But when the rest of the government is gathered together for a big event, like President Donald Trump's State of the Union address Tuesday night, a designated survivor is kept away to ensure someone in the line of leadership succession stays alive. It also enhances your prayer that it doesn't happen to you," James Nicholson, who was President George W. Bush's veterans affairs secretary and designated survivor during the 2006 State of the Union, said of possibly becoming president after a cataclysmic event. "The idea of, you're just a random Cabinet official, and then something terrible happens and, all of a sudden, you're president of the United States," said Graff, author of "Raven Rock: The Story of the U.S. Government's Secret Plan to Save Itself — While the Rest of Us Die."
Author: Will Weissert, Associated Press
Published at: 2026-02-24 22:51:06
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