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Pete Buttigieg slams Trump over reported Ford factory gesture to autoworkers
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Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg criticized President Trump Wednesday following reports that the president mouthed an expletive and made an obscene gesture toward a heckler during a visit to a Ford factory in Michigan.
Speaking at the Detroit Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan, Buttigieg said the reported incident reflected what he described as a broader pattern in Trump’s treatment of autoworkers.
“I don’t know much about the [human resources] side of it,” Buttigieg said. “What I know is that President Trump did literally what I believe he’s been doing figuratively for some time, which is give autoworkers the finger.”
Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks at a Mobility Global Forum at the 2026 Detroit Auto Show on Jan. 14, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Buttigieg went on to accuse Trump of being a “union buster” and blamed him for manufacturing job losses nationwide.
“Look, he’s been a union buster,” Buttigieg said. “He has presided over the loss of manufacturing jobs in this country. And then when somebody sees someone as powerful as him come into their workplace, he gives them the old ‘FU.’”
Buttigieg added, “In some ways, it’s just in character for him to be that way. And obviously my sympathies are with the worker and not the president.”
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President Donald Trump (C) walks with Executive chair of Ford Motor Company Bill Ford Jr. (L), and CEO of Ford Motor Company Jim Farley as they tour the Ford River Rouge Complex on Jan. 13, 2026, in Dearborn, Michigan. (Getty Images / Getty Images)
The comments followed a video, first published by TMZ, that appears to show Trump mouthing an expletive and making an obscene gesture toward a heckler during a visit Tuesday to the Ford River Rouge complex in Dearborn, Michigan.
In the footage, Trump briefly turns toward someone shouting from the crowd and appears to mouth the words “f— you” twice while raising his middle finger before continuing to walk.
TMZ reported that the exchange followed a heckler shouting an insult at the president off camera. The outlet described Trump’s reaction as “flipping the bird” while continuing to walk away.
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Ford signage at a dealership in Richmond, California, on June 21, 2024. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
White House communications director Steven Cheung defended the president’s reaction, telling Fox News Digital, “A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response.”
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The autoworker who was suspended has reportedly said he has “no regrets.”
The White House and Pete Buttigieg could not immediately be reached for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Skye Baehr and Landon Mion contributed to this report.
