DES MOINES, Iowa –- It's been a decade since Tana Goertz was cut from season three of “The Apprentice,” but now Donald Trump has hired her to work on his campaign in Iowa.
“I knew someday I would be working for Donald Trump,” the Iowa entrepreneur and radio personality said in an interview with The Huffington Post. "Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think it would be to get him in the White House and become our next president."
Trump announced last week that Goertz had been hired as a co-chair for his Iowa campaign.
After Goertz's time on “The Apprentice,” the college dropout made a career in public speaking and radio. She said she plans to use her expertise to educate Iowans on why they should vote for the real estate mogul turned Republican presidential candidate.
“They are going to utilize me at my best skill set, which is motivating people, getting volunteers, creative promotions,” Goertz said.
Watch the interview with Goertz above.
Goertz and Trump have kept in touch ever since spending 18 weeks together on national television. They even had a chance to catch up at one of Trump’s campaign stops in Winterset, Iowa, last month.
“He realizes that I’m good for his brand and he was great for my brand,” said Goertz, who finished her time on "The Apprentice" as a runner-up.
Trump’s recent inflammatory comments suggesting that Mexican immigrants are criminals and rapists have cost him business and drawn criticism from other GOP candidates. But Goertz says that's all a misunderstanding.
“What he was saying wasn’t that all of Mexico has horrible people, he wasn’t saying that at all,” she said. “He was saying that there are criminals that are coming in illegally. We are a country of laws and he wants to instill those laws.”
In a Washington Post article last week, other former "Apprentice" contestants sounded off, distancing themselves from “The Donald -- something Goertz finds disappointing.
“I am voting for him and I'm doing that unapologetically and all of those other contestants know him, and they know deep down in their hearts he is capable of turning this country around,” she said.
Goertz was known as the “Bedazzling Queen" during her time on the show, adorning her apparel with sequins and other bling -- something she says she continues to do today.
“I’m proud to say I still bedazzle. All of my Trump shirts are bedazzled,” she said.
This loyal supporter invites those offended by Trump's remarks to come out to his campaign events and give him another shot.
“Come out and listen to him and I guarantee you won’t be disappointed,” Goertz said.
According to a recent Quinnipiac poll, Trump is in second place in Iowa, claiming 10 percent of support among likely caucusgoers.
HuffPost Pollster, which combines all publicly available polling data, places Trump first in the GOP primary field nationally, with 15.8 percent support.
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