President Donald Trump may be in the WWE Hall of Fame, but at least one legendary wrestling figure certainly isn’t a fan. On Wednesday, professional wrestling manager Jim Cornette made a $5,000 donation to the GoFundMe campaign started for the Ford factory worker who heckled Trump.
Trump was captured on video Tuesday saying “f*** you” and flipping off a Ford worker who yelled “pedophile protector” at him. The employee was later identified as 40-year-old TJ Sabula, who admitted to yelling at the president. Sabula was suspended from his job after the incident.
“If anyone knows TJ Sabula I have a thank-you, a handshake and a check for $5,000 ready for him” Cornette wrote on social media Wednesday morning, hours after the story made headlines.
Cornette eventually found his way to the crowdfunding campaign for Sabula where he and his wife Stacey proceeded to make a $5,000 donation. The donation is currently listed as the largest of the campaign, alongside another $5,000 donation. Cornette has since reposted the link to campaign and other posts related to Sabula.
Cornette spent the vast majority of his career as a manager where he worked as heel or “bad guy.” He also spent time as an announcer and ran his own promotion, Smoky Mountain Wrestling, based out of Knoxville, Tennessee from 1991 to 1995. While he’s not part of the WWE Hall of Fame, he was inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2012.
The incident involving Sabula took place Tuesday while Trump was touring the Ford River Rouge plant in Dearborn. Following the ordeal, White House communications director Steven Cheung confirmed Trump reacted to Sabula’s comments.
“A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response,” Cheung said.
Ford acknowledged the incident, but declined to elaborate on specific employee matters. United Auto Workers Vice President and Director of the Ford Department Laura Dickerson responded to Sabula’s suspension in a statement.
“The autoworker at the Dearborn Truck Plant is a proud member of a strong and fighting union—the UAW,” Dickerson said. “He believes in freedom of speech, a principle we wholeheartedly embrace, and we stand with our membership in protecting their voice on the job.
“The UAW will ensure that our member receives the full protection of all negotiated contract language safeguarding his job and his rights as a union member.
“Workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behavior by anyone—including the President of the United States.”
As of 4:15 p.m. Wednesday, a pair of fundraisers benefitting Sabula had totaled more than $720,000.
