President Donald Trump has had a rough stretch — the kind where every attempt to project control only seems to invite more blowback. Whether it’s renewed scrutiny over unresolved scandals or confrontations that spiral in real time, Trump has spent the past week battling a wave of backlash tha t refuses to let up. Even political rivals that once tiptoed around him are now responding with the same blunt, no-holds-barred energy he’s long used against them. Gavin Newsom roasts Donald Trump with year-end post. Photo credit: Tayfun Coskun-Anadolu via Getty Images; Joe Raedle / Getty Images That pressure boiled over during Trump’s recent visit to a Ford plant in Dearborn, Michigan, where a tense exchange with a factory worker was caught on camera and quickly went viral. Video of the encounter — first obtained by TMZ — shows a line worker yelling a provocative phrase at the president during the tour. Trump, visibly irritated, fired back, telling the heckler to “f–ck off,” not once but twice, before raising his middle finger and jabbing it aggressively in the man’s direction. ‘Put Her in Her Place!’: Ilhan Omar Lets MAGA Reporter Spiral, Then Drops a Two-Word Dismissal That Went Viral The worker was later identified by The Washington Post as 40-year-old TJ Sabula. Ford suspended him over the incident, but Sabula said he had no regrets. An independent voter, he told the paper he was frustrated by Trump’s repeated refusal to release the full Epstein files and wanted to make his anger heard. Sabula’s combined GoFundMe accounts have raised nearly $1 million. Employee of the month tbh https://t.co/TJrveJ3VSz— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) January 13, 2026 The footage ricocheted across social media, with critics calling the outburst yet another example of conduct unbecoming a sitting president — and proof that Trump’s temper is still one heckler away from boiling over. But the moment didn’t end with the viral clip. Within hours, Democrats seized on the confrontation and turned it into something far more personal. In a post that sent social media into a frenzy, the Democrats’ official accounts dropped a blunt, headline-style message: “DONALD TRUMP IS A PEDOPHILE PROTECTOR.” The post quickly racked up more than 1.3 million views on X, as users shared the message alongside footage of the Ford plant confrontation. Supporters of the move said Democrats were finally matching Trump’s own combative style — fighting fire with fire after years of restraint. View on Threads “NOW: Democrats just posted this,” one Threads user wrote above the graphic. “I have to say, whoever is running their social media has been on their game lately!” another wrote. But not everyone agrees, though, that Democrats and Independents are taking the necessary steps to counter the Trump administration. “This is far from being enough,” Threads user Tom Moanykey asserted. Another added, “A lilttle late but, okay…” with a meme that read “Dear Democratic Party, Take off the f*ing gloves and do whatever the f**k it taks to preserve rule of law. Sincerly, 243 years of America.” View on Threads Another user Adam Kuglin agreed, “Just took some guy at a Ford plant to be brave enough to say it first, I guess.” California Gov. Gavin Newsom, not to be left out, reposted a meme he’s used before showing an AI-generated image of the White House Rose Garden, or what’s left of it, accented with gilded picture frames and even golden serpents intertwined around several pillars, and making fun of Trump’s recent new sign designating it “The Rose Garden,” instead calling it “The Pedo Garden.” “Omfg,” Threads user Legends United Canada declared. View on Threads Another hilariously showed the same White House meme as Newsom’s but instead of using “The Pedo Garden” they used the sign “Release The Epstein Files.” Newsom also reposted a photo showing how Trump made over one of the bathrooms in the White House in marble and gold with a sign “THE SH*TTER” over the toilet and captioned, “Almost right. Need to add boxes of classified documents,” a reference to classified documents being found in a restroom when FBI agents searched Mar-a-Lago in 2022. View on Threads Adding insult to injury, Trump’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame has been vandalized, again. This time four words were written across it: “terrorist, pedophile, traitor, tyrant,” according to reporting by Newsweek. [OC] Donald Trump’s star at the Hollywood Walk Of Fame byu/yourstruly_chris inpics The man who took the photo, who asked to be identified only as Chris, first posted it to Reddit and told Newsweek that he took the photo on Jan. 8. He also talked about why he thinks people keep defacing Trump’s star for his work on the hit TV show “The Apprentice.” “I think the reason behind the defacing is really obvious, with all the stuff about ICE, Venezuela, [Jeffrey] Epstein, and past charges circulating,” he said. ‘OMFG!’: Democrats Just Stopped Playing Nice and Dropped a Ruthless Nickname That’ll Get Under Trump’s Skin — But What Newsom Does Next Takes It to a New Level ...read more read less