The Asbury Park Press is reporting that Randal Pinkett (the fourth — and sole African-American — winner of "The Apprentice") is about to get hired by another old guy with questionable hair. But this time, his boss will be New Jersey governor Jon Corzine. The gig is pretty major. If Randal gets chosen, he'll be Corzine's running mate later this fall.
You might scoff at a reality TV vet being in public office (I can hear my mom now: "What's next? Tila Tequila as secretary of state?"), but if I were a New Jersey resident, I'd probably vote for the guy because of his reality TV past.
Let's review Randal's "Apprentice" journey, shall we? (It as, after all, the ultimate job interview.)
Randal is not a quitter. In the first episode, he found out that his grandma died. Instead of leaving the show to grieve, he stayed so he could help his team come up with a new workout class for Bally Total Fitness. (Yes, that was really a task that season.) Other politicians have come under fire for leaving office for personal reasons (an Alaskan governor with a penchant for winking and fishing comes to mind), but the people of New Jersey could rest easy knowing that even if Randal's entire family were turned into cotton candy by killer klowns, the dude would be all, "I got laws to write and budgets to balance!"
True statistic: Randal holds the record for most project manager wins in "Apprentice" history! So obviously the dude can PowerPoint like a mofo. That seems like it would be a big part of a lieutenant governor's job, right? He is also very good at selling electronics to confused senior citizens. (Yes, that was really a task that season.)
The finale taught us that Randal is a ruthless adversary. Seconds after winning the show, Donald Trump implied he might also hire the runner-up, Rebecca, which caused Randal to blurt out, "This show is called 'The Apprentice,' not 'The Apprenti!'" The lesson to take away here is not that he's good with words (because clearly, Randal just invented a language there). Instead, one should note that Randal will cut his enemies any chance he gets. The dude basically ensured that Rebecca would not get hired by Trump live on television. (In the end, it worked out for her, as Rebecca's now a talking head on CNBC.)
Lastly, Randal emerged from the show relatively unscathed, no small feat considering this was the same season Wyclef Jean rewarded a winning team with a recording session. The resulting track, "The Rubble Man," is an embarrassment to rap music, television and humanity. Randal was on the losing team that week, which now makes him a winner.
Corzine is apparently making the big announcement tomorrow during an event with President Obama, so until then this is all speculation. But boy, if Corzine picks an "Apprentice," we can only hope that it will inspire other able-minded reality stars to follow suit. Sweet P in 2012!