White House Defends Trump Flipping the Bird at Ford Plant Heckler: 'Appropriate and Unambiguous Response'
If the adage that actions speak louder than words is true, President Donald Trump was positively bellowing as he shared a universally understood gesture of contempt with a heckler while touring a Ford plant.
Trump was visiting a Ford factory in Dearborn, Michigan, on Tuesday before giving a speech on the economy, as noted by NBC News.
The Washington Post said that Trump’s ire was stoked by a heckler who called Trump a “pedophile protector,” possibly referencing the White House’s handling of the government files on Jeffrey Epstein.
As he walked through the factory for the car manufacturer, whose name begins with the letter F, Trump appeared to mouth a phrase beginning with that same letter.
The Washington Post and NBC News each agreed the phrase was the convention “f*ck you,” shared by antagonists all over the globe.
🚨 LMFAO, HE REALLY DID IT! A leftist in Michigan yelled at President Trump “p*dophile protector” so Trump stuck up the middle finger at him
He appears to mouth “f*** you” at the degenerate as well
I so voted for this 😂😂
TRUMP UNLEASHED! pic.twitter.com/9J4COJiWzM
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 13, 2026
Video posted to X showed Trump pointing down at someone from a walkway, presumably the heckler.
Just before Trump vanished, the president concluded the exchange with an extended middle finger.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung offered a simple explanation for the incident, according to NBC News.
“A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response,” his statement said.
🚨 JUST IN: White House says it was appropriate for President Trump to FLIP OFF a heckler in Detroit who yelled “p*dophile protector”
“A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response.”
MY PRESIDENT! pic.twitter.com/KwlwkDVtxx
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 13, 2026
Ford representative David Tovar also issued a statement.
“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,” Ford’s statement said.
The Washington Post reported that Ford worker TJ Sabula, 40, said he shouted at Trump.
Trump flips the bird to a heckler!!!
THATS MY PRESIDENT 👍😂😂😂pic.twitter.com/o0eTqIqKZz— Carl Higbie (@CarlHigbie) January 13, 2026
He told the outlet that he has been suspended while the company investigates the incident, but does not regret what he did.
“I don’t feel as though fate looks upon you often, and when it does, you better be ready to seize the opportunity,” Sabula said. “And today I think I did that.”
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