US President Joe Biden is set to deliver his State of the Union address later today - his first in front of a divided congress. apiotrowski9 9News MORE:
address on Tuesday evening, he'll speak in front of nearly every influential federal official in Washington - including members of Congress, top military brass, US Supreme Court justices and senior officials within his administration.
According to the National Constitution Centre, the tradition of a designated survivor during the State of the Union speech began in the 1950s as a result of fears of a nuclear attack during the Cold War. The updated line of succession was spurred by president Franklin D. Roosevelt's death in 1945, which led to Harry Truman's assumption to the highest office.
The secretaries of Interior and Agriculture tie for the most frequent designated survivor appointments, with seven designations each. Conversely, Democratic presidents were the only ones to appoint their secretaries from Health and Human Services, the Department of Transportation and the Department of Homeland Security to serve as a designated survivor during the State of the Union address.
Acting Cabinet secretaries are eligible for the line of succession if they have been Senate-confirmed for other positions, according to 2003 congressional testimony from John Fortier, executive director of the continuity of government commission.
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