An angry President Donald Trump flipped his middle finger and delivered an expletive response to a Ford worker during a visit to the automotive company’s plant in Michigan, where he delivered a speech touting his handling of the U.S. economy.
Trump’s perhaps unpresidential reaction came as he toured the assembly line at the Ford River Rouge factory complex in Dearborn, Michigan, on Tuesday.
“Pedophile protector!” yelled the worker at the plant, according to a video that captured the encounter obtained by TMZ.
The worker appeared to reference the rich and powerful child pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, with whom Trump had a close relationship before they had an undisclosed falling out, according to the president. Congress passed a law that Trump was politically pressured to sign, which compels the U.S. Department of Justice to release all files related to Epstein’s federal prosecution by Dec.19. Last week, the Trump administration said it had reviewed only 1% to date.
The White House defended President Trump’s response to the heckler, telling Fox News, “A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the president gave an appropriate and unambiguous response.” According to the Detroit Free Press, the Ford worker, a UAW union member, was suspended.
Donald was just spotted flipping off a Ford worker who yelled "pedophile protector" during Trump’s visit to the factory today.
— The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) January 13, 2026
Whatever you do don't call @realDonaldTrump a #pedophileprotector today. He hates it. pic.twitter.com/kLNjhQX8hu
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) seized on the moment, using it as a metaphor for how Trump feels about Michigan voters in a state that Trump won by just 1% in the 2024 election against former Vice President Kamala Harris.
“Donald Trump is more concerned with his ego than his spiraling economy, where job cuts are skyrocketing, hiring has slowed, unemployment remains high, and prices continue to soar,” said DNC senior advisor Tim Hogan. “As working families struggle to make ends meet in Trump’s economy, the Trump family and their wealthy donors keep getting richer — there’s no bigger ‘F-you’ than that. The real question is: Why does the mere mention of Epstein set him off?”
After his visit to Dearborn, Trump delivered a speech at the Detroit Economic Club, where he touted positive economic data that was mostly inaccurate. Trump claimed that inflation was “stopped” and that consumer prices were down, despite those metrics continuing to climb.
“Donald Trump came back to Detroit, after insulting it the last time he visited, and touted an economy that does not exist while ignoring how he killed jobs, raised prices, and hurt Black families here in Detroit and across Michigan since day one,” said Marseille Allen, Managing Regional Director for Southeast Michigan for the Michigan Democratic Party.
Allen told theGrio, “His agenda is costing working families over a thousand dollars a year and, at the same time, taking away health care from Michigan families who need it most. This is being done by design–Michiganders are suffering while billionaires are getting richer and richer.”
