” a top UAW source said.
The labor union has confirmed that the member heckled the president while he toured the River Rouge Complex with CEO Jim Farley, Ford executive chair Bill Ford Jr., UAW plant manager Corey Williams and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
At the time of the incident, the president was on a platform above the workers and the worker shouted from the floor below. He allegedly yelled in reference to the Epstein controversy and Trump being a “pedophile protecter.”
Upon review of the video, Trump appears to respond by saying “f*** you” repeatedly.
The worker is a member of the influential UAW Local 600 in Dearborn.
The UAW, which represents approximately 140,000 autoworkers, is not planning to make any official comment as the situation is still unfolding, sources said.
Jessica Enoch, Ford spokeswoman, told Shifting Gears late Tuesday, “We had a great event today and we’re proud of how our employees represented Ford. We’ve seen the (vide) 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.”
Enoch declined to comment further.
‘Pedophile protector’ allegation
Meanwhile, TMZ reported on Tuesday afternoon, “Donald Trump turned into Donald Grump during a Tuesday appearance at a Ford plant ... launching into an F-bomb attack on a worker who appeared to yell ‘pedophile protector’ at the Prez.”
The story said, “ ... The angry worker is obviously referencing Trump's association with late convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein ... and the Dept. of Justice's slow release of the infamous Epstein Files. In true presidential fashion, Trump responds by yelling down at the guy ... pretty clearly saying ‘F*** you’ before flipping him the bald eagle.”
White House responds to use of profanity
After the initial TMZ report, at 2:45 p.m. (PT), the site added, “White House Communications Director Steven Cheung tells TMZ ... ‘A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response.’”
Cheung confirmed the video’s authenticity and provided the same response to The Washington Post.
Video of the Ford factory incident has been shared on various social media sites.
The Washington Post wrote on X to its 19.2 million followers on Tuesday, “President Trump made an obscene gesture with his middle finger and mouthed ‘f--- you’ twice to a person who can be heard yelling ‘pedophile protector’ at him during a tour of a Ford factory in Michigan — a reaction the White House said was ‘appropriate.’”
The Lincoln Project, a group of current and former Republicans who oppose President Trump, posted the video clip on X to its 2.8 million followers and said, “… Whatever you do don’t call @realDonaldTrump a #pedophileprotector today. He hates it.”
A Facebook post by a UAW member posted on Tuesday included an image of Trump walking on the factory platform and said, “Well fun day at work for me today. Sometimes when you speak truth to power it pisses them the f*** off … needless to say, I don't think I’m getting invited to the new ballroom.”
Shifting Gears reached out to the owner of the Facebook page seeking comment.
Then The Washington Post did confirm the author of the Facebook Post about speaking truth to power — TJ Sabula — was the suspended worker. The Post wrote, “He says he has ‘definitely no regrets whatsoever,’ adding: ‘I don’t feel as though fate looks upon you often, and when it does, you better be ready to seize the opportunity.’”
The White House posted on X to its 3.4 million followers after the visit, “AMERICAN PROUD” with a photo of Trump signing a car part under a Ford banner. The White House post said, “President Donald J. Trump tours a Ford factory in Michigan, highlighting investments in domestic manufacturing and the REVIVAL of the American auto industry.”
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From seeing parts of the Trump speech at Ford, the words that the worker said were coherent and concise. Those two adjectives could never describe Donald's speech delivery. Tx Phoebe for information from your home beat.
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