Reality show's 'delayed debut latest headache' for embattled Sean Duffy: report
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's five-part reality-style video series, "The Great American Road Trip," has failed to premiere as promised, leaving its fate uncertain.
The series, produced with Duffy's family, was pitched as a patriotic road trip celebrating America's 250th birthday, with footage teased in a trailer showing stops at the Liberty Bell, Boston's Fenway Park, an appearance by Kid Rock and an Oval Office meeting between Duffy's family and President Trump, but June has come and gone without an episode airing, reported Politico.
"The mystery surrounding the delayed debut ... is just the latest headache for the sitting Cabinet member’s unorthodox venture into long-form video, which has faced ethics questions, criticism from Democrats and calls for investigations since being announced as a patriotic celebration of America before its 250th birthday," the outlet reported.
Tori Barnes, who heads the Delaware-incorporated nonprofit that funded the show's production, told Politico the series would be released "in the coming weeks." DOT spokesperson Nate Sizemore similarly said the department was "putting the finishing touches on the production" but declined to give a specific date. DOT has not made Duffy available for an interview about the delay.
The department has said no taxpayer funds went toward Duffy's family involvement and has characterized the semiquincentennial celebration as part of Duffy's official duties, with the road trip framed as supporting that mission. Filming took place intermittently over the past two years, including during last fall's federal shutdown, according to DOT.
The project has drawn scrutiny since it was announced. Its rollout coincided with a months-long rise in gas prices following the U.S. strike on Iran, prompting criticism from some Democrats who called the timing tone-deaf.
The government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington has asked DOT's acting inspector general to investigate Duffy's role in the series, pointing out that sponsors of Barnes' nonprofit include companies DOT regulates, such as Boeing and Toyota. The inspector general's office has not responded to requests for comment.
Duffy also faced pointed questioning from Senate Democrats during a May hearing, including Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), who likened the arrangement to "pay for play." Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, later joined five colleagues in formally requesting an inspector general investigation.
Additional ethical questions have emerged around the nonprofit's structure. Politico has reported that a prospective sponsor withdrew over concerns the arrangement resembled paid access to Duffy, and that two former Duffy congressional staffers sit on the nonprofit's board — one of whom is a spokesperson for the campaign of Duffy's son-in-law, Michael Alfonso, who is running for Duffy's former House seat and appears in the trailer. The other board member has lobbied for a national security firm that recently won a major FAA contract.
DOT maintains that its ethics attorneys cleared Duffy's participation and that neither he nor his family received a salary or royalties from the project.