Executive Departments
Cabinet Departments
15 Departments
First cabinet had three department
secretaries, State, Treasury, and War – Also
the Attorney General
Each department specializes in a certain
aspect of the federal government
Each department has a secretary that heads
or runs it
The only exception is the Attorney General
who heads the Department of Justice
Subunits
Each department has specialized subunits
that answer to the head of that department
Example: Department of Justice
• Terrorism and Violent Crime Section
• Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Section
Most departments have offices in areas other
than Washington DC
Example: Veterans Health Administration
173 medical centers and over 300 outpatient
clinics
The President’s Cabinet
Advisory body
Not mentioned in the Constitution
It has evolved through custom and tradition
Vice President usually is a part of the cabinet
meetings
Original Cabinet was:
Secretary of State: Thomas Jefferson
Secretary of Treasury: Alexander Hamilton
Secretary of War: Henry Knox
Attorney General: Edmund Randolph
How are Cabinet
Member Chosen?
The President nominates
a candidate
The Senate holds hearings
and questions the candidate
They can reject or approve the candidate
With Senate approval the candidate is
sworn in and becomes the Secretary or
Attorney General
What does the President look
for?
Same political party
Party loyalty
Professional qualifications and practical
experience
Chooses from different regions to balance out
the cabinet
Gender and race – increasingly appoint a
varied cabinet
Management ability and experience
Women and Minorities in the
Cabinet
FDR appointed the first women – Frances
Perkins as Secretary of Labor
Lyndon Johnson appointed the first African
American – Robert Weaver –HUD
Gerald Ford – first combination of women,
Carla Hills (HUD) and African American,
William Coleman (Sec. of Transportation)
Jimmy Carter – first African American
woman – Patricia Harris – HUD and later
Health and Human Services
Ronald Reagan: First Hispanic Lauro
Cavazos – Sec. of Education
William Clinton: over 8 years in office:
Five women, six African Americans, four
Hispanics, and the first Asian American –
Norman Mineta – Sec. of Commerce
George W. Bush: over 7 years in office
Four African Americans, six women including
the first Chinese American, Elaine Chao (Sec.
of Labor), two Hispanics, and retained a
Democrat Norman Mineta as Sec.
Transportation
What does the Cabinet do?
Administers their departments
Advises the President
Some Presidents have relied on their cabinets:
George H. W. Bush
William Jefferson Clinton
Some Presidents have barely used their cabinets:
JFK said meeting with his cabinet was a waste of time
Andrew Jackson had his group of informal advisors
called the “Kitchen Cabinet”
FDR’s Brain Trust was a group apart from his cabinet