Updated Jan. 13, 2026, 8:33 p.m. ET
President Donald Trump gave the middle finger to a heckler during a tour at a Ford plant in Michigan Jan. 13, mouthing “F you” in a response the White House described as “an appropriate and unambiguous response.”
The gesture and the expletive, reported by CNN and the Washington Post, came during Trump’s visit to Ford’s River Rouge facility in Dearborn, Michigan. Both news outlets cited a video of Trump inside the building.
The entertainment site TMZ first published video capturing the exchange, and the White House did not dispute its authenticity to USA TODAY.
“A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response,” Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a statement to USA TODAY.
Other Ford employees cheered and welcomed the president as he toured the assembly line, taking photos with workers and shaking hands.
Trump has occasionally used profanity in public settings, often in response to criticism, confrontation or to emphasize his point.
The Post reported that a cellphone video captured Trump twice mouthing “f— you” as he pointed to someone calling up to him from the factory floor below. The president subsequently raised his middle finger toward the heckler as he continued walking, the Post said.
CNN quoted Ford’s Executive Director of Corporate Communications David Tovar as saying, “We’ve seen the clip you’re referring to. One of our core values is respect and we don’t condone anyone saying anything inappropriate like that within our facilities. When that happens, we have a process to deal with it but we don’t get into specific personnel matters.”
Tovar said the presidential visit to the plant went generally very well. “We had a great event today and we’re proud of how our employees represented Ford,” Tovar said.
The incident came hours before an interview with “CBS Evening News” anchor Tony Dokoupil, which aired Tuesday night.
Contributing: Reuters
