The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.
While the current presidential cabinet includes sixteen members, George Washington’s cabinet included just four original members: Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of War Henry Knox, and Attorney General Edmund Randolph. Washington set the precedents for how these roles would interact with the presidency, establishing the cabinet as the chief executive's private, trusted advisors.
https://www.senate.gov/about/powers-procedures/nominations/first-cabinet-confirmation.htm "On September 11, 1789, the new federal government under the Constitution took a large step forward. On that day, the president of the United States sent his first cabinet nomination to the Senate for its “advice and consent.” Minutes later, perhaps even before the messenger returned to the president’s office, senators approved unanimously the appointment of Alexander Hamilton to be secretary of the treasury...In establishing the first cabinet departments, Congress considered treasury to be the most important. Legislators spelled out its responsibilities in great detail and provided staff resources greater than all other government agencies combined." United States Senate | About Nominations | Historical Highlights
April 5, 2024
The Cabinet’s role is to advise the President on any subject he or she may require relating to the duties of each member’s respective office.
President Joe Biden’s Cabinet includes Vice President Kamala Harris and the heads of the 15 executive departments — the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, and the Attorney General. Additionally, the Cabinet includes the White House Chief of Staff, the US Ambassador to the United Nations, the Director of National Intelligence, and the US Trade Representative, as well as the heads of the Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Management and Budget, Council of Economic Advisers, Office of Science and Technology Policy, and Small Business Administration.
President Biden’s Cabinet reflects his pledge to appoint leaders of government agencies that reflect the country they aim to serve.
In order of succession to the Presidency:
Kamala Harris
VICE PRESIDENT
Antony Blinken
SECRETARY OF STATE
Dr. Janet Yellen
SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY
Lloyd Austin
SECRETARY OF DEFENSE
Merrick Garland
ATTORNEY GENERAL
Deb Haaland
SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Tom Vilsack
SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE
Gina Raimondo
SECRETARY OF COMMERCE
Julie Su
ACTING SECRETARY OF LABOR
Xavier Becerra
SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Marcia Fudge
SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Pete Buttigieg
SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION
Jennifer Granholm
SECRETARY OF ENERGY
Dr. Miguel Cardona
SECRETARY OF EDUCATION
Denis McDonough
SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS
Alejandro Mayorkas
SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Michael Regan
ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Avril Haines
DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE
Katherine Tai
UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Linda Thomas-Greenfield
UNITED STATES AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS
Jared Bernstein
CHAIR OF THE COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC ADVISERS
Isabel Guzman
ADMINISTRATOR OF THE SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
Shalanda Young
DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET
Dr. Arati Prabhakar
DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY
William Burns
DIRECTOR OF THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
Jeff Zients
CHIEF OF STAFF
Established in Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution, the Cabinet’s role is to advise the President on any subject he may require relating to the duties of each member’s respective office.
President Donald J. Trump’s Cabinet includes Vice President Mike Pence and the heads of the 15 executive departments – the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, and the Attorney General. Additionally, the Cabinet includes the White House Chief of Staff and heads of the Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Management and Budget, United States Trade Representative, Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and Small Business Administration.
President Trump’s Cabinet
Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue
Acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen
Director of the Central Intelligence Agency Gina Haspel
Secretary of Commerce Wilbur L. Ross, Jr.
Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher C. Miller
Secretary of Education Elisabeth Prince DeVos
Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Andrew Wheeler
Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar
Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Benjamin S. Carson, Sr.
Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt
Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia
Director of the Office of Management and Budget Russ Vought
Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe
Administrator of the Small Business Administration Jovita Carranza
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao
Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert Wilkie
Vice President Michael R. Pence
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows
the WHITE HOUSE PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA
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The tradition of the Cabinet dates back to the beginnings of the Presidency itself. Established in Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution, the Cabinet's role is to advise the President on any subject he may require relating to the duties of each member's respective office.
The Cabinet includes the Vice President and the heads of 15 executive departments — the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, as well as the Attorney General.
In order of succession to the Presidency:
Vice President of the United States
Secretary Jack Lew
treasury.gov
The following positions have the status of Cabinet-rank: