White House Wants to Launch Reality Show Where Immigrants Compete for US Citizenship
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is pushing a reality TV show in which immigrants would compete against each other "for the honor of receiving an expedited path to U.S. citizenship," she writes. Daily Mail.
Photo: Justlight | Dreamstime.com
The idea is outlined in a 35-page project presentation prepared in coordination with the head of the department, Kristi Noem, 53, nicknamed "ICE Barbie" for her love of being on TV.
Noem even proposes using USCIS officials to count the votes in this made-for-TV contest.
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The project was created by Rob Warsoff, a writer and producer known for the reality show Duck Dynasty about a family of hunters from Louisiana, and Millionaire Matchmaker on the Bravo channel.
The proposed show is called The American, after the train that will take contestants around the country competing in regional "cultural" competitions, such as log rolling in Wisconsin.
The project's finale involves the winner taking the oath of office on the steps of the US Capitol.
“Along the way, we will be reminded of what it means to be an American — through the eyes of those who want it most,” Warsoff’s project description reads.
A native of Canada, Warsoff explained, "I'm not affiliated with any political ideology. As an immigrant, I just want to create a show that celebrates the immigration process."
Tricia McLaughlin, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security, confirmed that officials at the agency are reviewing the concept. They spoke to the producer on the phone last week. McLaughlin emphasized that Noem has not yet received a formal briefing on the project.
However, according to DailyMail.com, Noem supports the project.
She and her department have been trying for weeks to get the project greenlit by Netflix or another streaming or cable service, sources said.
Although the attempts have not been successful so far, the department's staff now hope that the project has a real chance.
In his description, Warsoff, 49, expressed confidence that The American would be a commercial hit and "open up huge opportunities for corporate sponsorship."
At the same time, some department employees are concerned about how turning the plight of immigrants into a reality show will be perceived.
Noem is already facing criticism for caring more about her external image than doing her job of protecting the country and fighting illegal immigration.
“When will Commissioner Noem stop prioritizing staged photo ops and media stunts?” one source asked. “The obsession with self-promotion is undermining our ability to carry out President Trump’s deportation orders. We need leadership focused on logistics and results, not financial gain and TV spectacle.”
Warsoff's project would see participants from different countries and backgrounds pre-screened and shipped to Ellis Island in New York City aboard a vessel called The Citizen Ship.
They will be met by a host - "a famous naturalized American born in another country."
Warsoff mentions Colombian-born Sofia Vergara, Canadian Ryan Reynolds and Ukrainian-born Mila Kunis as potential hosts. Each contestant will receive a commemorative gift — a baseball glove signed with their name.
The participants will then travel across the states, meeting “interesting Americans” and learning about the history, culture, and characteristics of each region. Viewers will learn the stories of each future American and learn why they want to live in the United States.
"We will laugh, cry, feel disappointment and joy as we listen to their stories. We will be reminded of how wonderful it is to be an American through the eyes of 12 amazing people who want more than anything what we have," the show's description says.
The immigrants will be divided into teams that will compete with each other. Each episode of the show is expected to last a maximum of an hour.
The participants are provided with different scenes, for example, in San Francisco they will have to go down into a mine for gold.
In Cape Canaveral, Florida, at NASA, they will compete in assembling and launching a rocket. In Hebron, Wisconsin, they will try to stay on logs.
In addition, there will be “knockout competitions” in which teams will be divided into two groups.
Participants will raft the Arkansas River to Colorado, forage for clams in Maine, assemble a 1914 Ford Model T chassis on a Detroit assembly line, and deliver mail on horseback and by ferry from Missouri to Kansas.
While the show does have a winner who will become "our new fellow citizen," Warsoff clarifies that all losers will be pre-screened for citizenship eligibility, so they will have an advantage when applying the regular way.
The prizes will be "American-style," such as 1 million miles from American Airlines, a $10 Starbucks gift card, or a lifetime supply of gas from 000 Station.
The show will end live. The train will arrive at its final stop, Washington, D.C. The winner will walk up to Capitol Hill for the swearing-in ceremony.
As Warsoff's presentation put it, Thunderbird jets will fly overhead and a "high-ranking American politician or judge" will swear in the winner: "There will be tears in everyone's eyes within a 10-mile radius!"
Before the idea for the new reality show, Noem, the 53-year-old department chief, had been criticized for her self-promotion and fondness for staged photos. One particularly wacky photo showed her in an ill-fitting bulletproof vest with an assault rifle accidentally pointed at a Border Patrol officer's head.
In another staged photo shoot, Noem, wearing an expensive watch, drew the ire of liberals by criticizing alleged thugs at a notorious El Salvador prison where the Trump administration has sent some migrants.
DailyMail.com obtained photographs showing Noem hanging similar staged photos around her office walls.
Last month, the Wall Street Journal published a scathing story about her "TV approach to homeland security."
The article notes that just days after taking over as head of the Department of Homeland Security, she joined ICE agents on a dawn raid in New York City and posted about it before the operation was completed, risking derailing it.
“Right now from NYC. I’m in,” Noem wrote on X (formerly Twitter) at 4:43 a.m. on Jan. 28, along with a photo of herself getting into a car wearing an ICE hat.
Prominent conservatives including Meghan McCain and Megyn Kelly have sharply criticized the department's chief for her string of photo ops and said her desire for attention distracts from the fact that the agency she leads has yet to fulfill Trump's key campaign promise: deporting millions of illegal immigrants.
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Within the department itself, some view Noem as merely the face of the agency, rather than its full-fledged leader.
At the first meeting, she introduced herself to staff on stage to the country song "Hot Mama," insiders said.
Since then, she has made a number of decisions that have irritated the agency, ranging from encouraging employees to quit voluntarily to introducing polygraphs to identify disloyal employees and information leaks.
Despite the criticism, the administration's border policies have had some effect, with illegal border crossings falling to their lowest levels in decades.
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