Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, his Fox News host wife Rachel Campos-Duffy, and their nine children spent seven months filming a five-part reality YouTube series called 'The Great American Road Trip,' set to air ahead of the country's 250th birthday. The show's sponsors, listed publicly on its website, include Boeing, Shell, Toyota, United Airlines, and Royal Caribbean. Each of those companies is regulated by Duffy's Department of Transportation.
CNN reported the project on May 9, 2026. The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed an ethics complaint with the DOT Office of Inspector General on May 11, 2026. CREW president Donald K. Sherman: 'As everyday Americans struggle with the price of gas and raise concerns about airline safety, the Secretary announces that he spent work time going on a road trip that appears to have been funded by the very industries his agency oversees.' Sherman added the conduct violates the standard 'even if a gift isn't technically a conduit gift, government employees should decline acceptance if it would cause a reasonable person to question their impartiality.'
Duffy's defense was that 'zero taxpayer dollars were spent on my family' and that no Duffy family members took salary. The funding was routed through a 501(c)(4) nonprofit called The Great American Road Trip Inc., which lists the regulated industries as its sponsors. The trailer features a kickoff from President Trump in the Oval Office: 'Taking a little trip? A little trip all over?' Trip activities included running up the Rocky Steps in Philadelphia, snowmobiling in Montana, and stopping by 'The Real World: Boston' house where Duffy first appeared on reality TV.
The political timing is the cleanest evidence of how out of touch the project reads to the public it depicts. Gas hit $4.55 per gallon the same week. The U.S.-Iran war was past its second month. Pete Buttigieg, Duffy's Biden-era predecessor: 'brutally out of touch ... regular families can't afford road trips anymore, because Trump and his war put gas prices through the roof.' Trump's approval on the economy at the same time stood at a career-low 31% per CNN/SSRS polling.