Ford worker who heckled Trump draws support of auto union
The worker said he had “definitely no regrets” about shouting at Trump as the president toured a Ford truck factory this week.
The United Auto Workers union has thrown its support behind a Ford Motor Co. factory worker who was suspended for heckling President Donald Trump during a plant tour in Michigan.
“The autoworker at the Dearborn Truck Plant is a proud member of a strong and fighting union-the UAW,” Laura Dickerson, the UAW vice president over the union’s Ford Department, said in a statement Wednesday. “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 worker, TJ Sabula, told the Washington Post he had “definitely no regrets” about shouting at Trump as the president toured Ford’s F-150 pickup truck factory in Dearborn, Michigan, on Tuesday. In a video of the incident, a person could be heard shouting “pedophile protector,” to which the president responded with an expletive and by holding up his middle finger.
“Workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behavior by anyone — including the President of the United States,” Dickerson said. “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.”
White House spokesman Steven Cheung defended the president’s reaction to the heckler.
“A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response,” Cheung said in a statement.
Sabula told the Post he had been suspended by Ford, pending an investigation. The automaker declined to confirm the suspension, but condemned the heckling.
“One of our core values is respect and we don’t condone anyone saying anything inappropriate like that within our facilities,” Ford said in a statement. “When that happens, we have a process to deal with it but we don’t get into specific personnel matters.”
Following the suspension, supporters started a GoFundMe campaign titled “TJ Sabula is a patriot!!” to raise money for the worker. As of midday Wednesday, about 14,700 donations had been made totaling more than $325,000.