You can take the man out of “The Apprentice,” but you can’t take “The Apprentice” out of the man.
President Donald Trump unveiled his nominee for the Supreme Court on Tuesday night, and like so much about his campaign and now his administration, the announcement had some of the unreal aspects of reality TV.
There were reports that he had summoned both of the two finalists to Washington: an elimination contest! He had programmed the big reveal for prime time. No slow leak of the news followed by its anti-climactic confirmation. No muted moment in the Rose Garden in the middle of the day.
Instead, an orchestrated drumroll and then a television appearance at the same hour – 8 p.m. Eastern – when “The Apprentice” sometimes used to begin. Just like old times, but with “you’re fired” replaced by “you’re hired” (pending Senate confirmation).
The pick was Neil Gorsuch, a federal appeals court judge in Denver who has the blessing of conservatives and a resume of extraordinary accomplishment. When he stepped to the microphone, he showed none of Trump’s proud irreverence, none of Trump’s self-conscious flashiness.