Donald Trump Disclosed That He Wished for Ivanka to Take His Place on ‘The Apprentice’

When Donald Trump stepped away from his commanding role in the boardroom of his enduring NBC reality series The Apprentice in 2015 to pursue the presidency of the United States, he already had a successor in mind. According to Page Six, he aimed to maintain The Apprentice within the family even after his departure.

In the newly released book Apprentice in Wonderland, Ramin Setoodeh reflects on Donald's era on the television screen before his pivotal choice to enter the presidential race. The book also delves into the politician's choice for his potential replacement on the longstanding NBC program.

According to the book, Donald said, “I said, ‘The best person to hire would be Ivanka Trump.’ I didn’t press it. But I felt Ivanka would have been by far the best person you could hire.” In addition to having his daughter lead the way, Donald envisioned his sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. stepping in as boardroom advisors on the reality competition series. In the book, Eric said, “It was going to be the three of us. There were talks for a little while about it.” During the show's later seasons, the children became regular fixtures, collaborating with their renowned father on the series.

Yet, as per Variety, Donald also discussed in the book his suggestion of having his daughter take his place on the show. He said, “NBC didn’t like it, because it became like a family thing. But I said, ‘There’s nobody you’re going to hire that will come even close to Ivanka.’ They said, ‘Huh…’ And then they came back with Arnold Schwarzenegger.” Schwarzenegger stepped in to replace Donald as the host of The New Celebrity Apprentice, which debuted in January 2017, just before Donald's inauguration. However, the show was canceled after just one season due to disappointing ratings.

Moreover, instead of seeking opportunities in the entertainment industry elsewhere, Donald's adult children chose to accompany him on the campaign trail. Eric said, “I think it’s pretty hard to say we’re going to run with reality TV in a time when you’re talking about ending nuclear proliferation around the world. I’m not sure the two could have worked in tandem.”

In the aftermath of the show's cancellation, the then-president turned to Twitter to criticize the Terminator star for allegedly ruining the once-thriving series. Schwarzenegger, however, later fired back at Donald, implying that the show's downfall was a result of its association with the controversial politician.

The book, Apprentice in Wonderland: How Donald Trump and Mark Burnett Took America Through the Looking Glass is set to be out on June 18 this year. Meanwhile, The Apprentice featured a new group of contestants each season competing for a job in one of the host's organizations. Donald was fired from NBC during his campaign after he made racist remarks about Mexican immigrants, according to the New York Post.

Additionally, according to PEOPLE, Schwarzenegger earlier said in the interview, "With Trump being involved in the show people have a bad taste and don’t want to participate as a spectator or as a sponsor or in any other way support the show. It’s a very divisive period now and I think this show got caught up in all that division.”