Duffy, his wife, and nine children took the road trip across the country as part of a documentary that will air this summer during celebrations for America's 250th birthday.
The film is called "The Great American Road Trip" and it's produced by a nonprofit of the same name.
"The motto is: to love America is to see America", Duffy said in the trailer, which is out now. "It's one of the most powerful ways to understand this vast, beautiful, complicated place we call home."
The trailer and documentary have been hit with criticism. Some of the criticism says that the idea of the Transportation Secretary taking such a trip takes him away from his duties for too long, others suggest that the timing is especially bad given skyrocketing fuel prices due to the war in Iran.
Finally, some folks are worried that Duffy used taxpayer dollars to pay for a family vacation.
Those who worked on the film said the nonprofit -- named The Great American Road Trip, Inc. -- covered the costs. The sponsor list for the nonprofit includes Toyota, Boeing, Shell, and United Airlines.
Those companies are all regulated by the Department of Transportation.
What TorqueNews Found This Means For Toyota
A nonprofit government watchdog group called Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington (CREW) accused Duffy for violating federal travel and gift rules.
"You have everyday Americans who are struggling with the price of gas, struggling with the costs of everyday items, and you have the cabinet secretary announcing that he is going on a trip with his entire family, which appears to have been funded by the industries that his department is overseeing," CREW president Donald Sherman told NPR.
Here's where Toyota comes in. As a major car company, Toyota, which also owns the Lexus luxury brand, is regulated by the Department of Transportation. One could argue that by paying a sponsorship that helped cover the production costs of the film, Toyota could be working to make sure regulators are friendlier to its interests in the future. Toyota also gets its logo and one of its vehicles featured prominently in the trailer, which means it likely features heavily in the final film.
It doesn't take a lot to see that Toyota is basically using the film as another avenue for marketing and advertising.
To be clear, this author isn't taking a shot at Toyota -- it's only natural that any company would do what it could to advocate for its own interests. Any automaker, not just Toyota, would take the opportunity to work towards friendlier regulations. Any automaker, not just Toyota, would love to have the chance to advertise in a documentary that's likely to draw a lot of eyeballs.
The question is whether Duffy broke any rules. Is it corrupt for Duffy to use a production company that covers the film's costs via sponsorships from companies that the department Duffy heads regulates -- and may have to investigate?
Indeed, Toyota has been fined in the recent past for its handling of product recalls.
From NPR: "One has to wonder whether the decision to prominently feature Toyota in this project is because Toyota paid for a sponsorship or because the secretary actually thinks that promoting Toyota is in the best interest of the American public, American automakers and the people that work for that industry," he said.
"[The nonprofit] has become a vehicle for providing access, to its sponsors, to a cabinet secretary, which should make everyday Americans who cannot pay for similar access really concerned," Sherman also told NPR.
To be clear, there's apparently no reported evidence of Toyota or any other company involved gaining any special favors, and it's unclear if any laws have been broken, whether by the sponsors, the production company, or Duffy and his family. But the optics might not good, especially depending on one's personal politics.
We'll keep an eye on this story and update as necessary.
About The Author
Tim Healey is an experienced automotive writer and editor from Chicago. He has covered automotive news at Consumer Guide Automotive, Web2Carz, AutoGuide, and was the managing editor at The Truth About Cars. Tim is a member of the Midwest Automotive Media Association. You can find him on Facebook, X/Twitter, and on LinkedIn.
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