1. Executive Departments

2. 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

3. 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

4. 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

6. 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

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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

10. 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