(Photo
by
Terry
Wyatt/Getty
Images)
I
am
an
avowed
fan
of
the
MTV/Bunim
Murray
reality
TV
universe.
The
Real
World
created
a
genre
out
of
whole
cloth,
and
Road
Rules
built
on
the
brand.
But
it’s
The
Challenge
—
currently
in
its
40th
season
—
that
cemented
its
place
in
the
zeitgeist
with
returning
“characters”
and
relationships
that
evolve
over
the
course
of
years.
And
that
formula
has
created
some
stars
—
some
have
taken
their
fame
to
other
reality
TV
franchises,
some
have
charted
a
course
in
comedy,
others
are
actors
in
film
and
TV.
There
are
models,
wrestlers,
and
TV
hosts
in
The
Challenge
alumni
ranks.
But
if
you
thought
the
strangest
2024
development
for
a
Challenge
alum
was
Theo
Von
playing
presidential
kingmaker,
I
have
some
bad
news
for
you.
Last
night,
Donald
Trump
selected
his
pick
for
Transportation
Secretary.
And,
as
you
probably
guessed
from
the
intro,
he
tapped
a
former
MTV
star.
Sean
Duffy
first
came
into
the
public
eye
during
the
sixth
season
of
The
Real
World,
the
Boston
edition.
He
was
a
competitive
lumberjack
who
clashed
with
some
of
his
more
liberal
roommates.
After
his
season
ended,
Duffy
went
on
to
compete
on
The
Challenge
where
he
met
his
future
wife,
star
of
the
San
Francisco
RW
season,
Rachael
Campos.
Duffy
and
Campos
went
on
to
have
nine
children
and
quickly
got
on
the
express
train
to
right-wing
stardom.
Campos
tried
her
hand
as
the
conservative
on
The
View
before
finding
a
home
on
Fox
News.
Duffy
got
that
law
degree
he’d
been
eyeing
(from
William
Mitchell
College
of
Law)
before
starting
his
career
as
a
prosecutor.
He
then
turned
to
politics
as
a
member
of
the
House
of
Representatives,
representing
Wisconsin’s
7th
Congressional
District.
He
left
that
role
to
spend
time
with
his
family
after
learning
his
ninth
child
had
health
complications.
From
there,
Duffy
returned
to
TV
as
a
host
on
Fox
Business.
All
of
which
brings
us
to
last
night’s
announcement,
giving
Duffy
the
nod
as
the
head
of
Transportation.
Listen,
we
live
in
a
world
where
Matt
Gaetz
—
a
man
—
is
being
put
up
at
Attorney
General.
And
a
Fox
News
host
got
the
nod
as
Secretary
of
Defense.
A
reality
TV
star
in
the
Cabinet?
Seems
entirely
on
brand
for
Trump
2.0.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon
@[email protected].