A Ford Motor Company employee has received nearly $1 million in donations following his suspension after an altercation with former U.S. President Donald Trump. The incident involved an alleged obscene gesture from the former president.
Two separate GoFundMe campaigns have collectively raised over $800,000 from approximately 35,000 donors for TJ Saburola, the Ford worker reportedly suspended after the confrontation with Trump during the latter’s visit to a Michigan auto plant on Tuesday.
A widely circulated video purportedly shows the former President raising his middle finger and allegedly directing profanities at the worker. The incident reportedly occurred after the employee criticized Trump’s handling of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
According to reports, the White House responded to inquiries about the incident, characterizing the worker as ‘screaming profanities in a violent outburst’ and stating that the President offered a ‘fitting and unambiguous response.’
The video allegedly shows Trump touring a Ford F-150 assembly facility in Dearborn when a worker shouted ‘protector of child abusers’ as the former President stood on an elevated walkway. Trump reportedly turned towards the individual and responded with expletives before making the aforementioned gesture as he walked away.
Ford CEO Bill Ford reportedly described the incident as unfortunate and expressed his embarrassment in a statement to the media during a subsequent event. He said, ‘The incident took only six seconds out of a full hour-long tour. The tour went very well. I think he enjoyed it very much, and we enjoyed it, too.’
Trump has occasionally used profanity in public settings, often in response to criticism or heckling, or to emphasize a point. His handling of sensitive records related to Epstein, who died by suicide in prison in 2019, has faced scrutiny.
Note: This is a developing story, and DZWatch will continue to provide updates as they become available.
