Overview
- Cellphone video published by TMZ shows the president making the gesture during a Tuesday tour of Ford's Dearborn, Michigan plant.
- The moment came after a man off-camera yelled that he was a "protector of pedophiles," prompting a brief, visible reaction.
- White House communications director Steven Cheung labeled the shouter a "lunatic" and said the president offered an appropriate and unequivocal response.
- Ford did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and the incident occurred outside the view of the traveling press pool.
- The visit was framed as an economy-focused stop with CEO Jim Farley, as scrutiny persists over Epstein-related documents that the Justice Department says remain partly withheld to protect victims' identities.