From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The
Cabinet of the United States
(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 (
Secretary of State
,
Thomas Jefferson
;
Secretary of the Treasury
,
Alexander Hamilton
;
Secretary of War
,
Henry Knox
; and
Attorney General
,
Edmund Randolph
) 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
by a
simple majority
. If approved, they are
sworn in
and begin their duties. Aside from Attorney General, and previously, the
Postmaster General
, they all receive the title
Secretary
.
The Cabinet officers are listed in rank order according to the
United States presidential line of succession
:
Cabinet
Office
(Constituting instrument)
|
Incumbent
|
Took office
|
Vice President
(Constitution, Art. II, Sec. I)
|
Kamala Harris
|
January 20, 2021
|
Secretary of State
(
22 U.S.C.
§ 2651a
)
|
Antony Blinken
|
January 26, 2021
|
Secretary of the Treasury
(
31 U.S.C.
§ 301
)
|
Janet Yellen
|
January 25, 2021
[1]
|
Secretary of Defense
(
10 U.S.C.
§ 113
)
|
Lloyd Austin
|
January 22, 2021
|
Attorney General
(
28 U.S.C.
§ 503
)
|
Merrick Garland
|
March 11, 2021
|
Secretary of the Interior
(
43 U.S.C.
§ 1451
)
|
Deb Haaland
|
March 16, 2021
|
Secretary of Agriculture
(
7 U.S.C.
§ 2202
)
|
Tom Vilsack
|
February 23, 2021
|
Secretary of Commerce
(
15 U.S.C.
§ 1501
)
|
Gina Raimondo
|
March 3, 2021
|
Secretary of Labor
(
29 U.S.C.
§ 551
)
|
Julie Su
(Acting)
|
March 11, 2023
|
Secretary of Health and Human Services
(Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1953,
67
Stat.
631 and
42 U.S.C.
§ 3501
)
|
Xavier Becerra
|
March 19, 2021
|
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
(
42 U.S.C.
§ 3532
)
|
Adrianne Todman
(Acting)
|
March 22, 2024
|
Secretary of Transportation
(
49 U.S.C.
§ 102
)
|
Pete Buttigieg
|
February 2, 2021
|
Secretary of Energy
(
42 U.S.C.
§ 7131
)
|
Jennifer Granholm
|
February 25, 2021
|
Secretary of Education
(
20 U.S.C.
§ 3411
)
|
Miguel Cardona
|
March 2, 2021
|
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
(
38 U.S.C.
§ 303
)
|
Denis McDonough
|
February 9, 2021
|
Secretary of Homeland Security
(
6 U.S.C.
§ 112
)
|
Alejandro Mayorkas
|
February 2, 2021
|
The following officials hold positions that are considered to be Cabinet-level positions. Cabinet-level officials attend Cabinet meetings, but are not official Cabinet Members:
Cabinet-level Officials
Office
|
Incumbent
|
Term began
|
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
(
5 U.S.C.
§ 906
,
Executive Order
11735
)
|
Michael S. Regan
|
March 11, 2021
|
Director of the Office of Management and Budget
(
31 U.S.C.
§ 502
,
Executive Order
11541
,
Executive Order
11609
,
Executive Order
11717
)
|
Shalanda Young
|
March 24, 2021
[2]
|
Director of National Intelligence
(
50 U.S.C.
§ 3023
)
|
Avril Haines
|
January 21, 2021
[3]
|
Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
(
50 U.S.C.
§ 3036
)
|
William Joseph Burns
|
March 19, 2021
|
Trade Representative
(
19 U.S.C.
§ 2171
)
|
Katherine Tai
|
March 18, 2021
|
Ambassador to the United Nations
|
Linda Thomas-Greenfield
|
February 25, 2021
|
Chair of the
Council of Economic Advisors
|
Jared Bernstein
|
July 10, 2023
|
Administrator of the Small Business Administration
(
15 U.S.C.
§ 633
)
|
Isabel Guzman
|
March 17, 2021
|
Director of the
Office of Science and Technology Policy
|
Arati Prabhakar
|
October 3, 2022
|
White House Chief of Staff
(
Pub.L.
76-19, 53
Stat.
561, enacted April 3, 1939,
Executive Order
8248
,
Executive Order
10452
,
Executive Order
12608
)
|
Jeff Zients
|
February 8, 2023
|