Tens of thousands of dollars have been raised for an autoworker at a Ford plant in Michigan who was suspended without pay after heckling Donald Trump.
TJ Sabula is said to have called the president a “pedophile protector” as Trump toured the automotive giant’s River Rouge complex on Tuesday.
Trump then appeared to give Sabula the middle finger, according to a video published by celebrity news and gossip site TMZ, which claimed that Trump also yelled obscenities prior to making the gesture.
In an interview with the Washington Post, Sabula said “as far as calling him out” he had “definitely no regrets whatsoever”. But he said he was concerned about his job security after the incident, claiming he had been “targeted for political retribution” and for “embarrassing Trump in front of his friends”.
“I don’t feel as though fate looks upon you often, and when it does, you better be ready to seize the opportunity,” Sabula added in the interview. “And today I think I did that.”
A GoFundMe was created on his behalf to help cover lost income from the suspension. As of Wednesday lunchtime, it had raised more than $150,000, with purported donors including the band the Dropkick Murphys.
“TJ is a father of two young children, husband, and is a proud United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 600 line worker. Funds donated will support TJ and his family to cover expenses during this time of uncertainty,” the GoFundMe campaign states.
Ford did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The White House communications director, Steven Cheung, didn’t confirm whether Trump flashed his middle finger, but argued in a statement to the Guardian 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.
The United Auto Workers criticized Sabula’s suspension, and vowed to fight it.
“The autoworker at the Dearborn Truck Plant is a proud member of a strong and fighting union – the UAW,” said Laura Dickerson, vice-president and director of the Ford department at 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,” she added. “Workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behavior by anyone – including the President of the United States.”
