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The United States Cabinet (usually simplified as "the Cabinet") is composed of the most senior appointed officers of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States, and its existence dates back to the first American President (George Washington), who appointed a Cabinet of four people to advise and assist him in his duties. Cabinet officers are nominated by the President and then presented to the United States Senate for confirmation or rejection. If approved, they are sworn in, receive the title "Secretary," and begin their duties. The Cabinet in federal law There is no explicit definition of the term "Cabinet" in either the United States Code or the Code of Federal Regulations. However, there are occasional references to "cabinet-level officers" or "secretaries", which when viewed in context appear to refer to the heads of the "executive departments" as listed in . Recent decline in influence Though the Cabinet is still an important organ of bureaucratic management, in recent years, the Cabinet has generally declined in relevance as a policy making body. Starting with President Franklin Roosevelt, the trend has been for Presidents to act through the Executive Office of the President or the National Security Council rather than through the Cabinet. This has created a situation in which non-Cabinet officials such as the White House Chief of Staff, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and the National Security Advisor have power as large or larger than some Cabinet officials. Traditionally, the most powerful and relevant Cabinet members are the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Defense, and the Attorney General. In recent years, the Secretary of Homeland Security has risen to a level of significance that is arguably closer to the "big four" than to the other cabinet offices. During a meeting of the President's Cabinet, the Secretaries of State and Defense are seated directly to the left and right of the President. Line of succession The Cabinet is also important in the presidential line of succession, which determines an order in which Cabinet officers succeed to the office of the president following the death or resignation of the Vice President, Speaker of the House and the President pro tempore of the Senate. Because of this, it is common practice not to have the entire Cabinet in one location, even for ceremonial occasions like the State of the Union Address, where at least one Cabinet member does not attend. This person is the designated survivor, and they are held at a secure, undisclosed location, ready to take over if the President, Vice President, and the rest of the Cabinet are killed. Current Cabinet As of Norman Mineta's resignation in July 2006, the Cabinet is composed as follows: Cabinet-level administration offices Six positions have cabinet-level rank, but are not Secretaries of Executive Departments, meaning those people are permitted to attend Cabinet meetings. They are: Level I of the Executive Schedule Level I of the Executive Schedule is the pay grade for cabinet officials. In addition to the fifteen cabinet secretaries, seven positions are listed in the Level I, of which only four (Administrator of the EPA, Director of the OMB, the Drug Czar, and the U.S. Trade Representative) are in the cabinet. The remaining three are: Former Cabinet positions Proposed Cabinet positions Books See also | |||||||
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