There has been a mixed reaction since a Ford employee in Michigan called Trump a pedophile protector earlier this week. During Trump’s visit to the Ford truck factory in Dearborn, an employee heckled him and called himand made reference to the Epstein files. In response, Trump flipped off the worker and told him, “[expletive] you,” resulting in the worker, named TJ Sabula, being suspended. Trump supporters might have thought that Sabula’s life would be ruined, but the complete opposite happened.
To show support for the Michigan Ford employee, two GoFundMe campaigns have been set up to raise money for him and help him during his suspension. One of these fundraisers had in the description that, “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.” So far, that one managed to raise $330,055. Another GoFundMe raised for the worker called him a patriot as its description read: “TJ was suspended from his job at the Ford Automotive Company for correctly calling President Donald J Trump a Pedophile Protector.” This one managed to raise $480,920. The two of these fundraisers combined mean that the internet raised over $800K for the worker.
While both fundraisers could have raised even more money, Sabula closed the donations and asked people to donate to other causes. “We greatly appreciate the outpouring of support! At this time we are closing donations to this campaign and encourage you to look for other causes and organizations to support. We appreciate every single donation, comment, share, and sign of support!” he wrote.
People Reacting to Money Being Raised for the Michigan Ford Employee
Just as the original situation stirred a mixed reaction, so too has the GoFundMe campaign. Some appear to believe he doesn’t deserve a dime, while other — the majority, seemingly — are in support of the fundraisers. One person wrote, “I donated $100.” Another person replied, “then yall will go protest next day for inflation and poverty or whatever.” Others said that they were going to boycott Ford for suspending the worker, including one person who wrote, “So he still got paid and ford lost a repeat customer (me).” Another person mocked Trump and said, “That was the tiniest middle finger I’ve ever seen.” Someone else added, “Imagine the outrage from Republicans if Biden flipped off a heckler. They’d be losing their minds.”
There were also a handful of commenters who were unhappy that the Michigan man was set to receive money for calling out Trump. One person reacted in disbelief, saying “He disrespected a President!!!” That prompted another user to push back with “And we have the freedom of speech?” Someone else added, “Really ! show me the last time Trump showed respect for anyone.”
Another TikTok user chimed in with a more dismissive take, writing, “How ridiculous. People flip one another off in road rage. Trump is human too. People get frustrated. People stupidly throw money away, I swear.”
Despite the criticism, plenty of others joked that they wished the same thing would happen to them so they could cash in as well. If Sabula had any doubts at the start, they likely vanished once the donations started rolling in.
