Sean Duffy, the new Transportation Secretary chosen by Donald Trump, is shown in a cringeworthy footage from his past reality TV stint performing a ‘Chippendale’ striptease and even having his nipple licked.
The embarrassing video captures Duffy, now responsible for rebuilding trust in the US airline industry, dancing in just his underwear, socks, and glasses.
Accompanied by seductive saxophone music, the suggestive performance features a young Duffy gyrating nearly nude in front of a window while his fellow participants on MTV’s The Real World: Boston cheer and laugh.
Moments later the future cabinet pick, 53 – a three-time winner of the Lumberjack World Championship – no longer has on his underwear and is clutching just a towel to cover his modesty.
The 1997 segment is accompanied by a sarcastic commentary which says: ‘Another juicy secret about The Real World is Sean’s not a lumberjack, he’s a Chippendale dancer.’
The clip then cuts to a female cast member, Montana McGlynn, lying in bed and fiddling with her shirt.
‘Sean was really pushing the limits. He wanted to see Montana’s mountains. But she wasn’t ready to reveal the peaks,’ the voiceover jokes.
Montana displays her own wild side by licking Duffy’s hairy nipple and slobbering over a sleeping housemate’s ear.
The toe-curling segment wraps with the promise of more immaturity to come, the narrator adding: ‘Of course on this trip I had to ask about everyone’s favorite topic – S-E-X.’
That particular season of The Real World saw the seven contestants working at an after-school program for disadvantaged youngsters in East Boston.
Over the course of the 23 episodes, one housemate was kicked off the job for drinking, while several more got in trouble for arguing in front of the kids.
Duffy, in his mid-20s when the program aired, was introduced as an aspiring conservative lawyer who competed in lumberjack competitions.Â
But he became better known as the quintessential ‘jock-type guy’ who, according to his castmates, ‘liked to party’, and his time on the show was marked by a string of flirtations, wild nights, and some truly eyebrow-raising antics.Â
From flirting with roommates to skipping mentorship responsibilities for romantic escapades, Duffy’s time on the show was anything but tame.Â
One of the most infamous plotlines centered on his fixation with Genesis Moss, a roommate who identified as a lesbian.Â
Duffy pursued her relentlessly, making awkward advances and even propositioning her with gems such as ‘feel my noodle,’ despite her obvious disinterest.Â
In one episode, he skipped a scheduled meeting with at-risk children he was mentoring to hook up with a ‘local girl.’Â
His reality TV history is no secret but it may seem jarring to modern audiences, given that he’s heading up efforts to ensure US aviation safety in the wake of Wednesday’s Reagan Airport disaster.
The mid-air collision between an American Eagle passenger jet and a military Blackhawk helicopter happened just a day after Duffy was sworn in.
Thrust into the spotlight, he wasted no time in echoing President Trump’s suspicions that the Biden administration’s obsession for DEI – diversity, equity and inclusion – played a role in the loss of 67 lives.
‘They were focused on changing the name from ‘cockpit’ to ‘flight deck’ or ‘notice to airmen’ they wanted to change it to ‘notice to air mission,’ Duffy told host Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union.
‘They focused on EVs and sustainability and racist roads, things that don’t matter in regards to safety.’
Asked If the felt DEI was the primary cause of the Flight 5342 disaster, Duffy replied: ‘I think the better question is, am I going to guarantee the American people, that only the best and the brightest serve in this incredibly important body at the Department of Transportation, that they’re driven by safety and DEI doesn’t matter.’
Duffy, a father-of-nine whose wife Rachel Campos appeared in The Real World: San Francisco, received bipartisan support in the Senate, which voted 77-22 in his favor.
‘Sean has been a tremendous and well-liked public servant,’ Trump said of the former Fox host when announcing his nomination to replace Pete Buttigieg as secretary of the Department of Transportation.
His appointment comes at a critical time for a department already dealing with multiple infrastructure challenges, including the damage wrought by hurricanes Helene and Milton and the deadly California wildfires.
Having served five terms in the House before, Duffy knows his way around Washington and can be expected to rely on his old connections from Congress to help him smoothly transition into leadership.
He is the second former Fox News star to be placed in a cabinet position after Pete Hegseth was named Defense Secretary.
