Tens of thousands of dollars have been raised for a Ford autoworker in Michigan who was suspended without pay after heckling Donald Trump during a plant tour. The worker, TJ Sabula, is reported to have called the president a “pedophile protector” as Trump visited the company's River Rouge complex on Tuesday.
Video published by TMZ appears to show Trump giving Sabula the middle finger, with the outlet claiming the president also yelled obscenities before making the gesture. In an interview with the Washington Post, Sabula said he had “definitely no regrets whatsoever” about confronting the president, but expressed concern about his job security, alleging he had been “targeted for political retribution” and for “embarrassing Trump in front of his friends”.
Sabula added: “I don’t feel as though fate looks upon you often, and when it does, you better be ready to seize the opportunity. And today I think I did that.” A GoFundMe page was set up to cover his lost income, and by Wednesday lunchtime it had raised more than $150,000, with donors reportedly including the band the Dropkick Murphys.
The fundraising campaign describes Sabula as a father of two young children, a husband, and a proud United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 600 line worker. It says funds will support him and his family during this period of uncertainty. The UAW has criticised the suspension and vowed to fight it.
Laura Dickerson, vice-president and director of the Ford department at the UAW, said: “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.” She added that workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behaviour by anyone, including the president.
Ford did not respond to requests for comment. White House communications director Steven Cheung did not confirm whether Trump flashed his middle finger, but said in a statement that the president had given an “appropriate and unambiguous response” when “a lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage”. Trump had been touring the Ford complex before delivering a speech at the Detroit Economic Club.
