Gavin Newsom sums up Trump’s middle finger meltdown in three words
California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) shares his thoughts on President Donald Trump’s obscene gesture toward a Michigan auto worker.
On Tuesday, Trump was seen joking with an employee at a Ford plant in Dearborn, Michigan, after the worker called him a “pedophile protector,” possibly alluding to the president’s efforts to prevent the release of Justice Department files on deceased sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
The headline-making exchange, which was caught on a bystander’s camera, continued with Trump delivering an F-bomb.
Later that day, Newsom shared footage of TMZ’s X moment as he attacked the president.
“Did you touch a nerve?” he wrote.
In his press office account, Newsom offered a more cautious view, writing: “Why is the president attacking a fellow American?”
The White House confirmed the authenticity of the video and called Trump’s comments “appropriate.”
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“A lunatic was yelling profanities wildly in a fit of all-out rage, and the president gave an appropriate and unequivocal response,” White House spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement.
The Washington Post identified the questioner as TJ Sabula, who says he is politically independent and has voted Republican in the past, despite not supporting Trump. The 40-year-old has been suspended from work pending an investigation.
Although Sabula told the outlet that he believes he has been “the target of political retaliation” in the wake of the incident, he “definitely has no regrets at all” about denouncing Trump.
“I don’t feel like fate looks at you often, and when it does, you better be ready to take advantage of the opportunity,” he said. “And today I think I did.”
The United Auto Workers union issued a statement to Reuters and other media in support of Sabula, noting that they “will ensure our member receives the full protection of all negotiated contract language that safeguards his job and rights as a union member.”
“Workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behavior from anyone, including the President of the United States,” the statement continued.
As of Wednesday afternoon, two online campaigns to raise money for Sabula during his suspension have together raised more than $600,000.