Lenny Skutnicks

Lenny Skutnicks is a term used by presidnetial speech writers to refer to guests at the State of the Union Address that the President points to in order to illustrate a point.

The term comes from Lenny Skutnick, the first guest so used. He an unextrodinary individual who jumped into the Potomac river to try to save victims of a plane crash. President Ronald Reagan pointed to him as an example of the American ideal in his 1982 speech.

Since that time all subsequent presidents have used this trick. They point to ordinary people to discuss tax cuts. Prominent guests are also included such as Adnan Pachachi the President of the Iraqi Governing Council, who George W. Bush pointed to in the 2004 speech.

These special guests are seated next to the First Lady during the course of the speech.