The Cabinet is that part of the Executive branch of the United States Government consisting of the heads of the executive departments. The term Cabinet is nowhere found in the United States Constitution, and the only reference to it within the Constitution is in the 25th Amendment which states that the Vice-President and a majority of the principal officers of the departments can transmit a notice that the President is unfit for office. The Cabinet is also important in Presidental succession, with the Cabinet officers in the line of succession after the 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.
Unlike the Cabinets in parliamentary systems, where the Prime Minister is frequently first among equals, the officials in the United States Cabinet are strongly subordinate to the President. In addition, the United States Cabinet does not play a collective legislative role as do the Cabinets in parliamentary systems.
In recent years, the Cabinet has become less and less important as a policy making body. Starting with Franklin Roosevelt, the trend has been for Presidents to act through the Executive Office of the President 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 Cabinet officials.
The members of the cabinet are appointed by The President and are approved by congress.
It includes:
- Secretary of State
- Secretary of the Treasury
- Secretary of Defense (prior to 1947, the Secretary of War and Secretary of the Navy)
- Attorney General (head of the Department of Justice)
- Secretary of the Interior
- Secretary of Agriculture
- Secretary of Commerce
- Secretary of Labor (prior to 1913, there was one Secretary of Commerce and Labor.)
- Secretary of Health and Human Services (prior to ____, this position and that of Education were united in the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare.)
- Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
- Secretary of Transportation
- Secretary of Education
- Secretary of Energy
- Secretary of Veterans' Affairs
(Between the years 18__ and 19__, the Post Office Department headed by the Postmaster General was a Cabinet-level executive agency.)
This structure will change with as the new department of homland security comes into existance.