Choosing the Designated Survivor
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Josh handles a phone call about an important invitation to the President, emphasizing its urgency.
Donna interrupts Josh with a message from Leo, hinting at a critical task involving the line of succession.
Josh explains to Donna the protocol of keeping someone from the line of succession away during the State of Union for security reasons.
Donna humorously volunteers herself for the task, leading Josh to reveal his choice of Roger Tribby, the Secretary of Agriculture.
Josh advises Donna to be kind to Margaret and Leo, acknowledging the gravity of the day's events.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Businesslike and steady; acting as the steady administrative conduit between senior staff members rather than expressing personal judgment.
Margaret does not appear on-screen but is the catalyst: she physically visited earlier and conveyed Leo's instruction that Josh must 'pick a guy,' making her the procedural messenger who propels the decision into immediacy.
- • Ensure Leo's operational instruction is delivered promptly and accurately.
- • Maintain order and make certain necessary contingencies are enacted.
- • Shield senior staff from lapses in protocol via timely reminders.
- • Small procedural details matter for the functioning of the White House.
- • It is her duty to pass on directives without commentary.
- • Delays or omissions in such reminders could have outsized consequences.
Controlled, mildly weary professionalism with an undercurrent of protective concern for colleagues; businesslike but aware of the personal implications of his choice.
Josh receives news of the presidential invitation, interprets the security protocol, hears Margaret's reminder through Donna, weighs Donna's offer, and formally names Roger Tribby while softening the decision with a personal admonition about Margaret and Leo.
- • Fulfill the security protocol by selecting an appropriate designated survivor.
- • Minimize disruption and emotional fallout among staff.
- • Communicate the decision quickly and clearly to prevent speculation.
- • Procedural compliance is necessary to protect the presidency and staff.
- • Choosing the right person requires balancing protocol with compassion.
- • Margaret and Leo will bear part of the burden of implementing and managing consequences.
Bright and wanting to be helpful; a mix of competitiveness and vulnerability when deflected, masking bruised pride with humour.
Donna interrupts Josh with the message from Margaret, tries to volunteer herself enthusiastically as the designated survivor, jokes about moving up in succession, and accepts Josh's decision with visible disappointment but compliance.
- • Be useful and visible; prove her worth to Josh.
- • Protect the President by volunteering for sacrifice if needed.
- • Maintain closeness and rapport with Josh through initiative.
- • Her loyalty and willingness make her a logical choice.
- • Being chosen would demonstrate real trust and value in her role.
- • Operational decisions are also personal ones with emotional consequences.
Leo is absent but is the originator of the reminder; his authority is invoked to compel Josh to act, positioning …
Roger Tribby is named by Josh as the designated survivor; he is not present but becomes the chosen figure whose …
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
A doorway is used as a physical and rhetorical threshold: Donna knocks, enters, and later Josh and Donna pass through doors into the bullpen, lobby, and hallway. The door punctuates shifts from private phone call to public administrative exchange.
A desk phone initiates the scene and grounds the action: Josh finishes a call about the President's invitation to address Congress, which triggers the subsequent reminder and rush to name a designated survivor. The phone converts an administrative trace (an invitation) into immediate human work.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The Northwest Lobby is the liminal corridor where the conversation continues; its transitory character forces a brisk, efficient exchange about continuity, converting Margaret's private visit into an administrative action.
The hallway is the conduit they pass through as the subject moves from private note to named contingency; opening doors and moving through the hallway underline the forward motion of the decision.
Josh's office is the immediate staging ground: a private workspace where a routine call about an invitation becomes a seed for contingency planning. It contains the intimacy and authority of Josh's role and is the place where Margaret's message first lands.
Josh's bullpen area functions as a transitional workplace where private orders spill into the team's awareness; Donna follows Josh out of his office and the brief, logistical exchange continues amid the low hum of staff activity.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Leo's instruction to Margaret to remind Josh to 'pick a guy' directly leads to Josh selecting Roger Tribby as the designated survivor."
"Leo's instruction to Margaret to remind Josh to 'pick a guy' directly leads to Josh selecting Roger Tribby as the designated survivor."
"Margaret's curiosity about being excluded from meetings parallels Josh's explanation of the 'designated survivor' protocol, both touching on the theme of hidden responsibilities."
"Margaret's curiosity about being excluded from meetings parallels Josh's explanation of the 'designated survivor' protocol, both touching on the theme of hidden responsibilities."
Key Dialogue
"Someone from the line of succession is required to be absent from the State of the Union."
"I think you should pick me. You think so?"
"Roger Tribby. Listen. Be sweet to Margaret and Leo today. This might not be the worst day of their lives, but it's got to be in the top five."