Character

Roger Tribby

reverent naïve/inexperienced respectful ceremonial/observational

Roger Tribby serves as the Secretary of Agriculture and is the named designated survivor in the State of the Union sequence. He arrives as a relatively obscure, ceremonial cabinet presence who responds to the presidency with visible reverence and humility. Bartlet converts constitutional procedure into a personal stewardship lesson for Tribby, revealing the secretary’s inexperience yet steady deference. Tribby functions as an institutional anchor for rural policy while becoming an inadvertent human mirror for the moral weight of executive succession, connecting him to Josh, Donna, Leo, Charlie, and the President.

5 appearances

Also known as: Roger

Roger Tribby's Journey

A timeline through the narrative

5 moments

S1E12 · He Shall, From Time To Time...

Choosing the Designated Survivor

Not directly shown; implicitly thrust into an awkward honor — a mix of duty, surprise, and potential isolation as a named sacrificial placeholder.

Roger Tribby is named by Josh as the designated survivor; he is not present but becomes the chosen figure whose absence will be required, making him an immediate, albeit off-screen, …

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S1E12 · He Shall, From Time To Time...

Designated Survivor & Sam's Reckless Statement

Implicitly vulnerable and overwhelmed by the idea of sudden prominence (implied by context and Donna's reaction).

Roger Tribby is named by Josh as the designated survivor; he is not present but is narratively conscripted into a constitutional ritual that highlights his obscurity and symbolic burden.

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S1E12 · He Shall, From Time To Time...

Designated Survivor Briefing — From Ceremony to Command

Awed and slightly embarrassed but attentive; pride at offering the gift shifts to anxious vulnerability when confronted with the weight of succession duties.

Roger Tribby stands in the Oval, offers a carefully chosen, reverential gift, listens as Bartlet reads, reacts with shy pride, then admits he hasn't considered succession responsibilities — becoming the …

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S1E12 · He Shall, From Time To Time...

A Quiet Test of Trust (Leo Overhears)

Intimidated, awed, and quietly anxious — confronted with the gravity of potential succession and the intimate criterion Bartlet sets.

Standing before the Presidential seal as Bartlet questions him, Tribby listens and implicitly responds to the moral line of questioning; after Bartlet and Charlie leave, he remains in the Oval, …

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S1E12 · He Shall, From Time To Time...

Practical Succession — Bartlet's Quiet Hand-off

Overwhelmed, awed, and inwardly alarmed — alternately honored and frightened by the prospect of suddenly inheriting real responsibility.

Roger Tribby listens in silence to Bartlet's questions and instructions, stands beneath the Presidential seal in the Oval after Bartlet and Charlie leave, and registers visible awe and the physical …

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