politics
February 24, 2026
Ross Worthington: The speechwriter behind the State of the Union
Welcome to Tuesday’s Washington Secrets, which brings you a State of the Union preview. We explain why you need a subpoena to get Donald Trump’s chief speechwriter to spill the beans on his process. We also run the rule over the Democratic response and take a look at the odds of the president saying “discombobulator” tonight…
TL;DR
- Ross Worthington is Donald Trump's chief speechwriter, responsible for drafting the State of the Union address.
- Worthington monitors Trump's Truth Social feed, employs a 'double-blind' fact-checking process, and incorporates feedback from the president.
- Governor Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat and former CIA officer, will deliver the party's response to the State of the Union.
- Spanberger faces criticism from Republicans for her involvement in approving new congressional maps that benefit Democrats.
- The article notes a betting market exists for specific words President Trump may use during his speech, including 'trillion' and 'discombobulator'.
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